Lincoln Center announced Wednesday that the New York Philharmonic’s new $550 million concert hall will open in October, two years ahead of schedule.
Governor Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams attended a ceremony to get a glimpse of the reimagined David Geffen Hall, which Lincoln Center and Philharmonic officials say will improve the concert experience and provide better acoustics .
The main hall will double in size and feature a media streaming wall that will stream concerts and events for free in real time, along with other digital information.
The redesign also includes a new visitor center on Broadway and a reconfigured Grand Promenade, which can accommodate 1,000 people.
“This new David Geffen Hall, the ingenious behind it, breaking down barriers, bringing people closer to performers. I believe the main takeaway from this pandemic is that people are missing that very human connection,” Hochul said.
“This isolation, this feeling of being alone, it was crippling for so many people and this place is going to be so open and welcoming and bring people together in countless ways… What you see through this window is the future of New York.”
Adams said the new and improved Lincoln Center is another sign the city is “going to come back bigger and better” after the coronavirus pandemic.
The redone concert hall replaces the former Avery Fisher Hall, built in 1962.
