In an effort to respond to the recommendations from Governor Murphy with respect to the Covid-19 Virus, NBPAC will suspend performances until June 1st, at which time we will reassess the situation.
This move is in support of the well-being of the theater going public as well as our staff and member companies. To learn more about refunds and exchanges, please reach out to your point of purchase.
NEW BRUNSWICK/ RUTGERS UNIVERSITY April 1, 7:30 p.m. New Brunswick Performing Arts Center
‘Masterful . . . Hugely Moving’ The Washington Post
‘Uncannily Spot-on Performance’ TheaterMania
‘Truly novel’ The Weekly Standard
Continuing its acclaimed 2020 national tour, C.S. Lewis Onstage: The Most Reluctant Convert will stop at Rutgers University in New Brunswick for one performance only on Wednesday, April 1, at the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center. The show stars playwright and award-winning actor Max McLean in the title role and is presented by Fellowship for Performing Arts, producer of The Screwtape Letters, The Great Divorce and the Off-Broadway premiere of Paradise Lost, among others.
Fifty-seven years after his death, C.S. Lewis’ books are as popular as ever; The Times of London ranked him 11th on their list of the 50 greatest British writers since 1945. In his day, his lectures on medieval and Renaissance literature made him the most popular professor at Cambridge and Oxford, where he was on faculty alongside his close friend J.R.R. Tolkien. His children’s series The Chronicles of Narnia has collectively sold 100 million copies in 47 languages and enchanted generations of readers around the world, and his two dozen other books have sold upwards of 100 million copies worldwide.
But Lewis was not always such a vocal and prolific Christian author. His journey from hard-boiled atheism to steadfast Christianity, as brought to life in C.S. Lewis Onstage, was trying and painful. As a child, he lost his mother to cancer, which worsened his strained relationship with his father, and he was extremely clumsy with his hands. He deduced that “the universe in the main was a rather regrettable institution.”
McLean inhabits Lewis from the first tragedy of his young life through a series of transformational experiences that turned him, in his own words, into “the most reluctant convert in all England.” “We know going in how the play ends; the show’s promotion gives it away,” writes John Stoltenberg of DC Metro Theater Arts. “But how the play gets there is the intriguing thing.”
Playwright Max McLean is a Lewis scholar, and his script carries audiences along the journey with Lewis’ signature logic, wit and candor, which TheaterMania says gives “your powers of introspection, logical reasoning, and metaphysical theorizing … a good workout!” He devised the script from Lewis’ writings, including his autobiography Surprised by Joy and his Collected Letters, as well as The Problem of Pain, The Weight of Glory, Mere Christianity, God in the Dock, Present Concerns and Christian Reflections. He was also guided by the writings of Douglas Gresham, Tim Keller and other Lewis authorities.
“The astonishing lucidity of his prose, the open-hearted spirit of his storytelling and the exquisite rigor behind his intellect combined to make C.S. Lewis pretty much every atheist’s favorite Christian thinker … and the favorite Christian thinker of many Christians,” writes Chris Jones in the Chicago Tribune.
The Weekly Standard agrees: “C.S. Lewis Onstage delivers something truly novel in modern theater: a story about an immensely creative mind arriving at the threshold of faith … a truthful, richly textured and witty account of religious conversion.”
C.S. Lewis Onstage is set in the Oxford don’s study prior to the publication of his first Narnia story, well before he met his wife, Joy Davidman. (Their relationship is the subject of Shadowlands by William Nicholson, another FPA revival.) From his office, Lewis recounts the waste of life in the trenches of France during World War I, where he concluded that “either there was no god behind the universe, a god who is indifferent to good and evil, or worse, an evil god.”
However, after years of adamant rejection of arguments in favor of Christianity, Lewis came to believe that naturalistic atheism originating solely out of laws of physics and biochemistry could not account for logic and reason. As a 16-year-old, he had picked up a copy of George MacDonald’s Phantastes, which awakened his imagination. In the following years, he avidly read more MacDonald and works by G.K. Chesterton. Influenced by this great literature and respectable Christian friends such as Owen Barfield, Neville Coghill and Tolkien, Lewis determined that moral and aesthetic judgments are valid and meaningful.
