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Booth Theatre, New York, NY222 West 45th Street
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Copyright © 2008 TheaterPrint, LLC |
Copyright © 2008 TheaterPrint, LLC
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Booth Theatre seating chart from "The Wanamaker Diary 1918," |
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Bronx Opera House Also known as Bronx
436 East 149th Street, Bronx, NY
George Keister, Architect
Opened August, 1913
The Bronx Opera House, built as a legitimate playhouse, was for many years a mainstay of the "subway circuit," theatres in Manhattan but mostly in the other boroughs that played both pre- and post-Broadway productions. Living up to its name as an opera house, the Aborn Opera Company made annual visits to the theatre. In 1920, The Master Thief starring Francis X. Bushman opened at the Opera House after a long tour. The booking raised some doubt as to whether the show was intended for Broadway, "after all, a Brooklyn tryout is one thing, but a Bronx tryout is something else again." The production never made it to Broadway. Over the years, the stars who played the Bronx Opera House included Fay Bainter, Ethel, John and Lionel Barrymore, Mrs. Fisk, Sothern and Marlowe, and David Warfield. By the 1940s, the theatre was showing second-run films and the name had been shortened to the Bronx. Today, the old theatre still stands and is used as a church.
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Theatres [C]
Capitol Theatre, New York, NY
1645 Broadway at 51st Street
Other names: Loew's Capitol, Loew's Cinerama
Architect: Thomas W. Lamb
Opening production Demi-Tasse Revue, October 24, 1919
The Capitol had 5,230 seats when it opened with the Demi-Tasse Revue introducing "Swanee" by George Gershwin and Irving Caesar. Movies and stage shows were on the bill until 1952, with the exception of the years 1935-1943. After 1952 the Capitol remained one of New York's premier first run and Roadshow theatres. In one the theatre's later renovations the beautiful grand staircase was cut down the center and an escalator was placed in the middle, it was a sad sight. In 1968 the Roadshow engagement of 2001: A Space Odyssey was the final film to play the Capitol. 2001... moved down Broadway to the Warner Theatre and the Capitol was demolished.
Loew's Capitol,
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Vintage postcard from the TheaterPrint Collection |
Theatres [C]
Casino Theatre, New York, NY
Broadway at 39th Street
Architect: Kimball & Wisedell
Opening production The Queens Lace Handkerchief, October 21, 1882
The Casino was a Moorish extravaganza that would be the home of operetta and musical comedy for nearly the next half century. Among the productions to play The Casino were Florodora (1900), Sally, Irene and Mary (1922), I'll Say She Is with the Marx Brothers (1924), The Vagabond King (1925), The Desert Song (1926), the final curtain came down on a production of Faust in 1930. The Casino was demolished in 1930 and replaced by an office building.
Casino Theatre New York, NY
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Casino Theatre seating chart from "The Wanamaker Diary 1918," |
Century Theatre, New York, NY
Central Park West at 62nd Street Also known as: New, Century Opera House Architects: Carrere & Hastings Opened November 8, 1909, with Shakespeare's Anthony and Cleopatra
The Century Theatre opened as the New Theatre which was founded by some of New York's wealthiest men, John Jacob Astor, J.P. Morgan, and Cornelius Vanderbilt among them as a not-for-profit theatre. They built a sumptuous theatre on Central Park West covering the full block from 62nd to 63rd Streets. The New Theatre was beset by problems from the start including bad acoustics. By the end of the second season the New Theatre lost $400,000. The founders left, the name was changed to Century and was leased to Charles Dillingham and Florenz Ziegfeld. The Century housed opera, ballet and shows like Victor Herbert and Irving Berlin's The Century Girl (1916), and Irving Berlin's World War I soldier revue Yip Yip Yaphank (1918). In 1920 the Shuberts bought the theatre. The Century hosted many shows that transferred from other theatres, revivals and visiting companies. In 1923 Max Reinhardt's spectacular production of The Miracle opened. On December 15,1928 the curtain came down for the last time on the musical Just a Minute and the Century was torn down to be replaced by the Century Apartments.
Century Theatre New York, NY
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Century Theatre seating chart from |
Cocoanut Grove
Atop Century Theatre
On the roof of the Century Theatre was a 500 seat theatre known at various times as the Century Roof, Century Promenade, Cocoanut Grove, Century Grove and Casino de Paris. It housed children's theatre with children size seats, cabaret and late-night revues. the most successful of these was the Russian vaudeville Chauve-Souris during this period the theatre was decorated with Russian murals on the walls and ceiling. The last success as the Casino de Paris was A Night in Paris (1926). The Casino de Paris closed with The Optimists in February 1928 after 24 performances.
Photograph from The Century Girl program 1916
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Cocoanut Grove seating chart from program for |
Cohan and Harris Theatre, New York
226 West 42nd Street
Other Names: Candler, Sam H. Harris
Architect: Thomas W. Lam
Opening production Antony and Cleopatra (Film), May 7, 191
On Trial (Play), August 19, 1914
The Cohan and Harris opened as the Candler as an adjunct to the Candler Building, the Candler's built both structures with money from their Coca-Cola fortune. The beautiful playhouse was under the management of George M. Cohan and Sam H. Harris from the start though they chose to open the Candler with movies and not start it's career as a legitimate theatre for three months. After only three productions they changed it's name to the Cohan and Harris in October 1916. Cohan and Harris broke-up their partnership in 1921 with Harris retaining the management of the theatre and renaming it the Sam H. Harris. On November 16, 1922 one of the major theatrical events of the 1920's opened at the Harris, John Barrymore as Hamlet. The production played 101 performances breaking Edwin Booth's record of 100 performances. In its' last three years as a playhouse the Harris was home to such stars and future stars as Spencer Tracy, Ethel Waters, Henry Fonda, and Humphrey Bogart. For the Harris' last legitimate production, in January 1933, it returned to it's roots with George M. Cohan starring in his own play Pigeons and People. After the play moved on to the Lyceum the Sam H. Harris became a movie house until it closed in 1978. It was demolished in 1996 to make way for Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum.
