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Hammerstein Ballroom
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Hammerstein Ballroom is a two-tiered, 12,000 square feet (3658m2) ballroom located within the Manhattan Center Studios on 311 West 34th Street in Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States of America. It is known for its elegant appearance and excellent acoustical design. The capacity of the ballroom is dependent on the configuration of the room; the ballroom seats 2,500 people for theatrical productions and musical performances, and several thousand for events held within a central ring. The two main balconies - which are unusually close to the ground and gently sloped - seat a total of 1,200. There are six miniature balconies which are normally used for celebrity guests. The floor slants down to the stage area to enable those in the back rows to see easily.
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The Manhattan Center was constructed in 1906 by Oscar Hammerstein as an alternative to the popular yet comparatively expensive Metropolitan Opera. In 1910, the Metropolitan Opera paid Hammerstein $1.2 million USD to stop operating the Manhattan Center as an opera venue for ten years. This led to the elaborately decorated Hammerstein Ballroom being used for a variety of events, including vaudeville performances.
The ownership of the center changed hands multiple times over the next few decades, with the ballroom being used as a Freemason's temple in the 1930s and a trade union headquarters in the 1940s before falling into disuse in the 1970s. The center was expanded to Manhattan Center Studios in 1986, and in 1997 the Hammerstein Ballroom underwent considerable renovations, with the hand painted ceiling frescos being completely restored.
The Hammerstein Ballroom has seen performances from a wide variety of musical acts, including Franz Ferdinand, KoRn, Britney Spears, Hanson, HIM, Oasis, OAR, Nine Inch Nails, Trey Anastasio, The Offspring, Incubus, Coheed and Cambria, Guns N' Roses, Radiohead, The Goo Goo Dolls, Avenged Sevenfold, Moby, Tool, the Beastie Boys, Wu-Tang Clan, No Doubt, PJ Harvey, Kelly Clarkson, Iron Maiden, Kanye West,O-Town, The Strokes, The Pixies, Shoshana Bean, The Disco Biscuits, Rammstein, and Evanescence.
The professional wrestling promotion Extreme Championship Wrestling stages some of its events from the Ballroom. On one notable occasion, an audience member clambored down the gilded balcony and tried to assault a performer who had repeatedly goaded him. The Ballroom hosted the first two ECW One Night Stand pay-per-views, in June 2005 and June 2006. The World Wrestling Federation regularly held its early episodes of Monday Night RAW at the Grand Ballroom on the other side of Manhattan Center. In addition, the ballroom has also been used to host conventions, art exhibitions and formal dinners.
The Hammerstein Ballroom was also mentioned in the movie The Naked Brothers Band.