New York Public Library, Library for the Preforming Arts Review

Even if you have no interest in performing arts, the study areas on the second floor are superb!

The free Hal Prince Exhibit is outstanding. A must see for Broadway musical fans.

Great space and information (if you can find it).

Half of the staff are wonderful and helpful, and the other half don t want a single human being to ask them a question. Ever.

The piece of music I wanted was said online to be available. With about 15 librarians help, it still could not be found. 2 hours of searching and they decided the 2 copies of the piece were probably misshelved or someone moved it. ;(

It is a great place to study, read, write, attend classes, exhibitions , learn something new.
I also like that this particular library specializes in arts and performing arts.
This Summer when I went to NYC, I took my sister that teaches the history of dance in Argentina, and she liked the selection of books.
As usual, when in NYC, I will come back to visit one of my favorite libraries.

Quiet, great place to concentrate with lots of archives for the arts.

One of if not the largest performing arts library in the world. They have books, DVD's, VHS, and musical scores.

This library is the best ever. There is this little tree with pillows, and me and my friends go there all the time and just chill and talk.

Extraordinary collection of reference material on the Performing Arts: dance, music, opera, and theater, including books, audio and video recordings, sheet music.

Wonderful Public Library. They have a wonderful
Exhibit about broadway and shows. They have costumes and stage exhibits. The library has tons of DVDs CDs and books too. But this current exhibit was nicely organized and put together! For fans of broadway this is a MUST see!

Excellent place to work or meet. Enter through the plaza right next to the opera house. 2nd floor tables with electrical sockets. Computers available to rent. Public copy machines available.

Without a doubt, this gorgeous locale is both my favorite NYPL branch and my favorite place to get work done. Clean, typically quiet, and beautiful inside and out.

Most amazing place for a music teacher. I am going to come back and spend a week.

lincoln center is my favorite place in nyc since i ve lived here for a decade and i only recently and finally stumbled upon the gem of this library! it is so clean, quiet and nicely designed. there are quiet areas to read and relax. there is also an amy s bread cafe in the back of the first floor if you d like a snack. and they often have very thoughtfully curated free exhibitions going on also! my favorite NYPL i ve been to so far. hope it continues to be this clean and awesome!!

This is a great branch of the NYPL, can't wait for the time it is safe to reopen.

Come take a photo.
Cheese!
C......C

The whole Lincoln Center Area is really nice, so this place receives that good atmosphere - I go here for the movies, and they have a really good selection.

This is a peculiar gem in the NYPublic Library system. You've got higher security than most branches, and more stringent rules for food and drink in the reading area. Yet it's the only branch I know of with a Cafe right inside. Also the Performing arts Media resources are all here and I always find a seat and place to setup my laptop when I need it.

Impressive collections of music recordings. A must visit for music lovers.

I ve used this library for the last 20 years of my professional career. It is great for any artist who wants to do research and get access to materials without spending a fortune.

It has everything I need, and the performances in the auditorium are superb.

I love this library - so many good music books. I have not had the chance to examine the collections for other arts, but I bet there is a lot on offer for them as well. Truly an amazing resource for the people of this city.

Nice multi-function public space with a library full of performance art references and resources, a small auditorium for live performances, art exhibits, and a cafeteria. The Broadway and West End exhibit has lots of interesting trivia and pieces from well-loved shows such as Chorus Line and The Lion King.

Nice place to study, drink some coffee, and explore Leonard Bernstein s life&music.

excellent collection and exhibits, for free. check it out while at Lincoln center.

One star for AWFUL customer service. Each time I have come to study, I've encountered miserable and very rude security guards from the entrance and a rude middle-eastern woman at the circulation desk.
The library itself is wonderful, but I'm not spending my time in a space with toxic people.
Just an unfortunate heads up...don't expect to be greeted with kindness.

The NYPL for the Performing Arts is great for art enthusiast. The DVD collection is vast and you will have no trouble finding a classic to watch. The Theater on Film and Tape Archive gives you the incredible opportunity to see past Broadway shows. You can spend hours browsing and searching in this unique library.

Clean, beautiful, a great place to study and listen to music.

I hadn't been here in years, but the Hal Prince exhibit drew me in and now that I've gone back, I plan to try to stop by every trip to see what exhibit is there. It's a bummer the archives are only available to students and reporters, since it would be so amazing to check out some of the recordings of shows we'll never be able to see, but the special exhibits are very well done and we're in Lincoln Center almost every trip, so this will be one of our normal stops now.

I really appreciate the NYPL.

Living in nyc, I do not have enough space to buy books.

It has extremely great staff and books.

They even have a special library card.

I support 120%.

Hope they get the support for what they need.

The Performing Arts Library is one of our city's treasures. Any performing artist should come here and comb through the music, the scripts, and there recordings. There's no end to what you can find and learn.

This is by far my favorite place in NYC to go to to get work done! Huge wooden desk, plenty of outlets, clean and quiet environment, fast-free reliable wifi connection...It has all the essentials for an A+++ spot to study for test prep or work on your laptop. I wish it was open earlier and closed later weekly.

Gloriously quiet research area on the third floor. Almost every time I've been here, lots of open space with plenty of plugs.

Clean library, good for working, great collections. Computers are relatively clean. The second floor laptop area can get loud.

Beautiful library. Just take a second to admire the roof on the second floor. A building that I'm sure has a lot of history. Make sure to check out if there's an event or museum situation as they always have cool stuff going on.

What a treasure. Not only are there changing exhibits related to performing arts, but the stacks and other available materials seems to be unparalleled. Super bonus: they have free programs!

It is my favorite place in manhattan.
I can read scores whatever and they provide free wifi. Desk and chair are wonderful to learn.

This library is free to enter and all you need to do is to get your bag checked. The headphones are 1 dollar each for he computers. You have to have a New York public library card to use the computers. But the computers are free to use. Tu necessites reservar to use the computer.
The staff is very nice and the library is very quiet and helpful.



Lincoln public library is close to the Columbus circle subway.

nice place to sit and relax and have lunch nice water fountain Tain

Lovely library. I just wish the restrooms were cleaned better

This library is the best New York Public Library. If you need to study or do work, this is the perfect place to be with the wide areas to work and such quiet. I come here every day after school for homework. Public use to desktops, printers and more. Always a free concert there. There is a wide variety of books, cd's, and DVD's. Wifi fast and good. Large Archive. Always bring a bite to eat at Amy's cafe. Superior to Riverside Branch. Always visit their interesting exhibits.

A few things to note:
- Amy's Cafe is really expensive, so don't buy food there.
- Third Floor assistance isn't that good and there are limits of what you can bring in and you have to check everything.
- Your bags will be examined as you leave and enter the building.

Amazing Library!!!

I have no doubt the Sesame exhibit was much appreciated by parents and children from one to ninety-two. But in my opinion holding such an exhibit in an otherwise excellent library was a bad idea. For months now droves of children and their approving parents have been screaming, crying and babbling (as healthy children do) in sections of the library where people are engaged in activities they assume are appropriate for an adult library and therefore expect a reasonably quiet environment in which to do it. The front lobby at times is a miserable echo-chamber that, due to an astonishingly stupid double-floor open mezzanine design, invades the large "work" section on the second floor unimpeded. Even worse, in the section of the library where they sell coffee and baked goods, parents bring their children and allow them to scream and cry and run around like its a day care center. The managers at the library need to decide if the coffee area where people mostly work and treat like a library has any rules whatsoever. When they do decide on this they need to post those rules immediately.

Nice vibe but often too many crazy old freaks being too loud and obnoxious Millineals with their coffees and tech pretending to write the next great novel. I finally checked out and got a small office