Cohan and Harris Theatre New York, NY 191
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Harris marquee 1996, Copyright © 2008 TheaterPrint, LLC
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Cohan and Harris Theatre seating chart from |
Ticket stub from the TheaterPrint Collection |
Coliseum Theatre, London, England
AKA London Coliseum St. Martin's Lane Architect: Frank Matcham Opening production Variety Show, December 24, 1904
The great British theatre manager Oswald Stoll built the imposing London Coliseum as the home of family oriented variety. It's Italian Renaissance facade dominated, and still dominates St. Martin's Lane, with it's large square tower topped by a colorful sphere. After the public's initial rush to see the lavish 2,358 seat theatre the Coliseum closed in June 1906 not reopening until December 1907. Stoll then engaged the biggest names in variety to appear at his theatre. From 1907 to 1931 the Coliseum was the home to the greats of variety. In 1931 the Coliseum became the home of musical comedy until the early 1960's. A long list of Broadway hits played the theatre including On Your Toes, Something for the Boys, Annie Get Your Gun, Kiss Me Kate, Call Me Madam, Guys and Dolls, Can Can, The Pajama Game, Damn Yankees, Bells are Ringing, and The Most Happy Fella. In 1961 musicals were out and Cinerama was in. By 1967 Cinerama left and in 1968 the Sadler's Wells Opera (renamed English National Opera in 1974) needing a larger home base moved in and still calls the Coliseum home.
Coliseum Theatre London, England |
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Theatres [D]
Theatres [E]
81st Street Theatre, New York, NY
2248 Broadway
Other names: Keith's 81st Street, RKO Keith's 81st Street
Architect: Thomas W. Lamb
Opening date: 1913
Originally to be named the Boulevard the 81st Street Theatre opened in 1913 as a vaudeville house seating 2,015. Eventually becoming a movie house in the RKO chain. The interior was painted in shades of old ivory, tan and gold, A feature of the auditorium was a painting "Music and Dancing" on the sounding board over the proscenium, it was, covered in mottled glass to produce a rich golden glow. Early programs called the 81st Street "The House Beautiful". The Keith vaudeville circuit took over the theatre in 1919. In 1954 the 81st Street was sold to CBS and became their first major color television studio in New York, as CBS Studio 72. In 1957 the live color broadcast of Rogers and Hammerstein's Cinderella originated from the theatre. The auditorium was demolished in 1986 for an apartment house, the 81st Street facade was retained and today is home to a Starbucks and a Staples.
81st Street Theatre Facade 2007 |
Earl Carroll Theatre
6230 Sunset Blvd., Hollywood, CA
Other names: Moulin Rouge, Hullabaloo, Aquarius, Nickelodeon on Sunset
Architects: Gordon B. Kaufman (exterior),
Count Alexis de Sakhnoffsky and Kaufman (interior)
Opened December 26, 1938
Earl Carroll was the producer of the Earl Carroll Vanities a series of lavish Broadway revues in competition with the Ziegfeld Follies and George White’s Scandals for the dollars of the “tired business man”. His Earl Carroll Theatre on 7th Avenue at 50th Street, in New York, was home to most of the editions of the Vanities. Above the stage door was the inscription “Through these portals pass the most beautiful girls in the world”. Carroll lost his Broadway theatre in the depression and moved to Los Angeles, opening the Earl Carroll Theatre-Restaurant on Sunset Boulevard in December 1938. The Earl Carroll met with immediate success presenting extravagant productions modeled after the Vanities. The theatre itself was built in the art deco style both inside and out. The stage was 60 feet wide with two turntables and a staircase. The facade had an art deco circular neon sign featuring a portrait of Beryl Wallace one of Carroll’s featured showgirls and his companion. The success of the Earl Carroll lasted until the death of Carroll and Miss Wallace in a plane crash in 1948. The theatre was sold but continued to operate until the early 1950’s. In 1953 it was renamed Moulin Rouge. The theatre then was used as a TV studio and home to Queen for a Day. Later it became the Rock club Hullabaloo. Hullabaloo’s claim to fame came on June 8, 1967 when The Doors played two unadvertised shows. In 1968 the long running Los Angeles production of Hair opened at the renamed Aquarius Theatre. During the run of Hair on dark Mondays, The Doors returned to the house for a series of concerts that were recorded live for their Absolutely Live album. Today the house is the Nickelodeon on Sunset, home to Nickelodeon’s west coast productions.
El Capitan Theatre
6838 Hollywood Boulevard, Hollywood, CA
Architects: Morgan, Walls & Clements (exterior), and
G. Albert Lansburgh (interior)
Other names: Hollywood Paramount
Opened May 3, 1926
The El Capitan was built as a legitimate theatre by real estate developer Charles E. Toberman. The theatre features a Spanish colonial exterior with an East Indian interior. It was called “Hollywood’s First Home of Spoken Drama”. The theatre’s opening production was Charlot’s Revue of 1926 starring Gertrude Lawrence, Beatrice Lillie, and Jack Buchanan. It was the first of over 120 legitimate productions to play the house. Among the stars to appear on the El Capitan’s stage, in addition to Lawrence, Lillie, and Buchanan were Joe E. Brown, Henry Fonda, Joan Fontaine, Clark Gable, Bob Hope, Buster Keaton, Otto Kruger, Mary Pickford, and Will Rogers. On May 8, 1941 the Hollywood premiere of Orson Welles’ Citizen Kane took place at the El Capitan. After Citizen Kane’s run the theatre was closed for nearly a year for refurbishing to an art-moderne movie theatre. The theatre re-opened as the Hollywood Paramount on March 18, 1942, and continued to show films until 1989. In that year the Walt Disney Company and Pacific Theatres began a two-year restoration of the theatre. The beautifully restored theatre opened in June, 1991, as the El Capitan, home to first run Disney films, many paired with live stage shows.
