The new center includes a 12,000-square-foot performance space and marks the company's first permanent home in its 60-year history.
The Philadelphia Ballet broke ground Tuesday on a new headquarters at the intersection of North Broad Street and Montgomery Avenue, a $32 million project that will give the 60-year-old company its first purpose-built performance venue and nearly double its rehearsal and studio capacity.
Currently headquartered in a converted industrial building on North Broad and operating out of rented studios across Center City, the ballet has long worked around spaces never designed for professional dance. The new 45,000-square-foot building changes that. At its center is a 12,000-square-foot performance space with 250 seats, four sprung-floor studios with 20-foot ceilings and floor-to-ceiling windows, and a dedicated rehearsal room built to match the exact dimensions of the main stage. Acoustic design by Threshold Acoustics and a rooftop garden with views of the Philadelphia skyline round out the project.
"[This] is not simply a new building—it is the foundation for the next chapter of ballet in Philadelphia," said Artistic Director Angel Corella in a statement at the groundbreaking. "For the first time, we will have a home built specifically for what we do, which means we can rehearse, create, and perform under one roof."
The project, designed by KieranTimberlake with local partner ISA, arrives as North Broad Street undergoes one of its most significant revitalization waves in decades. The ballet's new building sits two blocks from the renovated Met Philadelphia and across from Temple University's expanding campus. City officials have pointed to the project as a cultural anchor in a corridor increasingly targeted for mixed-use development.
"This investment sends a clear signal that North Broad is a destination for world-class arts and culture," said Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker, who attended the ceremony. "The Philadelphia Ballet is meeting this community where it is, and they are building something that belongs to everyone."
Expanded Programming and Public Access
With the additional space, the ballet expects to expand its mainstage season from six to eight productions annually and launch a year-round community performance series in the new venue. Education programming will also grow: the company plans to add 15 new youth and adult classes per week, including tuition-free workshops for North Philadelphia students. The ground-floor public plaza, designed with seating and performance infrastructure, will host free outdoor events beginning in summer 2024.
The project is funded through a combination of private donations, a $5 million state redevelopment assistance capital grant, and a $3 million city commitment. It is the largest capital campaign in the ballet's history.
Construction is expected to conclude in late 2024, with the company moving in by spring 2025. The inaugural performance season in the new building is scheduled to open in fall 2025.