This led first to a philosophical theism and then eventually into believing that “God is God,” a tenet similar to that of Judaism. Believing in God forced him to come to terms with the wicked condition of his own heart, which he called “a zoo of lusts, a bedlam of ambitions, a nursery of fears, a harem of fondled hatreds.”
McLean thought that Lewis’ journey to faith would make for an entertaining and surprisingly satisfying experience. “I love this role; it’s a joy to tell Lewis’ story,” he says. “The production has shown a remarkable ability to engage people no matter where they are on their own religious journey.” DC Metro Theater Arts concurs: “Believe it or not, this is one terrific piece of theater. It’s a one-man play about an influential, world-class thinker that’s every bit as smart, fascinating and satisfying as the best such solo performances.” Heidi Weiss of The Chicago Sun-Times adds, C.S. Lewis Onstage is “an exercise in questioning the very essence of what it means to be alive … bristling, provocative, highly entertaining and highly recommended!”
Max McLean is the founder and artistic director of Fellowship for Performing Arts, a New York City-based theatre company producing theatre from a Christian worldview meant to engage diverse audiences in leading performance venues across the country. C.S. Lewis Onstage has reached more than 65,000 theatergoers in Chicago, San Francisco, Boston and the nation’s capital, as well as major campuses from Princeton University to UC Berkeley.
McLean says,
FPA’s conviction is that art and theatre provide an opportunity to engage authentically with the notion of God and the supernatural realm within an imaginative context. In this production we present what we hope is an entertaining theatrical experience in the form of a brilliant young man wrestling with the person of Christ. That is culturally controversial, yet theatre is a great place to wrestle with this subject. For contemporary audiences, figures like C.S. Lewis can provide thoughtful, provocative, multi-layered stories that capture the imagination of diverse audiences.
Max McLean also created the role of Screwtape in FPA’s adaptation of Lewis’ The Screwtape Letters (NYC, London, national tour), and Mark in Mark’s Gospel (Chicago – Jeff Award for Solo Performance). He has brought a production of Genesis from New York on tour across the country. He adapted C.S. Lewis’ The Great Divorce, The Screwtape Letters, Genesis and Mark’s GospeI. He co-wrote Martin Luther on Trial with playwright Chris Cragin-Day. As an actor, his favorite roles include Stanley in A Streetcar Named Desire and Snoopy in You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown. McLean has recorded five narrations of the Bible in its entirety, as well as John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress and Classics of the Christian Faith. His narrations have received four Audie Award nominations.
Calendar Listing
What: C.S. Lewis Onstage: The Most Reluctant Convert
Max McLean as C.S. Lewis
Where: New Brunswick Performing Arts Center
11 Livingston Ave., New Brunswick, NJ 08901
When: One performance only! Wednesday, April 1, 7:30 p.m.
Tickets
Prices: $69 general admission.
$6 student tickets and $25 faculty tickets available by phone, at box office, or online.
For student groups of 10 or more, please email Groups@fpatheatre.com.
Note: All tickets are subject to additional processing fees. No refunds or exchanges.
Online: CSLewisOnStage.com
By Phone: 732.745.8000
In Person: Box office at 11 Livingston Ave., New Brunswick, NJ 08901
For high-resolution photography or to request an interview with Max McLean, please contact Cheryl Anteau at Cheryl@SouthsideEntertainment.net 321.747.0077.
Crossroads Legacy of Being an Incubator of New Works for Production Continues
NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ – January 27,
2020 – Crossroads Theatre Company’s
Genesis Festival of Plays is back for a three-day run of three new
works that stand true to the theatre’s history of telling stories that
highlight issues and start conversations across ethnic, racial and cultural
spectrums, Crossroads announced today.
The Genesis Festival, which will run February 21-23, is a playwright
laboratory experience that consists of three separate shows of stage readings
for the audience to enjoy and critique that will be held in the performance
studio of The New Brunswick Performing Arts Center (NBPAC).
The plays being featured will spotlight the
works of Pia Wilson (Iseult et
Tristan); Crossroads Co-Founder Ricardo Khan (Letters From Freedom Summer); and Lisa B. Thompson (Dinner). The readings
will be hosted by Marshall Jones, Artistic Director of Crossroads Genesis
Festival of New Plays.
