A Philadelphia Orchestra first: Neighborhood Concert at Navy Yard

Can you have a Neighborhood Concert in something that's not actually a neighborhood?

Such was the question when the Philadelphia Orchestra made its debut Tuesday at the Philadelphia Navy Yard, that burgeoning corporate hinterland between South Philadelphia and the airport. The concert hall was Building 543, a huge, warehouselike structure where ship parts once were made and that now is part of Urban Outfitters' ever-expanding headquarters.

Outside the window, the rusting aircraft carrier USS Forrestal loomed. As the orchestra played Rimsky-Korsakov's Capriccio espagnol under assistant conductor Cristian Macelaru, freighters on the Delaware River swanned by. Airplanes swooped toward nearby Philadelphia International Airport.

Had it been located in a traditional residential neighborhood, the concert probably would have drawn more listeners; this one was enjoyed by 650 adults, babies, and toddlers - plus a dog that began barking during the Peer Gynt Suite.

Employees of Urban Outfitters didn't appear to be in the majority. Some families had driven to the Navy Yard from other parts of the Philadelphia area. Seniors arrived by bus.

"I worked here during the war. I haven't seen this place in 65 years," recalled Sylvia Katz, an orchestra subscriber who is now 90. "I took a test to be an engineering aide. I didn't know the first thing about it. They put me in riveting school and at the end of the first week I was told, 'We think you'd be a marvelous riveter . . . for the Japanese, not us. Can you do office work?' "

Industrial or corporate, it's not a place where one would expect to encounter the Philadelphia Orchestra - and that was the point, said orchestra president Allison B. Vulgamore. "The important thing is to move around and create surprise and excitement. This space is all about energy and creativity and a sign of the city's future health. That's what we're about as well."

Some attendees were familiar with the long-decommissioned Navy Yard as a recreational site. "We come here with the kids and have brought guests out here," said Eelin Lim, who drove in with her family. "We love the orchestra and when we saw it was here, it was perfect."

"I've lived in Philadelphia for 92 years and have never been out here," said Mildred Diamond, who now lives at the Holy Redeemer Lafayette retirement community. "Isn't that shameful?"

How about the acoustics? Veteran bassist Mike Shahan peered up at the 100-foot ceiling of Building 543 and had one word: "Industrial."

An orchestral concert was a first for Urban Outfitters, which has held numerous other sorts of events at the Navy Yard, where it has invested about $80 million in redevelopment.

Though almost subway-accessible - the Broad Street Line ends at the sports complex several blocks north - the 1,200-acre area is historically isolated and self-contained. That's one reason why Building 543 offers extensive, even posh concession areas for local workers as well as the public. Concessions normally close at 6 p.m. but were open for the concert, partly for Urban Outfitters employees who stayed late to listen.

"Several hundred were interested, quite a few attended," said Lauren Addis, operations manager. "We were super-excited," said Meredith Boice, yard administration officer for the company.

"We have workplace envy for those who get to come out here everyday," said Vince Liuzzi, the regional president of Wells Fargo, sponsor of the orchestra's Neighborhood Concerts for eight years.

"We get that a lot," said Addis.

In its endeavor to attract younger audience, the Philadelphia Orchestra was in the belly of the beast. The Urban Outfitters employees contrasted dramatically with those who had gone out of their way to attend the concert - if only because they had lots more hair and were youthfully dressed, much like the various fashion mannequins in the workrooms inside the building.

Though the orchestra has had three designated Neighborhood Concerts in past seasons, it is playing only two this year. The other will be at RiverStage at Penn's Landing at 6:30 p.m. Sunday - in a week that also includes Free College Night at 8 p.m. Thursday at the Kimmel Center.

Though those concerts are more typical of the orchestra's beyond-Verizon Hall ventures, the sortie into the Navy Yard is not likely to be an isolated instance.

"We're studying all the usual spaces in Philadelphia," said Vulgamore. "This [Navy Yard] is one of the most important urban projects in the country. It was fun to get to know Urban Outfitters . . . and to do a site together. Did you see those airplanes landing in the background? Whoa! That was theater!"