Tour Chelsea Factory
Pre-Show Tour of Chelsea Factory
- December 16th
- 12:00 PM ET
- In-Person
- FREE for Insiders
- Registration Opens on December 2nd at 12:00 PM ET
Go behind-the-scenes of Chelsea Factory, a former 1900s taxi garage turned incubation and performance space for NYC-based artists!
- Get a 360 degree look at the 14,000 square foot, flexible venue space and learn how it transforms for a wide range of artistic performances, exhibitions, premieres, fashion shows, music concerts, hip hop battles, and more
- Go “backstage” to learn about Chelsea Factory’s production and technical infrastructure and how it can be configured to support the needs of a variety of artists and cultural organizations
- Experience the pre-show energy as performers and production crew prepare for the 1:00pm Flamenco Vivo performance, and get 10% off your ticket with an exclusive discount code
- Learn some fun facts about the venue’s storied history as a former taxi garage, photography studio, and ballet company
- See the original bathtub Annie Leibovitz used to shoot Whoopi Goldberg’s famous Vanity Fair cover





About the event:
Guests will get a behind-the-scenes look at Chelsea Factory, a reimagined incubation and performance space which exists to provide responsive support to NYC-based artists from historically excluded communities. Located in the heart of West Chelsea just steps from The High Line and Chelsea galleries, Chelsea Factory occupies an industrial building with a rich New York City history—the former garage to NYC’s first taxis, studio and home to Annie Leibovitz, rehearsal and performance space to Cedar Lake Dance Company, and more.
Following the tour, guests will have the opportunity to stay for the 1:00pm performance of Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santana’s Navidad Flamenca—a family-friendly live music and Flamenco performance celebrating the rich holiday customs of the Spanish-speaking world.
About Lauren Kiel
Lauren Kiel is the Executive Director of Chelsea Factory. Previously, Lauren served as Executive Director of The Center for Ballet and the Arts at New York University where she built programmatic partnerships with New York cultural institutions and oversaw the growth of a global fellowship program that supported artists and scholars across 12 countries.
Before joining NYU, Lauren was the Associate Director of Lincoln Center International where she established new streams of earned and contributed revenue and helped to lead the institution’s global advisory services offering. Lauren joined Lincoln Center in 2010 and served as COO of the executive office during Lincoln Center’s $1.2B campus redevelopment.
Prior to her work at Lincoln Center, Lauren was a member of the Wreckio Ensemble theater company and a real estate broker in Manhattan. Lauren received her BA from Middlebury College summa cum laude, is a member of Phi Beta Kappa, and graduated from Harvard Business School with distinction.
Lauren and her husband reside in Manhattan with their two daughters.
Photo Credits
Header photo by Fadi Kheir
Flamenco photo by Christopher Duggan
Interior Photo by Joe Carrotta
Black and white photo via NYPL
How do I sign up for this event?
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How many tickets can I reserve?
If you are an Insider level member ($20/month), you can reserve 1 ticket to this event. Explorer level members ($30/month) can reserve 2 tickets. If you are a Virtual level member but would like to attend, it’s easy to upgrade your account here!
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The event is sold out?
In-person Insider tours may have limited capacity and are booked on a first come, first served basis.
But don’t worry! Sometimes spots open up closer to the event date if there are cancellations. We also repeat our most popular events when possible so you will have another opportunity to join us. There are also multiple other members-only events weekly that you can join in!
What if I need to cancel?
If you cancel more than 48 hours ahead of the scheduled event, you will receive a 100%. When canceled less than 48 hours before the start of your tour, you will receive a gift card that can be used on any future events. Please be courteous to your fellow Insiders and let us know if you can no longer attend so we can offer your spot to another person.