On the 21st anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, the final component of the rebuilt 16-acre World Trade Center site is coming to a close as work nears completion on the Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center, a new performance hall in the Financial District. Designed by REX with Davis Brody Bond Architects as the executive architect and developed by The Perelman, the 138-foot-tall structure stands on a plot bound by Vesey Street to the north, Fulton Street to the south, Greenwich Street to the east, and Skidmore Owings & Merrill‘s One World Trade Center to the west.
At the time of our last update in May, the distinctive marble façade had recently finished installation. Since then, work has shifted to the completion of the ground floor, the setback on the northern side facing Vesey Street, and the surrounding sidewalks. The first level is being clad in dark paneling, creating a striking contrast with the bright cubic volume above.
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
Close-up shots show the details in the marble façade and the dark paneling below, which features a grid of circular cutouts on the bottom of the western profile. This will likely serve as ventilation for the below-grade ramps to the World Trade Center’s vehicle security center that stretches the length of Greenwich Street, with a secondary point of entry below Liberty Park.
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
The north side of the base extends beyond the square outline of the venue and aligns with Vesey Street. Metal clips are attached to portions of the reinforced concrete walls in preparation for installation of the black envelope. An outdoor terrace will sit atop this section.
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
The subway entrance and ADA-accessible elevator sit behind construction fencing on the east side of the site. This will lead down to the local 1 train that runs through the complex.
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center. Photo by Michael Young
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center will feature three main sections: the Public Level on the bottom, the Performer Level in the middle, and the Play Level on top, with a total of 11 different venue arrangements. Visitors will enter the building via a wide staircase tucked under the cantilevering western corner.
According to the Perelman’s website, interior work is well underway with completion of the theater spaces and public lobby level including the café, bar, and terrace on track for the fourth quarter of 2022. The commissioning of the theaters is set for the first quarter of 2023, followed by a soft opening phase that will test the overall operations of the venue and evaluate the experience of the audience.
The Ronald O. Perelman Performing Arts Center is slated for full completion next year.
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I absolutely adore the Performing Arts Center. The marble facade is probably the most mesmerizing and stunning architectural feature in the World Trade Center. Every single view and angle and time of day and weather will give you a unique perspective of the building. This is a very good addition to the ever-expanding New World Trade Center. It really shows the passion for construction and rebuilding, twenty one years later.
The contrast between color of marble and bright towering above, which is located between the gaps of beautiful towers. It’s not over yet on World Trade Center Complex, about Two World Trade Center when will it comes to the site? Thanks to Michael Young.
I find the diagonal dark squiggles on each and every separate one of the thousands of white squares of the outer shell annoying to the eye and tiring to the brain. Was there no alternative way to domesticate that enormous windowless box?
The worst part of the whole World Trade Center rebuilt is Calatrava’s World Trade Center Transportation Hub (Oculus).
“The final component”? Did someone erect WTC2 unbeknownst to us all? LOL. Maybe “one of the final components would be better wording.” It is a spectacular building. The whole place is beautiful. Even WTC1 has grown into an essential part of the New York skyline. IF the whole city were like this it would be ghastly. But as a memorial, a monument it is sculptural and beautiful. It is all a testament to the resilience of New York. Just when the nay sayers had us done, defeated and destroyed. When they said New York was “over” (how often have we heard that – in a single lifetime?) Just look at what we have done. Bravo Davis Broady Bond and all who have worked on the Perelman.
The marble is very pretty for the time being. Unfortunately, air pollution does its thing on carbonate stone. After a century, the Library had to have major repairs to its marble. The travertine of Lincoln Center is becoming problematic.
What isn’t only for the “time being” ?
The marble is laminated inside glass so it’s protected and should keep looking great for a long time.
….so, laminated or not, if a piece of the facade should fail, is there a full back up for the entire building of stone in a warehouse? How do you go back in the future and find a stone that has the same figuring to make a replacement piece? In the future, if/ does the replacement need to be faux marble painted to look like the pattern in order for the architecture of the building to not fail? Architects – what is the answer?!
Who needs an architect if they’re merely going to come up with something like this? The dull, uninspired design reminds me a bit of the Museum of Design at Columbus Circle. How did this get past the drawing board…
If 9/11 hadn’t happened, people would still be complaining on this page that the twin towers weren’t tall enough.
Beautiful photography. I agree with David: thanks to Michael Young.