Hell's Kitchen's Irish Arts Center Unveils New $60M Building

HELL'S KITCHEN, NY — The Irish Arts Center is giving neighbors a first look at its expansive new Hell's Kitchen home, set to open within weeks as the neighborhood's newest venue for theater, dance, music and more.

Since 2018, the organization has been at work converting the century-old Cybert tire shop and garage on 11th Avenue near West 51st Street into a five-story, 21,700-square-foot venue. The new headquarters is just around the corner from the small tenement that the Arts Center has occupied for decades, following its 1972 founding in the East Village.

Now, the $60 million building is ready for a December opening, the Arts Center announced Monday, along with a full slate of programming and ticket sales for its inaugural season.

Part of the city's Off-Off-Broadway theater scene, the Irish Arts Center has broadened its mission to coincide with the new space, now calling itself "a vital, inclusive multidisciplinary institution" interwoven with the cultural ecosystems of both Ireland and New York.

The opening season will premiere on Dec. 4 with "Where Are We Now?", a dramatic performance by the Irish cabaret singer Camille O'Sullivan. She will be followed in February by "The Same," a "mind-bending drama" by playwright Enda Walsh.

Designed by architects Davis Brody Bond, the new building is centered around a 199-seat performance space that will host theater, music, visual arts, as well as residencies and special events. Also in the building are a new studio for classes, rehearsals and gatherings; a library classroom; and an atrium bordered by the historic facade of the old Cybert Tire building.

The ground floor hosts a cafe operated by Ardesia, whose wine bar is steps away on West 52nd Street. That space is designed to evoke "the warmth of Irish hospitality," with wood paneling reminiscent of the Arts Center's old space on 51st Street.

Funding for the project came in part from the city and state, as well as the Irish government, corporate foundations and hundreds of private donors. The Arts Center increased its annual budget from $690,000 in 2007 to more than $4 million by last year, as it widened its scope and secured more than $65 million in capital support.

"For more than four decades, the Irish Arts Center has provided a space to showcase Irish culture in New York," Irish President Michael D. Higgins said in a news release. "Now the Center begins a bold new chapter, in an impressive building that is a dynamic space for artists."

During the pandemic, the Arts Center was forced to pause construction and much of its programming, but rebounded by starting an online-only, multidisciplinary season of classes as well as an art series designed to be experienced virtually. The building resumed construction last July, and was completed within its $60 million budget.

"The new Irish Arts Center is a dream realized and a tribute to the broad coalition of people in New York and Ireland who have brought it to life, at a time when we so eagerly need a place to come together with inspiration and hope," said Aidan Connolly, the center's executive director. "But it’s only the beginning. Our opening season is a statement of promise and possibility."

As part of the inaugural season, a limited number of first-row tickets are being made available for no more than $25 each, as well as a discounted $50 membership. Tickets and a full schedule of the first season's events can be found online.