Eltinge 42nd Street Theatre, New York, NY
236 West 42nd Street
Other names: Eltinge, Laff Movie, Empire, AMC Empire 25
Architect: Thomas W. Lamb
Opening production: Within the Law September 11, 1912
The Eltinge 42nd Street was built by the producer manager Al Woods and named after his very successful client the female impersonator Julian Eltinge. Thomas Lamb designed a theatre with an individual exterior focused on a large paned window bordered by a carved-stone arch. The facade framing the arch was light colored and trimmed in multi-colored terracotta. The interior seating 880 had both Greek and Egyptian motifs with eight boxes and two balconies. Opening auspiciously with the hugely successful Within the Law playing 541 times. The Eltinge remained in the legitimate fold until the closing of First Night after 86 performances in 1931. The Eltinge then became a burlesque house until 1942, when the theatre started showing films as the Laff Movie. In 1954 the name was changed to the Empire and continued as a movie house until the mid-1980's. On March 1, 1998 the Empire was moved 168 feet down 42nd Street to its present location becoming the imposing entrance to the AMC Empire 25 movie complex.
Copyright © 2007 TheaterPrint, LLC
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Eltinge Theatre seating chart from "The Wanamaker Diary 1918," from the TheaterPrint Collection |
Eltinge Theatre mural over the proscenium. |
Discount Ticket from the TheaterPrint Collection |
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Theatres [F]
B.S. Moss' Flatbush Theatre, Brooklyn, NY
2207 Church Avenue
Other names: Werba's Flatbush, Brandt's Flatbush, Flatbush
Architect: Robert Rasmussen
Opening date: September, 1914
B.S. Moss' Flatbush Theatre opened in 1914 playing vaudeville. Over the years, it operated as a legitimate theatre as part of the Subway Circuit (theatres in Manhattan but mostly in the other boroughs that played both pre- and post-Broadway productions) and as a movie theatre. It closed in 1952, and now houses stores and offices. Among the stars who played the Flatbush were Luther Adler, Lucille Ball, Ethel Barrymore, Constance Bennett, Elisabeth Bergner, Melvyn Douglas, Bert Lahr, Canada Lee, Gloria Swanson, Sylvia Sydney, and Ethel Waters. One of the last shows to play the Flatbush was the American-Yiddish Revue Bagels & Yox in 1952.
The Flatbush auditorium is unrecognizable with stores and offices. |
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Folies Bergere, New York, NY
210 West 46th Street
Other names: Fulton, Helen Haye
Architect: Herts & Tallant
Opening production: Hell, Temptations, Gaby April 27, 1911
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Fulton Theatre 1283 Fulton Street, Brooklyn, NY
Other name: Loew's Fulton
Architect: William H. McElfatrick
Opening: September, 1908
The Fulton Theatre, in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn, opened in September 1908 primarily as a vaudeville house. In 1915 it was added to the Loew's theatre chain and renamed Loew's Fulton adding films to the bill. The theatre proved to be a great success for Loew's, but with the onset of the depression they closed the Fulton in favor of their two other theatres in the neighborhood, Loew's Brevoort and Loew's Bedford.
Theatres [G]
Grand Opera House, Brooklyn, NY
Elm Place, between Fulton and Livingstone Streets
Architect: Unknown
Opening: December 1881?
On July 12, 1881, plans were approved for a new theatre to be built on Elm Place to be named the Grand Opera House. It was said that the interior of the theatre would be tastefully decorated, well ventilated and heated. The plans called for an opening during the forthcoming holiday season. In 1885, the theatre’s managers, after attending a production of the Adah Richmond Company canceled the company’s booking. It was stated “that the company had been represented as first class, when in truth it was fit only for a variety house and not for a theatre like the Grand Opera House”. The Shuberts took control of the theatre in September of 1908, booking such stars as Sam Bernard, Eddie Foy, Lulu Glaser, Mary Mannering, Julia Marlow, and E. H. Sothern. In 1915, Sunday night concerts were added to the theatre’s schedule with entertainers coming from the Loew’s Theatres circuit. 1919 brought a novel experiment to the house. At 1 and 7p.m., the film version of Rip Van Winkle starring Joseph Jefferson was shown. At 2:30 and 8:30p.m., a live version of the dramatic play was presented. For the price of a ticket, a patron could see and compare the silent film with the live play. Later the same year, the final curtain at the Grand Opera House came down after the house was acquired by the adjoining Namm’s department store and the site used for the store's expansion.
Grand Opera House 119 North Clark Street, Chicago, IL
Other names: Geo. M. Cohan's Grand Opera House, Four Cohans Grand Opera House, Shubert Grand Opera House, RKO Grand
Architects: Dankmar Adler,
Renovated 1926 by Andrew Rebori
Opened September 6, 1880
The Grand Opera House was a remodeling, with the addition of a new auditorium and stage house, to the existing Hamlin’s Theatre. Adler’s foreman on the project was his future partner Louis Sullivan. The Grand Opera House was built as a legitimate theatre and had seating for 1,750 in an orchestra, balcony and gallery. The interior was lit by gas and described by the Chicago Daily Tribune as having “the beautiful blending of rich colors and the graceful elegance of the designs charms the eye at every point”. In 1912 George M. Cohan and his partner Sam H. Harris leased the theatre, on March 3, the renamed Geo. M. Cohan's Grand Opera House opened its doors. In 1926 the façade and auditorium were reconstructed by Andrew Rebori, and reopened as the Four Cohans. Later the Shuberts took over and the theatre became the Shubert Grand Opera House, it then returned to its original name Grand Opera House. When live theatre left and films came in the theatre was renamed the RKO Grand. In March 1958 the RKO Grand showed its last film and was demolished. Among the stars who played the Grand Opera House, over the years, were Lionel Barrymore, Arthur Byron, Mady Christians, George M. Cohan, Constance Collier, Katharine Cornell, Dudley Digges, Robert Edeson, Leon Errol, Douglas Fairbanks, Walter Hampden, Miriam Hopkins, Allan Jones, Bert Lahr, Eva Le Gallienne, Canada Lee, the Marx Brothers, Chester Morris, Mildred Natwick, Effie Shannon, and Ethel Waters.
