The Kimmel Center, One Year In

One year after Philadelphia’s dramatic new Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts made its debut, the jury is still out on whether it’s a success. On the plus side, attendance is generally good, and acoustic improvements are being gradually made. On the other hand, the acoustics are hardly what they should be, there are cosmetic problems everywhere, public access is much more limited than promised, and who could forget the sprinkler-system malfunction which doused the Philadelphia Orchestra with dirty water two weeks ago?