”We are excited about the return of Genesis Festival and the intimate
audience participation and
engagement that it offers,” said Anthony P. Carter, President of
Crossroads Board of Trustees. “Crossroads is the people’s theatre and as a
testament to that we invite our members and non-
members to join us to be part of the playwriting development process
and the types of performances we consider to be a part of our upcoming seasons,”
he added.
Since it began 41 years ago, Crossroads has been dedicated to
creating and producing professional theatre at the highest standards of
artistic excellence that brings the voices of the African Diaspora to life and to light.
The Genesis Festival of Plays is free to Crossroads Theatre Company Members. Tickets for non-members are $18 and can be purchased via www.crossrodstheatrecompany.org or at the NBPAC Box Office located at 11 Livingston Avenue New Brunswick, NJ.
Paladino is talking about what’s going to be the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center. It’s a 435,000 square foot facility that represents an investment of about $175 million. It will be home to the George Street Playhouse, Crossroads Theater, American Repertory Ballet and provide performance space for Rutgers University’s Mason Gross school. Read Full Article
New Brunswick Development Corp. is overseeing the development of the new 450,000-square-foot, $172 million project known as the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center. — Courtesy: New Brunswick Development Corp. and Elkus Manfredi Architects
The long-awaited New Brunswick Performing Arts Center broke ground on Wednesday. Here is a breakdown of the $172 million, 450,000-square-foot project.
Theater spaces:
The new theater complex will include two state-of-the-art, proscenium-style theaters, designed to accommodate musical theater, dance, opera and dramatic theater.
The Lyric Theatre, which will seat 462 patrons, will feature an 86-foot stage, a 75-foot fly tower and a trap system, with an orchestra pit that will be able to accommodate 60-70 musicians.
The playhouse, designed primarily for theatrical performances and smaller dancer performances, will have 252 seats and will feature a 60-foot stage and contemporary grid system for lighting and sound and will provide the NBPAC with additional flexibility for lecture, community and musical events to be accommodated.
Rehearsal studios:
Three rehearsal studios will replicate the stage spaces of the two theaters inside the complex, helping maximize the use of the theater venues by providing access to rehearsal time off the main and second stages.
Each studio will be designed to support dance, drama, music rehearsals, general classes, workshops and small public performances.
Office space:
Middlesex County will own 30,000 square feet of office space on two floors above the theater complex, with plans to have arts organizations and potential private sector groups use the space.
Residential:
Owned and operated by Pennrose LLC, a 207-unit residential rental apartment tower will rise above the theater complex, featuring both market-rate and affordable luxury apartment units, equipped with state-of-the-art appliances and finishes, 10-foot ceilings and open floor plans.
The tower will also provide residents with access to amenities such as an outdoor roof deck, a demonstration kitchen, work space and a full fitness center.
The New Brunswick Performing Arts Center development team anticipates partnering with The Actors Fund to market the new luxury units to graphic artists, actors, musicians, dancers and theater support personnel.
If it’s any indication as to how long Chris Paladino has been waiting for the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center, you might say that he has been counting the days.
“It was 3,502 days ago since we first announced this project at the Heldrich Hotel,” said Paladino, the president of the New Brunswick Development Corp., or Devco. “Since then, we’ve experienced the country’s worst recession, the housing bust, the failures of Wall Street — and people stopped giving money to the arts.
“But we didn’t quit on this project,” he added, giving credit to New Brunswick Mayor Jim Cahill. “He wouldn’t let us give up. The mayor continued to remind us how important the arts are to not just our community, but to community as a whole, how the arts strengthen our values and how they build community character and a sense of place. And, maybe most importantly, how the arts enhance the economic viability of a city.” Click here to read full article.
The City of New Brunswick and New Brunswick Development Corporation (Devco) broke ground Wednesday on the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center (NBPAC) project, a $172 million redevelopment initiative that will transform New Brunswick’s Downtown Cultural Arts District.
The New Brunswick Performing Arts Center is a public-private partnership among Devco, the city, Rutgers University, Middlesex County, the state Economic Development Authority, the New Brunswick Cultural Center, Pennrose Properties and the New Brunswick Parking Authority, along with 11 other groups.
