NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ – Elizabeth Ross Johnson was a newspaper reporter in Alaska, managed an inn in Maine, and created an agency orphans in Cambodia, all before opening a folk art gallery in New York City. She died in June 2017 of Alzheimer's.

Her legacy will live on with the naming of the 463-seat Elizabeth Ross Johnson Theater in the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center (NBPAC), the larger of the two venues in the center that is now under construction.

Johnson's mother, Betty Wold Johnson, donated $5 million, through The Elizabeth Ross Johnson Charitable Trust, gifted $5 million to George Street Playhouse in honor of the daughter.

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City officials announced the naming of the theater, along with the designation of the second venue, the 259-seat Arthur Laurents Theatre, honoring a longtime friend of George Street Playhouse, award-winning playwright and author Arthur Laurents.

The Laurents/Hatcher Foundation, named for Arthur Laurents and his partner Tom Hatcher, gifted $2.75 million to the Playhouse which will support the Playhouse’s commitment to the development and production of new plays and musicals.

“We are grateful and honored by the generosity of Betty Wold Johnson, The Elizabeth Ross Johnson Charitable Trust, and The Laurents/Hatcher Foundation,” said Kelly Ryman, managing director of George Street Playhouse.

“As we prepare to take residence in this new, state-of-the-art performing arts center, the confidence our benefactors have in the work we do takes on new meaning,” Ryman said.

The total $7.75 million in donations are the largest in the history of the George Street Playhouse, which will be housed in the center.





The 23-story arts center, now under construction at a cost of more than $172 million, will be home to George Street Playhouse and the Crossroads Theatre, as well as a ballet company, an outlet for the Rutgers University Mason Gross School for the Arts and offices and residences.

“The New Brunswick Performing Arts Center represents the absolute best in the arts, public and private partnerships and state-of-the-art entertainment and culture,” said New Brunswick Mayor James Cahill said in a statement.

“We look forward to raising the curtain this year to welcome the next chapter of our outstanding performing arts scene in these new and modern spaces, named in honor of two beloved champions of the arts and culture,” Cahill said.

Elizabeth Ross Johnson, the daughter of Betty Wold Johnson and Robert Wood Johnson III, grew up in Princeton and dedicated her life to the service of others. She was a benefactor to the Dance Theatre of Harlem and the Central Park Conservancy, among others. She also supported wildlife conservation in Africa and created a not-for-profit organization in Cambodia called the Sovann Komar, or “Golden Children."

“The legacy of Elizabeth Ross Johnson, and the commitment of her family to New Brunswick and the State of New Jersey, continues with this generous gift,” said James Heston, George Street Playhouse Board Chairman.

“This will ensure George Street Playhouse, and the strong, vibrant, and celebrated arts community in this city, will continue to thrive. We are also honored that our artistic director David Saint’s long-standing collaboration with Arthur Laurents and George Street Playhouse led to this extraordinary contribution from the Laurents/Hatcher Foundation," Heston said.

Arthur Laurents wrote the books for musicals such as Gypsy and West Side Story, and the screenplays The Way We Were and The Turning Point. Mr. Laurents premiered nine of his plays at George Street Playhouse.

“Arthur always said George Street Playhouse was his favorite theater,” said Playhouse Artistic Director David Saint. "It is fitting that this brilliant artist, who contributed profoundly to the theater and film canons, will be honored in this way. Arthur was a true friend, and it means so much to this community that his name will be etched into this extraordinary performing arts center that George Street Playhouse will call home," he said.

NBPAC will include a fly loft that will allow for scenery to raise and lower, and an expansive orchestra pit. George Street Playhouse’s inaugural season in the NBPAC will feature five productions in both the Elizabeth Ross Johnson Theater, and the Arthur Laurents Theater.

In addition to the new arts center, the 450,000-square-foot building includes 30,000 feet of office space, owned by Middlesex County on two floors above the theater complex. A 207- unit residential apartment tower will sit above the theater complex, with both market rate and affordable apartment units.

The New Brunswick Performing Arts Center is a public-private partnership among Devco, the City of New Brunswick, Rutgers University, Middlesex County, New Jersey Economic Development Authority, New Brunswick Cultural Center, Pennrose, LLC, and New Brunswick Parking Authority, along with 11 other groups and organizations. More information at the NBPAC website.

“This is an exciting moment for the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center and the City of New Brunswick,” said Devco president Christopher Paladino. “The extraordinary generosity of these two benefactors further distinguishes New Brunswick as a premier center for the performing arts. NBPAC continues to deliver on its promise to transform New Brunswick’s Downtown Cultural Arts District.”