The Whitman Theatre Renovation

For the past fifty years, the Brooklyn Center theatre complex has undergone quite a few technological improvements and updates to keep pace with the theatre technologies that are always in flux.  While those improvements have allowed us to mount impressive productions with presentation values that rivaled even some Broadway houses, the  ambiance of the theatres changed in only minor ways.  And now for something completely different!

Thanks to a major five million dollar joint funding appropriation from the City Council, the State Senate, CUNY and Brooklyn College, Brooklyn Center’s Whitman Theatre is undergoing the most extensive renovation project in its history. The very beginnings of the work can already be seen on the exterior of the theatre building with eight stylized wall sculptures, four on each side.  The sculptures carry the stainless steel accents which any long-time patron will recognize as the original orchestral elements that are part of the theatre’s distinctive faux art deco interior. 

The sculptures are mounted en relievo on a background of various orientations, colors and textures of brick, giving the exterior walls an elegant simplicity yet drawing the eye upward with impressive and visually powerful gleaming lines.

This multi-million dollar restoration/renovation project will include a completely new Grand Lobby ceiling and entrance areas, a new Concession area in the Grand Lobby and the refinishing and restoring of the existing marble wall panels as well as the terrazzo floors and staircase steps.

As for the theatre proper, the ceiling will be completely refinished, repairing some water damage and then detailed repainting.  New rugs will replace the existing floor covering; the interior walls will have architectural elements added with wood panels incorporating both design and acoustic enhancements.

  With an eye to preservation, the original seats with their distinctive wooden arm-rests which were the style of the day, will be preserved, but they will be totally stripped to the structural frame and then repainted and refurbished with new, modern cushion materials and plush, wine colored upholstery

Some of the items on the renovation list which will not be immediately apparent to the eye will be a completely new sound system designed by our resident sound engineer Chet Green; it will give better over-all coverage, eliminating dead spots and improving speech intelligibility.  A new and much needed house stage lighting system designed by our resident Lighting Designer, Steve Bailey, are being installed.  The new system will allow for better lighting control via all-digital electronics of the house stage lighting instruments, as well as increasing our dimmer capacity.  This will allow us to mount more technically complex and demanding road shows and bring the biggest name performers and stars to our Brooklyn Patrons.

The architectural firm of Omni Architects is designing the project with oversight by the CUNY and Brooklyn College architects with local oversight and consultation by our Production Manager David Kissel and General Manager/Director, Richard Grossberg.