The groundbreaking was attended by community leaders, local and state officials, including Mayor Jim Cahill, Rutgers President Robert L. Barchi, state Senate President Stephen M. Sweeney, Middlesex County Freeholder Director Ronald G. Rios and Devco President Christopher J. Paladino. Click here to read full article.
For decades, New Brunswick has been one of the most vibrant arts towns in the state, but the city is just getting started. Construction has begun on the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center, an exciting project which will help cement the city’s “theatre row” as a premier destination for the arts.
The new arts center will be home to George Street Playhouse, Crossroads Theatre Company, American Repertory Ballet, and Mason Gross School of the Arts. Additional organizations may locate there in the future as well. The facility will feature two theater spaces, including a 465-seat lyric proscenium theater, designed to accommodate musical theater, dance, opera, and dramatic theater, with an 86-foot stage and an orchestra pit. It will also include a tower for suspended stage scenery and equipment and a trap system below the stage used for scenery effects. The smaller theater will seat 253 people and is designed for theatrical performances, smaller dance performances and lectures, as well as community and musical events. A new 344-space parking garage on an existing parking lot on Bayard Street, currently owned by the New Brunswick Cultural Center and TD Bank, is also part of the project. Click here to read full article.
Regarded as one of the most significant urban initiatives in New Jersey, the state-of-the-art, multi-use property will transform New Brunswick’s Downtown Cultural Arts District
New Brunswick, NJ – The City of New Brunswick and New Brunswick Development Corporation (Devco) broke ground today on the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center (NBPAC) project, a $172 million redevelopment initiative that will transform New Brunswick’s Downtown Cultural Arts District. The New Brunswick Performing Arts Center is a public-private partnership among Devco, the City of New Brunswick, Rutgers University, Middlesex County, New Jersey Economic Development Authority, New Brunswick Cultural Center, Pennrose, LLC, and New Brunswick Parking Authority, along with 11 other groups and organizations. The groundbreaking was attended by community leaders, local and state officials including New Brunswick Mayor Jim Cahill, Rutgers University President Dr. Robert L. Barchi, New Jersey State Senate President Stephen M. Sweeney, Middlesex County Freeholder Director Ronald G. Rios, and Devco President Christopher J. Paladino.
The NBPAC initiative, a 450,000 square foot project which will be located on the site of the former George Street Playhouse and Crossroads Theater on Livingston Avenue in downtown New Brunswick, will continue to distinguish New Brunswick as a premier center for the performing arts.
“The City of New Brunswick and its partner in redevelopment, Devco, will soon be ushering in a new era for our Cultural Center with the construction of these transformative facilities, further bolstering New Brunswick’s legacy as a place where the arts grow and thrive,” said Mayor Jim Cahill. “The New Brunswick Performing Arts Center is an example of Devco and our City’s expertise in leveraging public-private partnerships for maximum benefit to our community as we further our commitment to the arts, housing, economic development, education and job creation. We are excited to join and thank all our partners who have played an integral role in beginning this next chapter of history for our Cultural Center with this innovative and far-reaching project.”
The innovative redevelopment project, which is expected to open its doors to the public in 2019, will be home to George Street Playhouse, Crossroads Theatre Company, American Repertory Ballet, and Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University-New Brunswick. NBPAC will attract and support arts professionals and organizations, sparking creativity and innovation across New Brunswick’s arts community.
“I would like to thank President Barchi, Senate President Sweeney, Governor Christie, Freeholder Director Rios, NJEDA, Pennrose, the entire New Brunswick cultural arts community, and our other financial partners for being a part of this cutting-edge urban initiative that will be transformational for New Brunswick,” said Christopher J. Paladino, President of Devco. “Devco is proud to be part of New Brunswick’s vibrant arts and cultural community through this groundbreaking redevelopment project and look forward to experiencing the wide-range of benefits it will provide to our city in the near future.”
