In the middle of Central Park, an old theater has taken on a new look that might feel familiar to many New Yorkers. The Delacorte Theater—home to The Public Theater’s Shakespeare in the Park—is now wrapped in vertical redwood slats reclaimed from 25 decommissioned New York City water towers. Ennead Architects was tasked with making the new theater both accessible and resilient. The firm responded by canting the exterior wall outward as it rises, forming a conical perimeter that lends a subtle sense of expansion. New ramps and cross aisles reconfigure movement and update the venue for accessibility. In addition, a cinderblock “racoon wall” encloses the open area around the stage, restrooms under the bleachers are now fully sealed, and an elevator connects the ground level to the stage manager’s booth above.
