The exterior of the Perelman Performing Arts Center
Photo by Max Parrott
The final piece of the rebuilding of the World Trade Center site was finally completed Wednesday with the opening of the Perelman Performing Arts Center in Lower Manhattan.
Considered the cultural cornerstone of the center’s reconstruction more than two decades after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, the Perelman PAC is perhaps the grandest addition to the area’s art scene. The first public performance takes place there on Sept. 19.
There to cut the ribbon on the brand new center was Michael Bloomberg, former New York City mayor and current board chair of the Perelman PAC; nearly two decades ago, as mayor, Bloomberg advocated for a performing arts center as part of the World Trade Center’s reconstruction.
Alongside One World Trade Center, the 9-11 Memorial and Museum, and the Oculus transit hub, the Perelman PAC serves as the “cultural cornerstone.”
“From the beginning of the rebuilding process, our administration believed that alongside the Memorial Museum and housing and commerce, a center for culture and creativity also belonged here. And that the arts would not only bring new life to the site, but help us to build a greater future for Lower Manhattan,” Bloomberg said. “The arts, we all know, is the heart of what makes New York a beacon light for people around the world. And Lower Manhattan has always been a crossroads of the world and a cauldron of creativity.”
Bloomberg cut the ribbon Wednesday along with PAC NYC Executive Director Khady Kamara and Artistic Director Bill Rauch. Governor Kathy Hochul was also in attendance, and said the center’s opening symbolized the city’s post-9/11 rebirth.
“Rather than destruction, we began construction. And instead of death and devastation, we were reborn in countless ways. Basically, New York, at its essence, doesn’t just survive. We thrive. And that’s the difference,” Hochul said. “We always prevail….
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