The new theater complex will include two state-of-the-art, proscenium-style theaters, designed to accommodate musical theater, dance, opera, and dramatic theater. The Lyric Theatre, which will seat 462 patrons, will feature an 86-foot stage, a 75-foot fly tower and a trap system, with an orchestra pit that will be able to accommodate 60-70 musicians. The playhouse, designed primarily for theatrical performances and smaller dancer performances, will have 252 seats and will feature a 60-foot stage and contemporary grid system for lighting and sound and will provide the NBPAC with additional flexibility for lecture, community, and musical events to be accommodated.
In addition to the two theaters, the main building will also contain three rehearsal studios which will replicate the stage spaces of the two theaters inside the complex, helping maximize the use of the theater venues by providing access to rehearsal time off the main and second stages. Each studio will be designed to support dance, drama, music rehearsals, general classes, workshops and small public performances. 30,000 feet of office space will be located on two floors above the theater complex and will be owned by the County of Middlesex intended to be used by arts organizations and potential private sector groups.
“This is an extraordinary example of public-private partnership and a resource that will offer so much for students, artists, theatergoers, local businesses, the city, and the region,” said Robert Barchi, president of Rutgers University. “Rutgers is excited to be part of NBPAC, and we can’t wait to have our students learn and perform here.”
Additionally, a 207-unit residential rental apartment tower will rise above the theater complex, featuring both market rate and affordable luxury apartment units, equipped with state-of-the-art appliances and finishes, 10-foot ceilings, and open floor plans. It will be owned and operated by Pennrose, LLC. Pennrose combines expertise in creating real estate developments of distinction with professional management services to create exceptional lifestyle communities. The residential tower will also provide residents with access to a wide range of amenities, including an outdoor roof deck, a demonstration kitchen, work space, and a full fitness center. The New Brunswick Performing Arts Center development team anticipates partnering with The Actors Fund to market the new luxury units to graphic artists, actors, musicians, dancers and theater support personnel. A 344-space structured parking garage will also be developed on a former surface parking lot as part of the redevelopment project.
“This project is a great example of what the public and private sectors can do when we work together toward a common goal of investing in our communities in ways that create jobs and promote economic activity,” said New Jersey State Senate President Stephen M. Sweeney. “The partnership of the State of New Jersey, New Brunswick, Rutgers University and Devco has helped to transform the city and the region. Arts and entertainment can be important components of a multi-dimensional approach to economic development because they contribute to the economy with construction and permanent jobs and as attractions for commercial activity,” he added.
NBPAC will not only enhance the arts community throughout New Brunswick, but the project will also provide significant economic benefits to the local community. With the creation of the two new theaters, which will attract larger productions and accommodate more shows, the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center estimates that more than 120 full-time equivalent jobs will become available when the facility opens, representing more than a 25% increase in the total number of individuals employed across New Brunswick’s nonprofit arts and culture organizations. Furthermore, the amount of money spent by nonprofit arts and culture organizations, as well as their audiences, is expected to increase with the addition of NBPAC, driving growth in revenue for local businesses and merchants.
“Middlesex County is a place that truly values and invests in our arts community, and that is why we are so very proud of our contributions to the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center,” said Middlesex County Freeholder Director Ronald G. Rios. “This project will help my fellow Freeholders and I reach our goals of giving our residents opportunities to learn, to perform and to enjoy the arts in all its forms, and to boost economic development by making Middlesex County a destination for people from all over the Northeast Region to come for top quality arts and cultural programs and performances. I thank all our partners, especially the New Brunswick Cultural Center, the City of New Brunswick, the State EDA and DEVCO for sharing our commitment,” said Middlesex County Freeholder Director Ronald G. Rios.
NBPAC will continue to support the ongoing contributions of resident companies to provide access across local communities and throughout the state, such as the American Repertory Ballet, whose partnership with the New Brunswick Board of Education has created DANCE POWER, serving more than 1,500 students each year, as well as George Street Playhouse Theater Company, which has brought hundreds of theatrical performances to tens of thousands of students across New Jersey. Moreover, the partnership will be collaborating with the Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University-New Brunswick and their Extension Division to enhance the Extension Division’s efforts as it continues to offer comprehensive year-round educational opportunities in dance, filmmaking, music, musical theater, and visual arts for precollege and adult students.