Cohans Grand Opera House program for |
Vintage postcard from the TheaterPrint Collection |
Theatres [H]
Hollywood Playhouse
1735 N. Vine Street, Hollywood, CA
Architect: Gogarty and Weyl
Also known as El Capitan, Jerry Lewis, Hollywood Palace, The Palace, Avalon
Opened January 24, 1927
The Hollywood Playhouse was one of four legitimate theatres built on, or just off, Hollywood Boulevard between 1925 and 1927, each seating over 1,000 people. The opening of the Hollywood Playhouse confirmed Hollywood as a legitimate theatre district, second only to downtown Los Angeles. The playhouse was designed in the popular Spanish Colonial Revival style, with its characteristic ornate surface decoration of scrolls, foliage, and shields. In 1933 a play Woman on Trial by the then unknown Ayn Rand opened at the house, it would open on Broadway as The Night of January 16th to great success. In 1940 the American premier of Gas Light starring Judith Evelyn took place at the Hollywood Playhouse. It would move to Broadway as Angel Street and play for 1,293 performances. It subsequently was filmed as Gaslight. 1942 brought a new name the El Capitan and became the home for Ken Murray's Blackouts, the revue, in its various editions, ran for seven years and 3,844 performances. In the 1950's the El Capitan became a television studio, and it was from its stage that on September 23, 1952, Richard Nixon gave his Checkers speech. The theatre was also home to The Colgate Comedy Hour, This is Your Life, and the Lawrence Welk Show. 1963 brought the weekly Jerry Lewis Show and the theatre became the Jerry Lewis Theatre. When Jerry Lewis left the house became the Hollywood Palace home of the variety show of the same name. In 1978 the name was shortened to The Palace and became a concert venue. On August 6, 1996 The Ramones gave their 2,263rd and final concert at The Palace. The house was renamed the Avalon, in 2002, presenting concerts and hosting events.
Hammerstein's Victoria Theatre, New York, NY
Seventh Avenue at 42nd Street Architect: J.B. McElfatrick Opening date: March 3, 1899
In 1898 Oscar Hammerstein (grandfather of Oscar Hammerstein II) who was between fortunes begged and borrowed the money to build his Victoria Theatre. Using used materials and furnishings Hammerstein's Victoria opened March 3, 1899 seating about 1,000. Even with the use of reused furnishings the interior of the house was given high marks by the press. The first production was the Rogers Brothers, well known comedians of the day, in A Reign of Error. In the theatre's first four years 11 shows opened without a major hit keeping the Victoria from becoming one of the truly desirable Broadway houses. In 1904 the policy changed to Hammerstein's Victoria "Theatre of Varieties" and proved to be a great success. Among those who appeared on the Victoria's stage included W.C. Fields, Charlie Chaplin, Houdini, Bert Williams, and the Four Cohan's. Another reason for the success of the Victoria was the Roof Garden, not only did the Roof Garden present vaudeville but also had a Dutch-style dairy farm with a live cow, chickens, a pond with ducks, a goat and a costumed milkmaid. The Dutch Farm was situated in an expanded part of the roof atop Hammerstein's Theatre Republic. The Victoria and Roof Garden became known as Hammerstein's and was the premier vaudeville house in New York. In 1915 Hammerstein sold the Victoria to a syndicate headed by S.L. Rothafel (Roxy), they tore-down the Seventh Avenue facade and interior and built Broadway's first movie palace, the Rialto, within the remaining three walls.
Hammerstein's Roof Garden Exit Plan1911,
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Vintage postcard Hammerstein's Victoria and Roof Garden 1912 |
Theatres [I]
International Casino Broadway
between 44th and 45th Streets, New York, NY
Architects: Thomas B. Lamb and Nicholas H. Weiss
Also known as International Theatre-Restaurant, Bond International Casino, Criterion Center
Opened September 17, 1937
When the International Casino opened it was described, in the program, as “the most elaborate and famous night club in the world”. It stated that the club had “four main rooms, foremost of which is the Casino proper with the finest stage in the world, completely mechanical in operation”. The overall dimensions of the stage were 146’ by 43’, the stage had two treadmills, three revolving platforms, and above the stage were two disappearing staircases. The Casino sat 1,500 at tables on six tiers of platforms. The Cosmopolitan Room next to the Casino sat 750 and was the cocktail lounge. The main entrance was through bronze doors leading to the 55-foot, escalator ending at the Spiral Bar seating 159 for meals. There was also a mezzanine extending from the Spiral Bar running below the Casino and the Cosmopolitan Room. Crowning the roof was one of the great electrical displays on Times Square-250 feet long with nearly two miles of neon and two seven-story tall nude figures of a man and woman. Between the figures was a 132 foot wide and 27 foot high waterfall. In March 1938 the International Casino filed for reorganization, on January 12, 1940 it was over, the midnight performance was its last and the International Casino closed. In August, 1940 it was announced that the Bond Clothing Stores would take over the site. The Bond Store, known as the “Home of the Two Trouser Suit”, opened on December 4, 1940 and closed in 1977. In June 1980 the Bond International Casino disco opened on the site. Bond’s lasted until 1983 and was best known for presenting Clash on Broadway in 1981. 1989 brought another name and purpose, the space was converted to the Criterion Center housing a 499 seat Broadway theatre, Stage Right, and a cabaret Stage Left (later the Laura Pels Theatre). Stage Right opened with the musical Starmites playing 60 performances. In 1991Criterion Center become home to the Roundabout Theatre Company. The Roundabout presented 37 productions in Stage Right and numerous Off-Broadway productions in the Laura Pels Theatre. The Roundabout lost its lease in 1999 and now controls three Broadway Theatres and two Off-Broadway houses. In its present incarnation the International Casino site is an enormous Toys R Us, Bonds 45 Restaurant and other stores.
