New York City Center

New York City Center Review

New York City Center has a neo-Moorish look, built in 1923 for the Ancient and Accepted Order of the Mystic Shrine. Pause as you enter to admire the beautifully ornate tile work that plasters the lobby; a painstaking 2011 renovation makes the freshly refurbished detail hard to miss. The 2,200-seat main stage is perfectly suited for its role as a showplace for dance and special theatrical events. Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (www.alvinailey.org) and Paul Taylor Dance Company (www.ptdc.org) present their primary New York seasons here. City Center's annual Fall for Dance festival is a must; all tickets are $10, the performances sell out very quickly. Another seasonal highlight—usually throughout January—is the lively productions of the New York Gilbert & Sullivan Players (212/769-1000 www.nygasp.org), which feature such G&S favorites as The Pirates of Penzance and The Mikado, plus rarities like Sullivan's last completed work, The Rose of Persia. The popular Encores! musicals-in-concert series is staged here, as are—on the smaller City Center Stages I and II —a number of productions and programs of the Manhattan Theatre Club and the Pearl Theatre Company.