Curtain rises on new Lincoln Center stage

He probably didn't mean to shock.

But André Bishop, the supremely smart, atypically reasonable and all-around admirable artistic director of the Lincoln Center Theater, quietly made one of those statements that almost stood up and waved a banner to a roomful of been-around journalists.

We had been summoned Tuesday morning to see the company's new $42-million theater, which was unpredictably and beautifully built -- complete with rehearsal rooms, offices and outdoor terrace -- on the roof of the squat, white rectangle that houses the 1,099-seat Vivian Beaumont and, downstairs, the 299-seat Mitzi E. Newhouse theaters.

Before explaining the addition of this third space, a handsome, 112-seat home for the company's new-work alternative series, LCT3, Bishop delivered this shocker. He said the American theater is in "great shape." Acknowledging that "most of us in the theater tend to be worried all the time," he enthused about all the "wonderful programs" developing new talent all over the country.

In other words, he said with endearing candor, "We're not doing this for the glory of the American theater," which, he believes, doesn't need his help. "We wanted to do this for Lincoln Center Theater" -- which, despite its many ongoing triumphs, has an aging audience and, inevitably, shrinking family of directors, writers and designers. "We had better start thinking about the future," he continued. "We could get by for X number of years. But we're going to get into trouble. I know it."

So the American theater is in great shape? I'm not sure I ever heard anyone who wasn't selling something say that.

But look closer and -- why not? -- feel encouraged. Tickets for LCT3 plays will be $20, the same price charged when Lincoln Center produced this young series while renting space the past three years at the Duke on 42nd Street.

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Besides, Tuesday was the second time so far this year that I was introduced to the encouraging wonders of a splendid new complex for an established nonprofit institution. In February, the Signature Theater revealed its three-

theater, 75,000-square-foot, $70-million home, designed by Frank Gehry, on 42nd Street between Ninth and 10th avenues. All tickets are $25.

And Wednesday, the Public Theater will unveil what it refers to as its "revitalized" $40-million home downtown on Lafayette Street in the former Astor Library, which legendary producer Joseph Papp began renting from the city for $1 in 1967. As anyone knows who has maneuvered around the lobby construction in recent years, major work is being done to update, without violating, the 158-year-old building.

Tickets for the Public Lab in two small theaters will continue to be $10 and $15. And, according to a press release, special attention is being given to the relationship between "the theater and the community . . . transforming the lobby into a public piazza and gathering space." The lobby-piazza is also meant to "encourage the cross-

pollination of audiences" from the five theaters and the thriving cabaret, Joe's Pub.

This, too, is an appealing trend. The Signature's theaters all open to a large bar-café that has immediately become a meeting place for theatergoers on the West 42nd Street strip known as Theater Row. The Public, which has had an uncomfortable lobby cafe for years, will now have a welcoming area for "artists, students and audiences" to hang out.

At Lincoln Center, the new theater -- named the Claire Tow, after the wife of a board member -- has a bar-cafe that faces a big woody terrace. This will be open before, during and after performances, and you don't need a theater ticket to enjoy the view.

Obviously, these new or revitalized theater centers intend to be about more than cheap tickets and refreshments. The objective, as Bishop made clear, is to "reinvest in a generation," to hook these younger, diverse audiences into the fold with quality theater.

While at the Duke, LCT3, directed by Paige Evans, produced a new play, Amy Herzog's "4000 Miles," that already transferred this spring to the Newhouse. And having the new series in the same building will inevitably lure young audiences downstairs to the established stages. (The Tow opens June 4 with previews of Greg Pierce's "Slowgirl," starring Zeljko Ivanek.)

Bishop did not just begin thinking about the future, of course. Before he came to Lincoln Center in 1991, he directed Playwrights Horizons, where he oversaw the creation of such treasures as "Falsettos," "The Heidi Chronicles," "Driving Miss Daisy" and "Sunday in the Park With George."

"It was a great sadness for me to leave a place I loved so dearly," he said, describing the transition to a big Broadway-eligible house mostly dedicated to classics and musicals. He recently found an addendum to his original contract, vowing "to do our best to rent or buy or build a 100-seat theater" somewhere near Lincoln Center -- if the administration could afford it.

Now it is here, on the campus, where he promises the same level of production values that have always defined the work downstairs. "Lincoln Center is the deep end of the pool," he says, "it's not for kids."

I asked Bernard Gersten, the company's veteran executive producer, to explain what seems like a counterintuitive growth of theater buildings in these tough times. He smiled shrewdly, shrugged, and said "building a theater is a good deed in a naughty world." How delightful, in a shocking sort of way.