NEW YORK CITY: MCC Theater has announced the naming of its new permanent home, the Robert W. Wilson MCC Theater Space. The building, which will open in November on 52nd Street, will house the company’s playwriting and education programs, and two performance spaces. The project was designed by Andrew Berman Architect and has raised more than $37 million toward its $45 million goal.
“Thanks to the tremendous generosity of the Robert W. Wilson Charitable Trust and the City of New York, we are on the brink of realizing our dream of unifying all of MCC’s work and bringing together artists, students, and audiences under one roof,” said Bernard Telsey, co-artistic director, in a statement. “Convening in a physical space that is our own after operating in multiple locations over the last 30 years will bring collaborations to a new level and allow the MCC community to grow and engage with one another in conversations, debate and discovery and ultimately expand the American theatre canon together in really exciting ways.”
MCC Theater was founded in 1986 and has produced works such as The Other Place by Sharr White (which subsequently transferred to Broadway), Wit by Margaret Edson, and most recently School Girls; or, The African Mean Girls Play by Jocelyn Bioh. The theatre has also produced 10 plays by former playwright-in-residence Neil LaBute, including reasons to be pretty, which also transferred to Broadway. It regularly performs at the Lucille Lortel Theatre.
The Robert W. Wilson MCC Theater Space will consolidate MCC’s administrative offices and performance spaces into one building.
The first show to play in the building will be Loy Webb’s The Light (Jan. 9-Feb. 17, 2019), which will inaugurate the 100-seat Susan & Ronald Frankel Theater. The second performance space, the 245-seat Newman Mills Theater, will open with the world premiere of the musical Alice by Heart (Jan. 30-March 10, 2019), with book by Jessie Nelson and Steven Sater (also lyrics), and music by Duncan Sheik.
“MCC is a leader in New York’s world-renowned theatre community—challenging and entertaining audiences with socially engaged work, supporting the growth of many theatre artists, and providing creative opportunities for NYC’s young people,” said Tom Finkelpearl, commissioner of the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs, in a statement. “We congratulate MCC on its new home, and are proud of the City’s significant investment in making it happen. It will allow MCC to continue doing the important work of incubating emerging talent, attracting new audiences, and forging the next generation of theater artists and audiences.”
