A recent article from the Manhattan School of Music features lead interior designer and Steinberg Hart Principal Amanda Rienth as she discusses the firm’s transformative lounge restoration project at Neidorff-Karpati Hall. Following destructive flooding in the early 2000s, the lounge and restroom facilities were closed to the public. Steinberg Hart’s thoughtfully planned restoration pays homage to the Art Deco-inspired characteristics of the original 1931 lounge, built by Arthur Harmon of the architectural firm Shreve, Lamb and Harmon, also designers of the Empire State Building, which opened the same year. With an eye on sustainability and eco-friendly updates, the space has been revived to its original glory.

“The space is in fact, now more Art Deco in feel than it was before,” says Amanda. “People come to the hall to experience world-renowned music on stage, and you’re now able to have a lounge and restroom facilities that add to that experience.”

To read more about Amanda Rienth’s interview, learn more about the lounge’s unique history, and to see before and after photos of the revamped space, visit Manhattan School of Music’s News and Events site.

The downstairs lounge at Neidorff-Karpati Hall marks the final touches on the larger renovation project Steinberg Hart completed in 2018. The design team also restored and reinvigorated the main performance venue for the Manhattan School of Music’s Neirdorff-Karpati Hall by transforming the existing presentation space and creating a new campus entry that gives patrons direct access to the renewed hall. Learn more about the entire project here.