Project Overview and Impact
A dynamic partnership. The Harman Center for the Arts was
conceived in early 2002 by a dynamic public-private partnership between the
Shakespeare Theatre Company and its Artistic Director Michael Kahn, philanthropist
Dr. Sidney Harman, and the City of Washington D.C. These partners share a vision
for the Center and a commitment to building an institution of lasting import
for our capital city.
11-story building on Sixth and F Streets. The Harman Center
will occupy the lower floors of a new building on Sixth and F Streets, across
from the Verizon Center . The upper floors have been sold to the International
Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers, which will lend the project its
credit and share in the overall risk.
State-of-the-art performance space. Architect Jack Diamond
has created an extraordinary design for Sidney Harman Hall that is sensitive
to its urban setting yet makes a powerful statement about the place of the
performing arts in the city. The space will be uniquely configured so that
it can be transformed into several stage configurations within a matter of
hours.
Construction began November 5, 2004. The successful closing
on the sale of the upper floors to the International Union of Bricklayers and
Allied Craftworkers and negotiation of construction loans from the Bank of
America culminated with the November 5th groundbreaking for the Harman Center
for the Arts. The construction project will be executed by Clark Construction
and is managed by CarrAmerica and JM Zell Partners.
$77 million Capital Campaign. Beginning in 2002 with a $20
million investment from the City of Washington, the Harman Center for the Arts
Capital Campaign went on to attract lead gifts from the Shakespeare Theatre
Company's Board of Trustees, including a $15 million cornerstone gift from
the Harman Family Foundation in early 2003.
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