Irving Place Theatre, New York, NY
118 East 15th Street (11 Irving Place)
Also known as Amberg German, Amberg's, Deutsche
Architect: Theodore C. Stein and Emery Roth
Opening date: December 1, 1888
The opening production at Gustave Amberg's new Amberg German Theatre on December 1, 1888 was Ein Erfolg and Fortuno's Liebeslied. For the next 30 years, the theatre played host to mostly German language productions. On September 28 1889, the first New York production of Ibsen's A Doll's House (in German) took place here. In 1893, Heinrich Conried took control of Amberg's and renamed it the Irving Place Theatre, continuing the German language policy. Mr. Conreid later became director of the Metropolitan Opera House. The Yiddish Art Theatre took over the theatre in 1918, staying for three years. 1922 brought burlesque and then movies. In 1962 the old Irving Place was converted into a warehouse for S.Klein's Department Store. The virtually intact interior was torn out, and equipped for receiving and shipping merchandise. The old house was demolished in 1984 to be replaced by the 1 Irving Place apartment towers.
Program for Fine Feathers 1930
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Exit plan 1930, from the TheaterPrint Collection |
Theatres [J]
Theatres [K]
Theatres [L]
Las Palmas Theatre
1642 North Las Palmas Avenue, Hollywood, CA
Architect: Unknown
Also known as Hollywood Little
Opened 1936
The Las Palmas Theatre is located off Hollywood Boulevard around the corner from the Egyptian Theatre. Built originally as a market and remodeled as the Hollywood Little Theatre in 1936. Seating 388, in an undistinguished building, it was renamed the Las Palmas, over the years the theatre has housed a number of successful productions. In 1946 the Actors Lab leased the Las Palmas and presented Volpone, Awake and Sing, Home of the Brave with Barbara Bel Geddes, and Gogol's The Inspector General, all for limited engagments.1948 brought the Las Palmas' most successful production, the musical revue Lend an Ear featuring Carol Channing, and Gene Nelson, with words and music by Charles Gaynor. The show moved to Broadway playing 460 performances leading directly to Channing's casting in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and stardom. Lend an Ear was followed at the Las Palmas by the unsuccessful Tongue in Cheek. Arthur Kennedy took over the house, in 1951, to present his company in a repertory of plays. In 1954 the successful That's Life opened, a planned Broadway transfer never materialized. October 15, 1958, brought The Billy Barnes Revue with Music and Lyrics by Billy Barnes featuring Joyce Jameson, Bert Convy, and Ken Berry. The revue transferred to Off-Broadway, then to Broadway for 87 performances, before returning to Off-Broadway. Billy Barnes was back in 1964 with Billy Barnes' Hollywood again with Joyce Jameson and Ken Berry. June 1968, brought The Private Ear and The Public Eye. In the 1970's the theatre showed adult films. More recently it was used as a music club.
London Hippodrome
Leicester Square and Charing Cross Road, London, England
Architect: Frank Matcha
Also known as The Talk of the Town
Opened January 15, 1900
The London Hippodrome was built by Edward Moss and designed by the eminent theatre architect Frank Matcham, as a circus and water spectacular. The circus arena and the stage could be hydraulically raised and lowered to provide a 100,000 gallon water tank. The tank was filled by the underground Cranbourne River under the stage area. The Hippodrome had seating for 1,340 patrons. By 1909 the public had tired of the circus and the arena was converted, by Matcham, to theatre seating and became home to variety shows, revues, and musicals. In 1910 Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake received its English premiere at the Hippodrome. Among the stars to appear at the house were Julie Andrews, Jack Buchanan, Adele Dixon, Leon Errol, Audrey Hepburn, Stanley Holloway, Bobby Howes, and Lupino Lane. In 1957 the Hippodrome closed to become The Talk of the Town theatre-restaurant. In the process most of the beautiful interior was destroyed. The areas of the theatre that survived were the upper portions of the auditorium, above the false ceiling installed for The Talk of the Town, including the upper circle and the top of the proscenium arch.. The Talk of the Town was home to some of the world's top cabaret artists including Judy Garland, Cliff Richard, Diana Ross and The Supremes, The Seekers, and The Temptations all of whom recorded Live at The Talk of the Town albums. The club closed in 1982. In 1983 the site reopened as a nightclub-restaurant. 2004 brought the successful Cirque at the Hippodrome. The Hippodrome is currently under restoration to bring it back, as close as possible, to its original Matcham design. It is scheduled to re-open as an integrated entertainment venue, housing a restaurant, casino, bars, and a cabaret. The Hippodrome Casino is to re-open in 2011.
Theatres [M]
Majestic Theatre, Brooklyn, NY
651 Fulton Street
Architect: John B. McElfatrick,
Also known as BAM Majestic, BAM Harvey
Opened August 29, 1904, with Montgomery & Stone in The Wizard of Oz.
In the early years of the 20th Century, Brooklyn had a large number of legitimate theatres, and today the only one remaining is the Majestic. Throughout the 1920s and 1930s, it housed both pre- and post-Broadway productions. In 1942, the Majestic became a movie theatre and showed films up until it closed in 1968. The Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) rescued the theatre in 1987 for Peter Brooks' production of The Mahabharata renaming it the BAM Majestic. Instead of doing a complete restoration, the theatre was turned into a purposeful ruin. The theatre is now the BAM Harvey named after Harvey Lichtenstein who made BAM into the world-class cultural center it is today.
