NEW YORK (AP) — The Public Theater in New York City has unveiled its four-year $40 million face-lift with some Shakespeare, some hippies and stars including Vanessa Redgrave, Liev Schreiber and Mandy Patinkin.
The nonprofit based in downtown Manhattan has a new exterior, refurbished lobby, a new lounge, staircases, upgraded dressing rooms and expanded restrooms, which received the biggest cheer from the guests at the ceremony Monday.
Speakers, which included Mayor Michael Bloomberg, took turns reading snippets from Shakespeare plays and the 45-minute event ended when the recent revival cast of “Hair” serenaded the crowd with a rendition of “Let the Sun Shine In.”
Other celebrities in attendance included the playwrights Suzan Lori Parks and David Henry Hwang, the actors Jay O. Sanders and Colman Domingo, and designer David Rockwell.
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