Inside the construction at One Pace Plaza East, you can already feel the momentum. The sparks, the steel, the sound of something big taking shape: this is where the future of the arts at Pace begins.
Opening in fall 2026, the new creative home of the Sands College of Performing Arts is being purpose-built for imagination in motion. It’s where classroom learning meets the energy of downtown New York City and where tomorrow’s stars find their spotlight.
At its heart is a state-of-the-art performing arts center featuring three dynamic new venues. The reimagined Schimmel Theater—400 seats filled with the next generation of Broadway fans—is where tomorrow’s Broadway stars rehearse today. The medium venue turns “what if…” into standing ovations, and the indoor-outdoor black box theater breaks the fourth wall (literally!), opening to the courtyard for boundary-pushing performances that blur art and audience.
"The renovation of the Performing Arts Center at One Pace Plaza East marks a transformative moment for Sands College and for downtown New York City. With three state-of-the-art theaters, an accessible lighting grid, expansive dance and acting studios, and world-class production spaces, we are creating a hub where innovation meets inclusion," says Jennifer Holmes, PhD, Dean of the Sands College of Performing Arts.
Just steps away, Pace students build entire worlds in the scene shop, design behind-the-curtain couture in the costume shop, and reach new heights in aerial dance studios where, let’s be honest, when Doja Cat needs dancers, she calls Pace.
And because creativity needs fuel, there’s even a café where group projects turn into coffee dates and pre-show nerves meet caffeine and camaraderie. Plus, this space will double as a concession stand once opening night comes.
But this transformation is bigger than what’s onstage. With all-electric infrastructure, innovative design, and revitalized student housing in Maria’s Tower, One Pace Plaza East is built for sustainability, collaboration, and community.
"This center will anchor a new arts corridor in Lower Manhattan—revitalizing our community, showcasing extraordinary talent, and offering audiences access to groundbreaking, affordable performances," Holmes continues. "We are proud to build a home that reflects the imagination, artistry, and ambition of our students, faculty, and guest artists."
When the doors open, students will step into a space made not just for movement but for momentum. The next act of Pace University’s story begins here—bold, electric, and ready for its close-up.
Pace’s Sands College of Performing Arts and Deaf West Theatre are joining forces to make music education more inclusive. Their new artist-in-residence program introduces the first-ever ASL Music Theory Lexicon Project—giving deaf and hard-of-hearing artists equal access to the language of music while training all students to see access as innovation.
What does it take to bring a classic to life? From first table read to final curtain call, follow along with the cast and crew of Chekhov’s The Seagull as they navigate an accelerated rehearsal process, build a world from scratch, and discover what it means to perform like professionals.
Meet the actors, dancers, and designers redefining what it means to be a working artist in New York. From Broadway bows to lighting up Spike Lee films, at Pace’s Sands College, the line between student and professional blurs, and the city itself becomes the classroom, stage, and screen.