John A. Paulson Center

Designing contemporary academic buildings requires balancing current institutional needs with the flexibility to adapt over time. As NYU’s most classroom-dense building, the Paulson Center addresses this challenge with a modular design that accommodates evolving curriculum, pedagogy, and class sizes. To prevent common renovation complications—such as disruptions to perimeter heating, cooling, and facade integrity—classrooms are strategically located inboard of the perimeter circulation zone. Modular structural and MEP systems further enhance adaptability, ensuring that spaces evolve seamlessly with changing academic demands.

Designed for maximum flexibility, classrooms feature movable furniture, dual digital displays, and three-wall whiteboards, creating dynamic learning environments. Glazed corridors maximize daylight, while spacious halls support smooth student circulation, accommodating up to 1,100 students per hour. Beyond classrooms, the Paulson Center provides diverse, student-informed study environments: quiet study in a glass-walled, third-floor space; open study in sunlit lounges and nooks; active study near the Commons with movable whiteboards; and collaborative spaces equipped with digital displays.

By integrating adaptable classrooms with versatile study zones, the Paulson Center fosters creativity, engagement, and discovery—setting a new standard for academic excellence at NYU.

The Tisch School of the Arts and the Steinhardt Department of Music occupy 210,000 square feet within the Paulson Center, offering state-of-the-art spaces designed to support NYU’s drama and music programs. With a focus on flexibility, innovation, and inclusivity, the center provides premier venues for performance, rehearsal, and instruction.

At the heart of the performing arts spaces is the Iris Cantor Proscenium Theatre, NYU’s first professional-level proscenium venue. Designed for diverse performances, it features 350 seats across three levels, a fly tower, an orchestra shell, a control booth, and an adjustable orchestra lift for flexible configurations. Complementing this is the Warehouse Theatre, a 140-seat experimental space for Tisch graduate students with a reconfigurable Mod-truss wall system and movable catwalk trolleys. The African Grove Theatre, named in honor of America’s first Black theater, provides a 140-seat end-stage venue with flexible seating for experimental performances and motorized stage rigging. 

Beyond performance venues, the Ensemble Rehearsal Room offers an acoustically advanced space with double-glazed walls for city views and sound isolation, along with adjustable acoustic banners. Additional spaces include two cabaret studios, three dance studios, 58 music practice rooms, a large ensemble classroom, woodshops, wardrobe rooms, and dedicated music instruction spaces.