And the legacy continues. historical and an amazing venue for a new upcoming artist the legacy is what made this venue, the strongest with his history but also the new young budding talent will keep it sustainable. read more

Newark Symphony Hall - wow really.. 100? - Performing Arts Near Me - Newark, New Jersey

See all

Over the past few months, USA Network filmed a weekly, live competition show inside of Newark Symphony Hall every Thursday. This is a review with notes on how it was filming in the space from an audience member's perspective. This was my first time inside Newark Symphony Hall. I've passed by the marquee countless times over the years, but never found myself with the opportunity to go inside for a concert or private event. My partner would talk about it because he went there as a kid for a school trip and had good memories. Back in its heyday, there were big names who performed there - Richard Prior, Patti La Belle, Queen Latifah, Gladys Knight, and the O'Jays. Filming during the pandemic, there are a bunch of protocols in place. Before entering inside the venue, there was a roped off queue line where - while waiting - you gave your name and signed in, filled out a health questionnaire, showed proof of vaccination, and got your temperature taken. Once cleared, there were different lines for audience members depending on whether you were general or VIP. Leading up to the lobby doors, there are large, black-and-white framed pictures of performers and persons of interest (like Sarah Vaughan and the City of Newark's former mayors), which were really interesting to look at while in line. Once inside the lobby area, you'll notice right away the older architectural finishes of the space and you realize the age of the building. NSH is almost a hundred years old and was a former temple before it became an entertainment venue in the 1920s. The stage in the hall is large; you could fit an orchestra. Production had audience members seated close to the stage and not on the tiered level seating area. The hall was large enough to fit a camera crane and huge teleprompters, and the house could handle professional lighting for film. I was really impressed by the whole filming operation inside the theater, and what could be done in the space. The show aired at 9pm, so Production had us inside and seated by 8 for pre-records and other prep stuff. We were out by 10pm. There was a parking lot just right around the corner where you could keep your car if you drove. I imagine that the venue would be great for other filming projects involving extras. My partner says that the venue could be amazing if properly renovated (that would be a pretty expensive venture though). I hope that NSH can secure funding to further preserve/renovate this historical landmark building. After finally getting the chance to be inside, you see there's so much potential for the space (I think of Loew's Theatre in Journal Square, JC). With so much new development downtown, I get nervous that historical gems like this won't survive. read more

See all

The only reason I stepped foot in this place was because my daughter had a competition there! Symphony Hall really should be shut down immediately! I'm sure there is asbestos and mold all over that building! Everything there is old, dirty and falling apart! I even saw several holes in the walls! The carpet/floors--DISGUSTING! The seats are gross! I felt like something was crawling on me the entire time I was there. The only good thing about it is you have plenty of leg room which was the only plus! They have several concession stands but I wouldn't dare purchase anything. I observed them warming up hot dogs on a hot plate! They also don't have any bottled drinks. Everything is served in big plastic Dixie cups! They don't allow any outside food or beverages, although you are allowed to eat in the the auditorium. I guess it's their way of forcing you to purchase something from them. I did not use the bathroom there so I can't comment on that. There's a parking lot directly across the street that charges $10. You're sort of forced to park your car there as street parking is extremely limited. I would 100% suggest that you do NOT visit Symphony Hall for any shows unless they're giving away free tickets! The hall is down right awful! read more

Newark Symphony Hall - Horrible! - Performing Arts Near Me - Newark, New Jersey

Went last night to see Katt Williams at the Newark symphony hall and was a hot mess that was! First from the outside it looks like it's falling apart once you get inside there was just a crowd of people with no clear sign of any lines to check out tickets. Hot mess. Then I bought mezzanine tickets in the back. On their floor plan it looked as though it was on the bottom floor and nothing behind it. Come to find out that it was upstairs and it was a hang out area behind us and inconsiderate ushers who did not know where any seat was! These rent-a-ushers were clearly not trained and didn't know how the seats were numbered. That's you're main job as an usher! We ended up finding out own seats. Hot mess. Once seated, and the show starts we kept getting flashed in the face by ushers looking for seats and patrons with their high-beam cellphones cause the ushers were not trained to light up the route. This went on up until 20 minutes till the show ended - from 830-1000pm. The ushers were getting into arguments with people and vice versa and I can HEAR it all being in the back by the row. Hot mess. I would never return to the Newark Symphony Hall! Poor ushers and overall management of people and event. I'm contacting Ticketmaster to get my $$$ back on a show I barely heard. read more

Went to a dance production here and although the performance was great the hall was a disgrace. We were not located in the main theater we were in a smaller production area that smelled of mildew and that had an open unfinished ceiling. It was not appealing at all. The Newark Symphony Hall is definitely well over due for a make over. read more

My hubby won tickets for Shaq's all star comedy show from Hot 97. Three stars for the show-it was funny and free. One star for the venue. Parking is horrendous. There is barely street parking and the area is super sketchy so I was nervous to park. There are lots but again-sketchy. The place is old and run down. People just collect your tickets and after that it's a free for all. There is no one to direct which theater to go to, where to buy drinks or the restroom. Once we got into our theater people were pushing and shoving to get to the front but there were ushers stopping us so they could take us to our seats. Like the previous reviewer all they do is walk around and shove their light in your face. Since the tickets were free I'm not going to complain but I would never, ever pay to come to an event here. Definitely not coming back. Ever! read more

I attended a wedding at this venue recently. Based on the reviews, I expected to walk into a real dive. However that was not the case at all. The banquet room where the wedding and reception were held was in great shape. It was spacious and well lit. The reason I'm only giving three stars is because the catering and wait staff were absolutely horrible. They were extremely unprofessional. One young lady holding a tray, serving dinner, became exasperated because she wanted me to reach up and take my plate from her tray as opposed to placing the plate on the table in front of me. As inappropriate as that was, all she had to do was ask me to take a plate from the tray instead of behaving so rudely. These young people know nothing about serving guests at a formal affair. So sad. read more

STAY FAR AWAY - HORRIFIC, DISGRACEFUL AND UNSAFE. The parking is HORREDOUS, the 2 lots which are within walking distance from the venue hold about 50 cars max. BUILD A PARKING DECK! it keeps getting worse -when you get in there are no signs telling you where your seating is. The ushers become overwhelmed with seating people... sound engineers are set up right in front of the 2nd level to block your view. And people were being seated the entire time the show was going on....Terrible theatre experience, and they didn't bother checking bags or using gun detectors. Go to Manhattan and get your moneys worth. read more

Went to see Love Jones the Musical. First of all the place needs to be shut down and be renovated. Secondly they need to hire people and make it MANDATORY that they know the seating chart. There were so many people sitting in the wrong spots due to the ushers not knowing the areas of the theater. And when you say you will not sit anyone once the show begins-OWN UP TO IT! People were strolling in an hour AFTER the show began. The ushers were more concerned about people using their cell phones taking pictures than correcting the seating issue. NEVER AGAIN read more

this venue is a hot ratchet mess if ive ever seen one ! ok ! i went for the Tamar Braxton concert and walked in like really ? people perform here ? ewwwww they need to do serious renovations like yesterday ! read more