“Rutgers-New Brunswick and our Mason Gross School of the Arts look forward to partnering with NBPAC, which will contribute to our students’ education, our neighbors’ cultural enrichment, and the region’s economy,” Rutgers University-New Brunswick Chancellor Debasish “Deba” Dutta said.
“Pennrose is proud to collaborate and partner with the many organizations who are involved with this project,” said Richard K. Barnhart, chairman and CEO, Pennrose, LLC. “This iconic development will be instrumental in transforming New Brunswick, New Jersey, and the performing arts, in general.”
“New Brunswick has long been a national model for public-private partnerships. With the 19 partners for this project, this clearly represents one of the largest public-private partnerships in the history of New Jersey,” Paladino added. “NBPAC has the potential to bring true transformational change to the city, the region, and the State of New Jersey.”
The partners include:
New Brunswick Development Corporation
New Brunswick Development Corporation
City of New Brunswick- Pennrose, LLC
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
Middlesex County Improvement Authority
Middlesex County
New Jersey Economic Development Authority
New Jersey Economic Development Authority
New Brunswick Parking Authority
State of New Jersey
George Street Playhouse
Crossroads Theatre Company
American Repertory Ballet
New Brunswick Cultural Center, Inc.
AJD Construction
Elkus Manfredi Architects
nvestors Bank
AEGON- CITI
TD Bank
NEW BRUNSWICK DOWNTOWN CULTURAL ARTS WEIGH IN ON NBPAC
“The New Brunswick Performing Arts Center is a long-cherished dream fulfilled and will usher in a new era for George Street Playhouse. It is a thrilling opportunity to offer our world-class artists a world-class theater facility in which to create. We are incredibly grateful to the City of New Brunswick, Devco, the County of Middlesex, the State of New Jersey, the New Brunswick Cultural Center and all those involved in realizing this extraordinary arts center.” – David Saint, Artistic Director, George Street Playhouse
“It’s amazing to think that 40 years ago, two young Rutgers grads wanted to create a theater company that portrayed honest stories about the black experience in American. These stories are still relevant today. It is pleasing their dreams continue as Crossroads eagerly awaits its third performance venue. There is much gratitude due to the visionary leadership of our Mayor, Rutgers, civic leaders and colleagues in the arts.” – Marshall Jones III, Artistic Director, Crossroads Theatre Company
“It has long been the dream of American Repertory Ballet to be the resident ballet company of a world class Performing Arts Center. The creation of the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center has made this dream come true. This amazing arts partnership will bring the best in dance, drama, and opera to the stage and will make New Brunswick the hottest arts destination in New Jersey. We are extraordinarily humbled by the amazing work it took to bring this project to fruition and graciously wish to thank Mayor Cahill and the City of New Brunswick, the Freeholders of Middlesex County, Christopher Paladino and Devco, as well as the State of New Jersey, the New Brunswick Cultural Center and all other involved in making NBPAC possible.” – Douglas Martin, Artistic Director, American Repertory Ballet
“The New Brunswick Cultural Center takes enormous pride in the role it has played in making the vision of a new Performing Arts Center a reality. The extraordinary efforts of all the public sector partners and our family of cultural non-profit organizations are truly a labor of love brought about by the hard work and dedication of many individuals whose combined efforts will assure that a whole spectrum of arts programming and education will thrive in the City of New Brunswick for generations to come.” – Thomas Kelso, Chairman, New Brunswick of Cultural Center
About New Brunswick Development Corporation (Devco)
New Brunswick Development Corporation (Devco) is a private, nonprofit urban real estate development organization created in the mid-1970’s to initiate redevelopment projects and to serve as the vehicle for public and private economic development investment in the City of New Brunswick, the State of New Jersey and other New Jersey communities.
Fostering public-private partnerships and uniting the interests of New Brunswick, the State of New Jersey and corporate and institutional leadership are key to Devco’s success. Leveraging private, public, state, federal and local resources allows Devco to create high impact redevelopment projects.
Devco accomplishes its mission through the development of mixed-use projects seeking critical mass to address significant public policy challenges. With each redevelopment effort conceived, implemented, or even rejected, Devco has achieved extraordinary success in reclaiming a quality urban lifestyle and setting a tempo that is characteristic of many of America’s great cities.
