A new, immersive theater experience will be taking up all four stories of a former retail building in Hell’s Kitchen.
“Particle Ink,” an experiential show that will take audiences on an interactive adventure through a graphic novel, signed a 10-year deal for 13,500-square-feet of space at 771 Ninth Avenue, according to James Famularo of Meridian Capital Group, who represented the tenant and landlord Aetna Realty in the deal.
The asking rent for the entire building, which sits between West 51st and West 52nd Street, was $1.2 million a year, said Famularo, who declined to disclose Particle Ink’s actual rent.
James Famularo of Meridian Capital Group
Aetna, which acquired the building in 2018 with Kenneth Cayre’s KLCC Investments for $6.5 million, did not return a request for comment. The show’s producers, Cassandra Rosenthal and Jennifer Tuft, were not immediately available for comment.
The new production replaces a Benjamin Moore Janovic Paint and Decorating Center store, which also occupied the entire premises, and moved a short walk away to 776 10th Avenue in 2016, Commercial Observer reported at the time.
“We have to get creative if we want to lease spaces,” Famularo said.
The move comes as retail real estate faces some tough challenges in the city — from high rents to changes in consumer behaviors — and landlords are looking for new types of tenants to fill spaces.
By occupying the entire building, “Particle Ink” is similar to “Sleep No More.” Based on Shakespeare’s Macbeth, “Sleep No More” is another immersive theater production, housed in the McKittrick Hotel at 530 West 27th Street.
It was not immediately clear when “Particle Ink” will open. Construction at the building could take six to nine months, Famularo said.