OPERA America's National Opera Center

The building you are approaching at three hundred thirty Seventh Avenue stands on a foundation of industrial history. Before it became a hub for the performing arts, this Art Deco high-rise served as a specialized factory for the city's once-booming fur trade. The structure was built in nineteen twenty-eight with floors reinforced to carry the immense weight of heavy industrial sewing machines and bulk storage of animal pelts. These sturdy, load-bearing floors proved vital for the modern facility inside, as they allowed architects to remove sections of concrete between levels to create towering, double-height performance halls without the need for visible support beams.