Carnegie Hall Playhouse Carnegie Hall Playhouse was a 299-seat off-Broadway theater (occasionally referred to in print simply as "Carnegie Playhouse") that existed on the lower level of Carnegie Hall from 1956-1961, which replaced Carnegie Lyceum (1896-1956), which itself replaced the original venue known as Recital Hall (1891-1896). In 1961 the venue was converted to an art film movie house called Carnegie Cinema. It was completely rebuilt between 1999 and 2003, when it reopened as the 599-seat Zankel Hall, named in honor of Carnegie Hall Vice Chairman Arthur Zankel and his wife, Judy. Carnegie Lyceum