The Kennedy Center, at 2700 F St. NW, has two main entrances – this one is to the Hall of States, and the other one is to the Hall of Nations. These are the two side corridors of the building, each 250 feet long, which adjoin the Grand Foyer on the back of the building facing the Potomac River. The Kennedy Center opened in 1971, and hosts more than 2,000 performing arts events per year.
The building was designed by architect Edward Durell Stone, who also designed Radio City Music Hall and the Museum of Modern Art. The building is faced with Carrara marble which was a gift from Italy, and has classic lines and is long and lean with a roof overhang. The performance theaters are built inside enclosures that are designed to mask the noise of the frequent airplanes over the Potomac River.