Majestic Theatre, Chicago, IL
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Manhattan Beach Theatre, Brooklyn, NY
Manhattan Beach Opened June, 1895
In 1877, real estate developer Austin Corbin developed a 500-acre, self-contained summer resort on the eastern end of Coney Island called Manhattan Beach. The resort had two large hotels, the Oriental and the Manhattan Beach. June of 1895 brought the newest addition to the resort, the Manhattan Beach Theatre. The playhouse was built for use in the summer season, and opened with Edward E. Rice's Burlesquers and John Philip Sousa's Band. In 1898, as an experiment to find out the musical preferences of New Yorkers, Victor Herbert introduced special musical days: Monday "Popular Day," Tuesday "Soloist Day," Wednesday "Wagner," Thursday "Operatic," Friday "Classical," Saturday "American Composers," and Sunday "Gala Day." Vaudeville was introduced at the Manhattan Beach in 1905, with Eddie Foy headlining the opening bill. The following year, the Manhattan Beach and Oriental Hotels, along with the Manhattan Beach Theatre, went into receivership but remained open. By the 1909 season, the Manhattan Beach Theatre was gone and replaced by a casino for musical presentations. In 1910 the expansion of Coney Island's amusement parks and the closing of the area's racetracks led to Manhattan Beach becoming a residential community.
Manhattan Beach Theatre 1900 from the TheaterPrint Collection |
Montauk Theatre, Brooklyn, NY
409 Flatbush Avenue
Extension
Also known as Crescent, B.F. Keith's Crescent,
Shubert-Crescent, Werba's Brooklyn, Triangle, Minsky's
Architect: John B. McElfatrick and Sons
Opened: September 2, 1895
When the cornerstone was laid for the Montauk Theatre in April, 1895, it was originally on Fulton Street going through to De Kalb Avenue. It opened with William H. Crane in His Wife's Father, April 1904 brought E.H. Sothern to the Montauk in The Proud Prince. In November, 1904, the relatively new Montauk was slated to be torn down to make way for the approach to the new Manhattan Bridge. When it was found that it would cost less to move the theatre rather than to tear it down, the Montauk was moved several hundred feet to the new Flatbush Avenue Extension. The theatre was intact except for a new facade built on the Extension, and then became the Crescent. 1915 brought films and a new name, the Triangle. Triangle was the name of a new film studio under the direction of D.W. Griffith, Thomas H. Ince, and Mack Sennett, and the Triangle became their showplace in Brooklyn. The Shuberts took control in 1917, renaming the theatre Shubert-Crescent. In 1921 the Shuberts chose the Shubert-Crescent as the Brooklyn home for their new, and eventually unsuccessful, vaudeville circuit. In 1923, the theatre was leased to Lewis F. Werba and renamed Werba's Brooklyn. The policy was to present pre- and post-Broadway engagements with a weekly change of program. Among the productions in the 1927 season were, GeoLulu Belle, Honeymoon Lane George White's Scandals, Criss-Cross, The Barker, and Earl Carroll's Vanities. Some of the stars of the 1920's to play the house were Jacob Ben-Ami, Fannie Brice, Joe E. Brown, Thais Lawton, Hal Skelly, and Queenie Smith. With the depression, Werba lost the house in bankruptcy and it then became Billy Minsky's Brooklyn Burlesque, presenting such productions as Etta Napple from Eden. When the city cracked down on burlesque, the old theatre was closed and was demolished in 1940.
Cast page for The Proud Prince 1904 |
Montauk Theatre Exit Plan 1902 from the TheaterPrint Collection
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Program for Etta Napple from Eden 1932 |
Program for The Proud Prince 1904 |
Program for The Way of the World 1902 |
New Montauk Theatre, Brooklyn, NY
Livingstone Street and Hanover Place
Also known as Montauk
Architect: Kirby, Petit & Green
Opened December 25, 1905
In November 1904, the management of the Montauk Theatre on Fulton Street purchased property on Livingstone Street and Hanover Place to build a new playhouse to replace the Montauk Theatre. The Montauk, relatively new, had been scheduled to be torn down for the approach to the new Manhattan Bridge (it wasn't, they moved it instead). The new theatre, named the New Montauk opened on Christmas Day, 1905. It seated about 1,400 and the cost of the New Montauk was estimated to be $400,000. Throughout its existence, the New Montauk was always a first-class theatre showing the best of pre- and post- Broadway entertainment with the biggest stars of the day. Among those who appeared at The New Montauk in its short, twenty-year life, were Maude Adams, Viola Allen, Margaret Anglin, Ethel Barrymore, Mary Boland, Alice Brady, George M. Cohan, John Drew, Elsie Ferguson, Lynn Fontanne, Grace George, Anna Held, Elsie Janis, Richard Mansfield, Robert Mantell, Julia Marlowe, Henry Miller, Blanch Ring, Forbes Robertson, Alison Skipworth, E.H. Sothern, Laurette Taylor, Fay Templeton, Sibyl Thorndike, David Warfield, and Charles Winninger. The New Montauk, later simply called the Montauk, was sold in 1925 and replaced by an office building.
Vintage Poscard from the TheaterPrint Collection |
New Theatre, New York, NY
Central Park West at 62nd Street
Also known as Century, Century Opera House
Architects: Carrere & Hastings
Opened November 8, 1909, with Shakespeare's Anthony and Cleopatra
The New Theatre was founded by some of New York's wealthiest men, John Jacob Astor, J.P. Morgan, and Cornelius Vanderbilt among them as a not-for-profit theatre. They built a sumptuous theatre on Central Park West covering the full block from 62nd to 63rd Streets. The New Theatre was beset by problems from the start including bad acoustics. By the end of the second season the New Theatre lost $400,000. The founders left, the name was changed to Century and was leased to Charles Dillingham and Florenz Ziegfeld. The Century housed opera, ballet and shows like Victor Herbert and Irving Berlin's The Century Girl (1916), and Irving Berlin's World War I soldier revue Yip Yip Yaphank (1918). In 1920 the Shuberts bought the theatre. The Century hosted many shows that transferred from other theatres, revivals and visiting companies. In 1923 Max Reinhardt's spectacular production of The Miracle opened. On December 15,1928 the curtain came down for the last time on the musical Just a Minute and the Century was torn down to be replaced by the Century Apartments.
