Performing arts center finally to open at ground zero in NYC

Launching after 2 decades of setbacks, changed plans

NEW YORK — In a mammoth room behind translucent marble walls, workers are setting the stage for the World Trade Center’s newest addition.

It isn’t another office tower, nor is it a monument, at least explicitly, to the memory of the Sept. 11 terror attacks. It’s a theater complex.

Envisioned two decades ago to add vibrancy and draw people to a place of devastation and mourning, the Perelman Performing Arts Center is finally arriving at a very different ground zero. The site is ringed by new skyscrapers and located in a neighborhood that has more residents than before the attacks. Annually, millions of visitors come to the memorial and museum.

Still, organizers believe the arts space, also called “PAC NYC,” has an important role to play in one of the most sensitive, historic spaces in the United States.

“The memorial is here for people to come and grieve and pay their respects. The museum is for people to learn, be aware and never forget,” says Khady Kamara, PAC NYC’s executive director. “And the Performing Arts Center is here for people to celebrate life and really celebrate the resilience of New Yorkers and of the country.”

Perhaps befitting a space for theatrical drama, the $560 million institution has been through no shortage of its own. There were financial roadblocks, political buffeting and a yearslong wait for construction to begin while its designated spot accommodated a temporary transit hub. Leaders, architects, design and occupants changed.

Now the curtain is set to rise Sept. 19 with the first of five concerts focused on a theme