History and architecture
The High School of the Performing Arts, formerly Public School 67, is a handsome Romanesque Revival style building originally built to serve a large residential community on the west side of Manhattan. The school is the first known to have been designed by C.B.J. Snyder, Superintendent of School Buildings to the Board of Education for thirty years. Snyder's tenure coincided with a period enormous population growth in New York, and he designed a multitude of new schools, many of which are major architectural monuments in their neighborhoods.
As the area around Times Square changed from residential to commercial, P.S. 67 fell into disuse. After World War II, however, it was revived and adapted for use by the new High School of the Performing Arts, an innovative high school which combined the usual academic curriculum with professional training in dance, theater, and music. Unique in the country at the time of its founding, the school became tremendously successful, and its graduates include many of the most famous performing artists in the country.
Sources and further reading
This history comes from the Landmarks app’s historical catalog. Names and building uses may reflect the period described.