On the roof of the Century Theatre was a 500 seat theatre known at various times as the Century Roof, Century Promenade, Cocoanut Grove, Century Grove and Casino de Paris. It housed children's theatre with children size seats, cabaret and late-night revues. the most successful of these was the Russian vaudeville Chauve-Souris during this period the theatre was decorated with Russian murals on the walls and ceiling. The last success as the Casino de Paris was A Night in Paris (1926). The Casino de Paris closed with The Optimists in February 1928 after 24 performances.
Century Theatre New York, NY
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Cocoanut Grove seating chart from program |
New York Hippodrome, New York, NY
Sixth Avenue from 43rd to 44th Streets
Also known as B.F. Keith's New York Hippodrome, Hippodrome
Architect: J.H. Morgan
Opened April 12, 1905
The New York Hippodrome was built to showcase "extravaganzas" and was said to be largest theatre in the world. The Hippodrome sat 5,200 with a stage that covered more area than a dozen theatre stages. Under the stage apron was a water tank 14 feet deep, and the entire front of the stage could be submerged to the basement, making a lake capable of handling the plunging of rushing horses. Performers would dive into the tank and exit underwater to the backstage. After nine years, the novelty wore thin, and the house under the management of the Shuberts presented an unsuccessful production of H.M.S. Pinafore, a short-lived circus, vaudeville, and films. Producer Charles Dillingham then took over the Hippodrome for the next eight years. His 1922 production of Better Times ran for 405 performances, considered by many to be the best of the Hippodrome extravaganzas. Dillingham left in 1923, and Better Times became the last Hippodrome show. The theatre was taken over by the Keith-Albee chain and became a vaudeville theatre. The water tank and stage apron were removed and the proscenium opening was greatly reduced in size. From 1925 to 1929, first-run films were added to the bill. After a religious epic The Passion Play flopped at the house, the Hippodrome stood empty for the next five years, except for an occasional popularly priced opera. In 1935, Billy Rose turned the theatre into a circus arena to present Rodgers and Hart's Jumbo for 221 performances. After Jumbo closed, the Hippodrome booked boxing, opera, and jai alai. The wrecking ball came in 1939. Today, an office building and garage called the Hippodrome occupy the block.
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New York Hippodrome seating chart from |
Olympic Theatre, Chicago, IL
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Vintage postcard from the TheaterPrint Collection |
Orpheum Theatre, Brooklyn, NY
578 Fulton Street at Rockwell Place
Also known as RKO Orpheum
Frank Freeman, Architect
Opened December 31, 1900
The Orpheum Theatre was Brooklyn's premier vaudeville theatre until the opening of the Albee Theatre in 1927. Among those appearing on a typical bill of 1903 were headliner Victor's Royal Venetian Band, with 40 musicians; Artesta, the Parisian Automaton; Lew Hawkins, the Merry Minstrel; and Mlle. Olive, the Dainty Manipulator. In 1907, while appearing at the Orpheum, the Russell Brothers were bombarded with eggs by 16 Irish-American audience members. The 16 found the sketch, The Irish Servant Girl performed by the Brothers (also Irish), offensive. They were arrested and charged with rioting, and each held on $500 bail. When the Albee opened, the Orpheum became a vaudeville and movie theatre eventually only showing films. After the theatre closed in December 1953, an attempt was made to bring back to New York a cleaned-up version of burlesque, banned since 1937. The Orpheum was the chosen theatre for burlesque's return. In any event, the theatre did not reopen and the house stood dark until demolished in 1957. Today it is a parking lot.
Orpheum Theatre Program Detail 1902 |
Orpheum Theatre, Los Angeles, CA
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Orpheum Theatre 1919 Postcard, |
Orpheum Theatre
416 N. Ninth Street, St. Louis, MO
Architect: G. Albert Lansburgh
Also known as Loew's Orpheum, American, Roberts Orpheum
Opened September 3, 1917
The Orpheum Theatre was opened by Louis Cella, and remained under the control of the Cella family until 2004. It was the newest addition to the more than two-dozen theatres in the Orpheum vaudeville circuit. Costing $500,000 and built in the Parisian style with seating for over 1,800. With the decline of vaudeville in the 1930's the Orpheum turned to films under the management of the Warner Brothers and later became part of the Loew's Theatres chain. In the 1960's the theatre's name was changed to the American becoming a legitimate house and home to first national touring companies and the occasional pre-Broadway tryout. In the typical season of 1968-69, among the shows playing the American were the pre-Broadway tryout of Canterbury Tales with Sandy Duncan, George Rose and Martyn Green, and the national touring companies of Come Blow Your Horn, The Apple Tree, Fiddler on the Roof, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, Cabaret, and Hallelujah Baby!. In the early 1980's the American's policy turned to corporate and private events and from time to time rock concerts including Alicia Keyes, The Dave Matthews Band, and Red Hot Chili Peppers. At the end of 2003 the theatre was bought by Mike and Steve Roberts from the Cella family. The Roberts' restored the theatre and renamed it Roberts Orpheum, where it is home to concerts, theatre, dance, corporate, and private events.
Playhouse Theatre, Chicago, IL
Fine Arts Building
410 South Michigan Avenue
Architects: S.S. Beman
Opened September 30, 1912 with The Secret of Suzanne
Chicago's Fine Arts Building contains two historic legitimate theatres, the 1000-seat Studebaker and the 500- seat Playhouse.
