Photos: Brooklyn Academy Of Music Opens $25M Expansion

FORT GREENE, BROOKLYN — A $25-million expansion to the Brooklyn Academy of Music that has been years in the making officially opened its doors on Tuesday.

The renovation, called BAM Strong, will connect three sites —BAM Harvey Theater, a vacant space at 653 Fulton Street and the ground-floor of 230 Ashland Place — to make the organization's venue more accessible and open its dedicated first visual arts gallery.

Its grand opening — which, in true BAM fashion came with a performance of "Swan Lake/Loch na hEala" — comes after years of planning for the upgrades, which were originally slated to be done in 2017.

"We are thrilled that the project will provide our always adventurous institution with new opportunities—from visual art programming, to easier access to affordable seats, to new spaces for our audiences to gather," BAM Board Chair Adam E. Max said "Having our Fulton Street spaces united under one canopy also reflects the evolution of BAM and the growing Brooklyn Cultural District."

The venue first unveiled the plans for BAM Strong back in March after announcing the project in 2015.

It met delays over the years as it increased in scope and needed to raise more funds, a spokesperson said. The renovation also hit some roadblocks given that original building plans for the 100-year-old Harvey Theater no longer existed, which led workers to have to hand dig an elevator pit and staircase base.

BAM got ready for the upgrades, which completely renovated the historical theater, by giving their followers online a look its past since opening in 1904.

(ELENA OLIVO)

The renovation included a complete upgrade to Harvey Theater's outer lobby, adding the first elevator to get to its balcony level and a new open staircase that will provide more movement between the floors, BAM said.

The second floor also now includes a patron lounge that looks out onto Fulton Street through a floor-to-ceiling, semi-circular window and a terrace that is planned to be the location of an upcoming art installation.

The other major feature of the renovation is a new 1,100-square-foot gallery, called the Rudin Family Gallery. The gallery, named for donor, collector and trustee Beth Rudin DeWoody, will be set up in the vacant spot at 653 Fulton Street between the two other spaces.

The third site, 230 Ashland Place, will be connected to the two spaces by a modern, lighted marquee outside, the organization said, though plans for that area are still in the works.

The grand opening's performance of "Swan Lake/Loch na hEala" not only celebrated the new spaces, but BAM's new artistic director, David Binder's first season. Binder will work with guest curator Larry Ossei-Mensah to put together exhibits and events for the new spaces.

(ELENA OLIVO)