New York State Theater No. 22 - Opening Night
“The night was mild, a star glittered somewhere in the distance, the water of the plaza fountain soared and splashed, and a brass quintet...
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The History of the New York State Theater
Laury Johnson
Apr 23
New York State Theater No. 20 - Dress Rehearsal
“About 1,000 workmen and their wives will see the New York City Ballet, under George Balanchine’s direction, go through its first dress...
Laury Johnson
Apr 22
New York State Theater No. 18 - Proscenium & Orchestra Pit
“Balanchine looked at the orchestra pit and decided it was much too small. Johnson had not realized that the ballet planned to use a...
Laury Johnson
Apr 21
New York State Theater No. 15 - The Nadelman Statues
“In the New York State Theater, Philip Johnson wanted to counter the highly rectilinear nature of the Grand Promenade with two very large...
Laury Johnson
Apr 20
New York State Theater No. 14 - Curtains & Railings
The Beaded Curtains "From the entire height of the roof, a deep curtain of brass bead drops, shimmering constantly in the slight breath...
Laury Johnson
Apr 19
New York State Theater No. 13 - The Promenade
"The sparse and mineral elegance of the promenade, filled by human movement is symbolic of the New York City Ballet’s spirit and...
Laury Johnson
Apr 19
New York State Theater No. 12 - Lobby & Stairs
“Performances commence when audiences first enter the houses which frame them..." "...large theaters are more than shelter. Intermissions...
Laury Johnson
Apr 17
New York State Theater No. 10 - The Fountain
“A special occasion for city officials was arranged to inaugurate the Lincoln Center fountain. For several months the fountain had been...
Laury Johnson
Apr 17
New York State Theater No. 11 - The Facade & Terrace
“Outside it is a super sight, Greek-like in simplicity and strength, harmony of mass and space. A gem, soothing to the eye inside it is a...
Laury Johnson
Apr 16
New York State Theater No. 9 - The Plaza
“Subsequently, Johnson was asked to develop a plan for the plaza pavement pattern. He proposed a series of concentric circles with spokes...
Laury Johnson
Apr 15
New York State Theater No. 7 - Construction
The New York State Theater was built on schedule and within one percent of its authorized budget. Approximately 1,000 workers were...
Laury Johnson
Apr 15
New York State Theater No. 6 - Travertine
Philip Johnson: “Once the siting was agreed upon, we needed to use materials that would reflect the Classicism I was striving for. Poured...
Laury Johnson
Apr 14
New York State Theater No. 5 - Johnson's Inspiration
Philip Johnson: "The New York State Theater was designed with Classicism in mind. When I began to plan the ballet theater in the 1950s, I...
Laury Johnson
Apr 14
New York State Theater No. 4 - Choosing an Architect
Johnson's History with Early NYCB Philip Johnson was in some way the obvious choice of architect to design what was to be the dance...
Laury Johnson
Apr 13
New York State Theater No. 3 - Coming to Consensus
After agreeing upon the location of each building for Lincoln Center, the architects still needed to come to consensus on visual elements...
Laury Johnson
Apr 13
New York State Theater No. 2 - Visions and Plans
Situating the Six Constituents The preamble to the this story is long and complicated----the displacement of hundreds of families from...
Laury Johnson
Apr 12
New York State Theater No. 1 - Ground Breaking Ceremony
On May 14th, 1959, the groundbreaking ceremony for the future Lincoln Center was held atop the leveled neighborhood of San Juan Hill....
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