[3] The Hall is owned by the Essex County Improvement Authority and is operated by the non-profit Newark Performing Arts Corporation (NPAC).

[4][5] Originally built in 1925 by the Shriners at a cost of more than $2 million as Salaam Temple and colloquially known as The Mosque, the four-story building has been Newark Symphony Hall since 1964.

[4][6] The interior features Greek and Egyptian motifs, marble columns, a crystal chandelier, gold-leaf fret work and two-columned side promenades.

The 3,500-seat main concert hall is named for Sarah Vaughan, a native Newarker, and is renowned for its acoustics.

Victor Borge, Judy Garland,[16] Bob Dylan, The Supremes, Patti LaBelle, Teddy Pendergrass, Richard Pryor, James Cleveland, Count Basie, Kirk Franklin, Queen Latifah, Gladys Knight, Parliament-Funkadelic, The Temptations, Tony Bennett and other artists have also performed.

While much activity has shifted to NJPAC, Symphony Hall's continues to present theater, music and dance.

[23][24] Community organizations have been conducting their annual programs at Newark Symphony Hall for twenty-five years and more, and continue to do so.

Newark Symphony Hall is home to Special Ensemble,[25] winners of the McDonald's Gospelfest, and hosts the "When Praise Goes Up!"

Members of Special Ensemble include Chanel Pearson, Craig McCargo, Kimani Carson, Drew McMillan, Donovan Jones, Gabriel Moses, Robert Johnson, Leah Gaines, Melina Wilson, and Nia Harris.

[4] In December 2019, the Hall hosted singing and dancing auditions for a BET miniseries about the history of Uptown Records.

Events in the Sarah Vaughan Concert Hall, Newark Stage and Terrace Ballroom continued during restoration.

[30] In April 2021, while the venue was still closed due to the Coronavirus pandemic, it began hosting virtual events including live-streamed plays, and launched a career accelerator and business incubator called “The Lab”, to support the local performing arts community.