The project adds management offices, a 75-person cabaret, and a 540-person reception center to the existing theatre, itself a conversion of the Philip Johnson Theaterama of the 1960 World`s Fair. The curving form of the cabaret and the cylindrical structure of the reception center complement the circular geometry of the original round building and the 1991 tower additions. The transparent curtain wall, curving sunscreens, and spherical acoustical ceiling result in a dramatic point of entry to the world of the performance and to view of the phantasmagoric remains of old Fair dreams.
Constructed, 1964
Renovation, 1985
Addition, 2010
A 2008–10 addition, designed by Caples Jefferson Architects with Lee/Timchula Architects, added a reception hall. A transparent circular pavilion, it is said to be "especially dramatic at twilight, when the sunset-colored, invert dome appears to hover and flow in the dark."
Adapted from the former Theaterama at the 1964 New York World's Fair
American Professional Theater
The surround cinema was converted into a multipurpose "legitimate" theater in the 1970s, requiring the addition of a stage, public restrooms, lobby, dressing rooms, and stage house
In 1964, the audience stood and viewed a travelog of New York State projected on screens lining the inside of the circular room