For more information please visit: http://devco.org/
Please inquire for high-resolution photos.
Media Contact:
Jean Holtz
New Brunswick Development Corporation
(732) 249-2220 jholtz@devco.org
The long-awaited New Brunswick Performing Arts Center has
opened its doors, marking the debut of a $172 million, mixed-use project that
is poised to transform the city’s famed arts district.
A crowd of stakeholders, supporters and dignitaries on
Wednesday packed the lobby of the 23-story building on Livingston Avenue, which
has brought new performance venues, more than 200 apartments and office space
to downtown New Brunswick. The milestone follows some 22 months of construction
and results from a complex array of private and public financing sources, a
partnership that was celebrated during a grand opening ceremony.
“Tonight is all about the arts, community, partnership
and leadership,” said Chris Paladino, the president of New Brunswick
Development Corp., the organization behind the 450,000-square-foot project and
so many other high-profile developments in the city.
Designed by Elkus Manfredi Architects, the complex
occupies the site of the former George Street Playhouse and Crossroads Theater.
It is now the home of both theater companies, which are longtime fixtures in
the city, along with the American Repertory Ballet and Mason Gross School of
the Arts at Rutgers University-New Brunswick.
The groups benefit from two state-of-the-art theaters and
rehearsal studios, while maintaining office space alongside the offices for
Middlesex County’s arts, culture and heritage organizations. The luxury
residential tower that sits atop the venue, owned and operated by Pennrose LLC,
includes a 20 percent set-aside for affordable units and amenities such as an
outdoor roof deck, a demonstration kitchen, work space and a fitness center.
Stakeholders on Wednesday highlighted the new addition to
New Brunswick’s downtown arts district, already one of the best-known in the
state. But they also touted NBPAC as a groundbreaking project for the city and
the latest milestone in more than decades of economic revival.
Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin, a lifelong Middlesex
County resident, called it “the next step in the renaissance that is New
Brunswick.”
“There was a time when New Brunswick wasn’t a place where
you talked about coming for dinner or spending time with your friends,”
Coughlin said. “It’s just the opposite right now. It is the best example of
what redevelopment can do, of what commitment can do and what a special place
you can truly build if you push all in the right direction.”
Rutgers University President Robert Barchi echoed that
sentiment, highlighting NBPAC as a strong example of how public-private
partnerships should work and a “tremendous resource” for Mason Gross and other
members of the arts community. He also touted its broader impact on New
Brunswick, which he said is a product of Devco’s ongoing work in the city.
“This project is transforming the city of New Brunswick
and is adding to the things that you’ve already done here,” Barchi said. “When
my alumni come back — many of them not having seen Rutgers New Brunswick in
five years, 10 years or 20 years — they say, ‘I don’t believe it — this isn’t
the same old Rutgers.’ And my comment to them is, ‘Yeah, it’s not the same old
Rutgers. It’s not the same old New Brunswick, either.’
“And it’s a combination of the dynamism that we see now
in this new and growing New Brunswick and the old and growing Rutgers
University that’s making it an attraction, a draw, bringing some of the best students
here, attracting some of the best faculty here.”
Along with participation by Devco and Pennrose, the
financing package for NBPAC includes Pillar Financial/Fannie Mae, Citibank,
Investors Bank, Aegon and Rutgers University, which helped complete the
transaction alongside private equity sources. The project also involves a long
list of other stakeholders: the city of New Brunswick, Middlesex County, the
state Economic Development Authority, New Brunswick Cultural Center and the New
Brunswick Parking Authority.
The most high-profile among those funding sources is a
$40 million tax credit under the state’s Economic Redevelopment and Growth
program, which was authorized in 2016 last year by special legislation. To that
end, Paladino highlighted the support of key state officials including Senate
President Steve Sweeney, who helped bring the project to fruition.
“He supported us, he solved problems for us and he was
there throughout construction,” Paladino said. “He came on tours and gave
encouragement to the working men and women of the trades.
“And he truly understands that access to talented and
creative people is to the modern economy what access to coal and iron ore was
to steelmaking back in the day. It’s crystal clear that, without his resolve, we
would not be here tonight.”
