The groundbreaking ceremony for the Public Theater's Going Public Campaign was cause for celebration Tuesday morning, March 9, in the theater's lobby at 425 Lafayette St. in New York.

"Since we're not actually breaking ground, we're going to break this wall," joked the Public's executive director, Andrew Hamingson, as he donned a hardhat and joined artistic director Oskar Eustis, city officials, and others, who took turns smashing a wall with golden mallets.

The $35 million project has been in the works for almost 10 years. According to the campaign chairman and treasurer of the Public, Warren Spector, the theater has raised about $28 million thus far and hopes to have the rest by the end of the year.

The project consists of renovations to the façade and interior of the 160-year-old building, including new restrooms, updated safety features, and access for the handicapped. A complete overhaul of the heating and cooling systems and upgrades to the outdated electrical system are also planned.

"This place made us, and a place like this is hard to make," said actor Sam Waterston, one of several veterans of the Public stage—including Liev Schreiber, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Audra McDonald—who were on hand. "This is definitely personal; this place gave me my first break. The familiar names of today and tomorrow are performing here, now."

Hamingson praised the city officials who helped drive the project, including City Council speaker Christine Quinn and Manhattan borough president Scott Stringer, who both spoke at the ceremony.

"This is a significant time to be doing this," said Quinn. "It is important in tough economic times that we move forward with artistic projects." Stringer echoed Quinn's statements and added, "New York City is the cultural capital of the world, and through projects like those at the Public, we can continue to keep it that way."