CSC And John Turturro Unveil David Rockwell Installation At Newly Named Lynn F. Angelson Theater

Classic Stage Company today announces the official unveiling of the Lynn F. Angelson Theater, named for its most devoted supporter and long-standing Board Chair, and the John Doyle Artistic Director's Circle donor doors, on Wednesday, January 23 at 5:30pm. The installation was designed by Tony Award winner David Rockwell and the ceremony will take place prior to the evening's performance of Conor McPherson's new version of August Strindberg's The Dance of Death, helmed by Tony Award winner Victoria Clark (part of CSC's Strindberg repertory engagement with director Shariffa Ali's production of Yaël Farber's Mies Julie, running through March 10 at 136 East 13th Street). Lynn F. Angelson, John Doyle, and special guest John Turturro (The Cherry Orchard, CSC 2011) will be on hand for the celebration.

About Lynn F. Angelson

Lynn F. Angelson's association with CSC began in early 2000, when she worked as an intern at CSC in connection with her arts management studies at NYU. She joined the CSC board in 2001. She has consistently drawn from her own resources, from the board, and from many others, and has enabled the extraordinary artists making work on 13th Street to rise to ever-greater heights. Angelson says, "I am moved to be honored by CSC at this watershed moment for the company, when it has just celebrated its 50th anniversary, and in the midst of a stellar season of landmark works. I share this honor with my friends, neighbors, and colleagues whose hard work and remarkable generosity over these nearly two decades has made possible the current success of CSC. I am inspired by the artistic trajectory of the company under John Doyle's remarkable leadership."

Of Angelson's indefatigable efforts on behalf of CSC, Artistic Director John Doyle says, "Without Lynn's tenacity and fearless leadership, CSC would not be where it is today. I'm proud to have Lynn as a collaborator and thrilled to be artistic director of the company as we acknowledge her in this way."

About the David Rockwell installation

As part of the 50th birthday celebrations of CSC, and as a gift to the theater, David Rockwell and the Rockwell Group designed a set of donor doors leading into the newly renamed Lynn. F. Angelson Theater utilizing raw, honest materials in keeping with CSC's modern, minimalist approach. CSC is located in an intimate space that was formerly an East Village carriage house and Rockwell Group wanted to retain the white brick wall space, therefore choosing to create a donor door installation, rather than a typical donor wall. In the literal sense, thresholds are the places where different spaces and experiences converge and they have a transformative quality-they're the portals through which we access other worlds. Rockwell Partners wanted the doors to signify an invitation to the experiences that await in the theater beyond. The CSC theater doesn't have a proscenium or a typical stage, so activating the doorway leading to the Lynn F. Angelson Theater heightens the audience's anticipation.

The highly crafted raw, blackened steel double doors feature tung oil teak wood slats with laser-etched aluminum leaf inset donor names in a clean-lined font designed by Rockwell Group. The slats, in different lengths, create an irregular pattern and leave room for the addition of new donor names. The matching door pulls are raw steel and teak dowels. Some blackened steel patina slats are purposefully interspersed with the teak to add visual dynamism and represent space for donor growth. The installation also features "The John Doyle Artistic Director Donors' Circle" in water-jet stencil letters cut from a waxed, patina blackened steel finish. The theater beyond the doors spells out Lynn F. Angelson's name in water-jet cut pinned letters above the doors in a blackened steel patina finish.


Classic Stage Company (CSC) is committed to reimagining classic stories for contemporary audiences. It is a home for New York's finest established and emerging artists to grapple with great works of the world's repertory that speak directly to the issues of today.

In 1967, director Christopher Martin founded CSC Repertory in a 100-seat theater at Rutgers Presbyterian Church on West 73rd Street. Following short stints in small spaces, CSC grew to the point where it needed a permanent home. In 1973, the theater moved to its present premises on 13th Street, an intimate space that was formerly an East Village carriage house.

In the 50 years since, CSC has become a leading Off-Broadway theater that is a home for new and established artists, as well as audiences seeking epic stories intimately told. Productions have been cited by all major Off-Broadway theater awards including the Obie, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, Drama League, and the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Body of Work.