Oscar-nominated actress Jessica Chastain and her Italian fashion executive beau Gian Luca Passi de Preposulo purchased composer Leonard Bernstein’s former residence for a song (albeit an expensive one). The fashionably gorgeous couple bought the four-bedroom, three-and-a-half bath condo in midtown Manhattan’s historic Osborne Building, just across the street from Carnegie Hall, for $5.1 million.
The 3,200-square-foot, nine-room duplex retains much of the same appeal it did when West Wide Story maestro Bernstein owned it: a narrow parlor, carved mahogany pocket doors, 1885 Parquet de Versailles floors, an ornate wrought-iron staircase, bay windows with original Tiffany transoms, and even a grand piano in one of its grand rooms.
With Carnegie Hall within earshot, the turn-of-the-century condo has an incredibly impressive musical pedigree. Tony-Award-winning Bernstein owned the co-op condo until 1974. Chastain and Passi de Preposulo acquired the residence from Adam Guettel, another Tony-winning composer of “The Light in the Piazza.”
The home features five fireplaces, a library, formal dining room, and a renovated chef’s kitchen by interior designer Françoise Bollack—with an elegant chandelier, quartz countertops, a climate-controlled wine refrigerator and custom-milled cabinetry.
Sliding wood ladders negotiate book shelves and kitchen cabinetry that nearly soar to the condo’s 14-foot ceilings. If Chastain and her beau are acrophobic (fear of heights) they can solicit “the help” of their 6-foot-8-inch neighbor—Hall of Fame basketball coach-turned Zen Master-turned New York Knicks executive Phil Jackson.
Brass sconces and a wall of custom floor-to-ceiling closets frame the master suite whose bathroom boasts his-her sinks, a rain shower, and a deep soaking tub. Two guest rooms provide the condo with its most contemporary touches.
Chastain, a red-maned California native, has successfully benefited from recent dark movies roles, but that will be countered with copious amounts of real life light in her new Manhattan duplex.
Chastain gained notoriety with two Oscar nominations for commanding roles in Zero Dark Thirty and The Help (Passi de Preposulo works for Moncler). Chastain recently starred in A Most Violent Year with Oscar Isaac, her former classmate at the prestigious Juilliard School, which is just blocks away from the condo.
Rumors are swirling about Chastain and Passi de Preposulo. Are they engaged or even secretly married? Regardless, the purchase of the Osborne duplex signals a serious, long-lasting relationship that hits the right note. Living there undoubtedly will be music to their ears, echoing mightily through the halls —whether its from their grand piano, the ghost of Leonard Bernstein, or Carnegie Hall orchestras across Seventh Avenue. It makes sense. After all, they bought the duplex for a song—most likely a theatrical or classical one.