Stunning!

David Geffen Hall (formerly known as Avery Fisher Hall) celebrated its latest revamp with a gala concert on Wednesday night. Seven years and $550 million later, the building’s interior retains none of the sepulchral mood that previously reigned: it is intimate, warm, and inviting. Even better, the auditorium’s cursed acoustics have finally been remedied. There was much to celebrate. Before the concert, Senator Chuck Schumer reminded the attendees gathered on the grand promenade that he had secured funding for the arts throughout the pandemic. Mayor Eric Adams followed, delivering a freewheeling stump speech about the greatness of New York—slight on details, heavy on pathos, seemingly extemporaneous. (A woman next to me whispered, “Well, he’s running for something.”) Tod Williams and Billie Tsien, architects of the renovation (and sponsors of NYRA) alongside Toronto-based Diamond Schmitt Architects, were on hand, receiving toasts from well-wishers on a job well done. Patrons, board members, and performers toasted the renovation one-by-one but persistently stopped shor…