Home to The Public Theater’s legendary Free Shakespeare in the Park, The Delacorte reopens its doors in celebration of the arts and the endurance of its communities!
Today, Ennead celebrated the official ribbon cutting of the newly revitalized Delacorte Theater, the legendary open-air home of The Public Theater’s Free Shakespeare in the Park. Located in the heart of Central Park, the endeavor marks the most significant renovation in the theater’s 63-year history. Ennead’s bold yet sensitive renovation introduces new levels of accessibility for attendees, staff, and performers alike, ensuring the beloved cultural destination will serve the city for generations to come. Guided by the firm’s signature focus on sustainability and resilience, the transformation deepens the theater’s connection to its natural setting and honors its singular standing in New York’s physical and cultural landscape.
“The Delacorte has long stood as a symbol of NYC’s soul—where culture, community, and nature live in harmony and memory lingers in the open air,” says Stephen Chu, Design Partner at Ennead Architects. “In reimagining this beloved experience, our goal was to distill decades of collective memory into a theater that feels both renewed and timeless. It rises from the landscape like a sculpted echo of the Park itself—crafted with care, shaped by intention, and built from the city’s own story. Using reclaimed redwood from 25 decommissioned water towers, we’ve woven the past into the future. A theater born of the fabric of NYC, returning to the people of NYC."
Designing for Resilience
Nestled among the trees, the theater’s surroundings inform the design in every way. The new exterior enclosure is made of reclaimed redwood from decommissioned water towers sourced from all of New York’s five boroughs, with each piece of wood installed individually, grounding the space in both the natural landscape of the park and broader urban context. The vertical textured wood façade is canted slightly outward to create a sense of movement, playing with light and shadow to evoke the natural beauty of the surrounding environment. The rugged texture of the exterior wall contrasts the smooth, dynamic geometry of the new covered canopy, sweeping across the entryway to cultivate an experience that balances subtlety and grandeur.
The reclaimed redwood serves both an aesthetic and functional purpose, creating a dynamic visual identity that will wear well over time and minimize heat retention. Given the unpredictability of summer weather, Ennead incorporated heightened water protection and drainage systems to reduce flooding and improve water mitigation in anticipation of worsening storms. Wood paneling lines the entryway, ushering you into the space that gracefully opens to the sky, effortlessly setting the stage for a truly one-of-a-kind theatrical experience.
An Elevated Experience for All
Ennead’s design considers the experience of every person in the theater: performers, audience, and staff alike. Two new gates provide accessible entries, and a generous cross aisle with excellent sightlines ensures an equitable visual experience for everyone moving throughout the space. Two new ramps for audience members and both a ramp and a lift allow for artists with disabilities to enter and exit the stage with ease. The number of ADA accessible seats has more than doubled, along with the introduction of 20 bariatric seats and wider seats overall.
From a technical perspective, many back-of-house investments were made to improve the staff and artist experience for both safety and ease of operation. Purpose-built dressing rooms, expanded hallways, and HVAC climate control for enclosed spaces bring a new level of comfort to the space, allowing performers to relax and focus before, during, and after the production. New lighting towers provide opportunities to transform the visual experience, and the canted exterior wall allows for an additional row of seating. Upgraded exterior and interior wayfinding signage encourages intuitive movement throughout the space that eliminates bottlenecking upon entry and exit.
“The revitalization of The Delacorte isn't just an upgrade; it's a profound commitment to the future of free theater in Central Park. Stephen and the Ennead team are the most valuable of partners —those who share a belief in the power of our mission—and, together, we've transformed this iconic space into a more comfortable, sustainable, and welcoming environment for everyone who believes culture belongs to every New Yorker,” said Patrick Willingham, Executive Director of The Public Theater. “We can't wait to open our doors on August 7 with the first performance of Free Shakespeare in the Park, to celebrate with our friends on and offstage, greet new and returning artists alike and inaugurate this revitalized space.”
Ennead has a long-standing partnership with The Public. Centered around our long-term master plan, our team has been designing and executing multi-phased improvements to The Public’s flagship location on Lafayette Street, creating a new rehearsal hall annex and now completing the revitalization of the Delacorte. The Delacorte will reopen in August with a production of Twelfth Night, directed by Saheem Ali, in August. The cast features Public Theater alumni Khris Davis, Peter Dinklage, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Lupita Nyong’o, Sandra Oh, and Daphne Rubin-Vega and Public debuts b, Junior Nyong’o, and Moses Sumney.
Learn more about Free Shakespeare in the Park here.
Photography: Jeff Goldberg / Esto