Fine Arts Building 2004 |
Fine Arts Building 2004 |
Sam H. Harris Theatre, Chicago, IL
180 North Dearborn Street
Other Names: Michael Todd, Goodman
Architects: C. Howard Crane and H. Kenneth Franzheim
Opened 1922
The Sam H. Harris Theatre and it's next door near twin Selwyn Theatre were opened in 1922 by New York producers Sam H. Harris and the brothers Archie and Edgar Selwyn respectively. The Harris and Selwyn were two of Chicago's prime legitimate touring houses until they were purchased by the showman Michael Todd with the Harris becoming the Michael Todd and the Selwyn, Michael Todd's Cinestage in 1956. They both showed reserved seat roadshow movies until the general decline of the downtown Chicago theatre district. The Harris remained dark for a long period of time while the Selwyn showed adult films. The two theatres were taken over by the Goodman Theatre and opened in 2000, the Harris and Selwyn's facades were restored while their interiors were demolished to be replaced by two new state-of-the-art theatres.
Harris Theatre 2004
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Harris and Selwyn Theatres 2004
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Sam H. Harris Theatre, New York, NY
226 West 42nd Street
Other Names: Candler, Cohan and Harris Theatre
Architect: Thomas W. Lamb
Opening production Antony and Cleopatra (Film), May 7, 1914
On Trial (Play), August 19, 1914
The Sam H. Harris opened as the Candler as an adjunct to the Candler Building, the Candler's built both structures with money from their Coca-Cola fortune. The beautiful playhouse was under the management of George M. Cohan and Sam H. Harris from the start though they chose to open the Candler with movies and not start it's career as a legitimate theatre for three months. After only three productions they changed it's name to the Cohan and Harris in October 1916. Cohan and Harris broke-up their partnership in 1921 with Harris retaining the management of the theatre and renaming it the Sam H. Harris. On November 16, 1922 one of the major theatrical events of the 1920's opened at the Harris, John Barrymore as Hamlet. The production played 101 performances breaking Edwin Booth's record of 100 performances. In its' last three years as a playhouse the Harris was home to such stars and future stars as Spencer Tracy, Ethel Waters, Henry Fonda, and Humphrey Bogart. For the Harris' last legitimate production, in January 1933, it returned to it's roots with George M. Cohan starring in his own play Pigeons and People. After the play moved on to the Lyceum the Sam H. Harris became a movie house until it closed in 1978. It was demolished in 1996 to make way for Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum.
Cohan and Harris Theatre New York, NY |
Ticket stub from the TheaterPrint Collection |
Harris marquee 1996, Copyright © 2008 TheaterPrint, LLC |
Shubert Theatre, Brooklyn, NY
Fulton Street Opposite City Hall
Other Names: Park, Shubert-Park
Architect: Gamaliel King
Opened September 14, 1863
When the Park Theatre opened, it was the first important theatre in Brooklyn to be located in the heart of downtown, and had a 50-foot frontage on Fulton Street. There were two stores on either side of the main entrance. The main entrance contained a 10- foot-wide staircase leading up to the auditorium on the second floor. Inside, the theatre had an orchestra, a family circle, gallery, with walls in purple and gray, and magenta seating. The auditorium was topped by a frescoed dome of eight alternating panels representing Tragedy, Comedy, Painting and Music. The Park's first manager was Gabriel Harrison who invented the sunken footlights that became universally used. In 1905, the Shuberts took control of the house, renaming it the Shubert-Park, and later, the Shubert. By 1907, the Shuberts sublet the theatre and it became the Park again, showing films.. In 1908, the Spooner Stock Company made the Park its home. On November 12, 1908, shortly after the matinee, the Park Theatre caught fire at the rear of the upper gallery. The fire spread to the roof and in half an hour, a portion of the roof had collapsed. The auditorium was wrecked, but the stage was saved due to the asbestos curtain. Everyone in the theatre got out and there was only one minor injury. The old Park was a loss and torn down to be replaced by an office building. In the second half of the 19th century and the first few years of the 20th the Park hosted such stars as Lawrence Barrett, Blanche Bates, Sarah Bernhardt, Edwin Booth, Dion Boucicault, Mrs. Leslie Carter, Rose Coghlan, Mrs. Fisk, Eddie Foy, De Wolf Hopper, Bertha Kalisch, Richard Mansfield, Robert Mantell, Helena Modjeska, Ada Rehan, E.H. Sothern and Julia Marlowe, and David Warfield.
Park Theatre Ad for The Spooner Stock Company |
Shubert Theatre "Brooklyn Eagle Post Card" |
Shubert Theatre Brooklyn Interior "Brooklyn Eagle Post Card" |
Old Park Theatre Brooklyn |
Symphony Theatre, New York, NY
95th Street and Broadway
Other names: Crystal Carnival Rink,
Symphony Space
Architect: William H. Gompert
Opening date as a theatre: 1918
Opened as the Crystal Carnival Skating Rink in 1917 where 200 people could sit in the loge and watch the skaters below. By 1918 the skaters left and the Crystal Carnival became the Symphony Theatre showing films until 1972. The theatre was then rented out for rock concerts and wrestling and boxing matches. On January 9, 1978 the old Symphony Theatre became Symphony Space with Wall to Wall Bach and the start of the Upper Westside arts center that has grown into one of New York's major performing arts centers. Among the series produced by Symphony Space are Selected Shorts, Wall to Wall...a series of free 12 hour events dedicated to one individual or theme i.e. Bach, Irving Berlin, Richard Rodgers and Stephen Sondheim. Among the performers who appear at Symphony Space on a regular basis are Jane Alexander, Theodore Bikel, Kathleen Chalfant, Jacques d'Amboise, Carmen de Lavallade, Keir Dullea, Thomas Gibson, Dana Ivey, Donna Murphy, James Naughton, Phyllis Newman, Rochelle Oliver, Estelle Parsons, Tony Roberts, Marian Seldes, Lois Smith, Frances Sternhagen, Jerry Stiller & Anne Meara, Fritz Weaver and B.D. Wong.
Symphony Space marquee 1994 |
Symphony Space 30th Anniversary logo courtesy Symphony Space |
Theatre National de l'Opera-Comique
Place Boieldieu, Paris, France
Other names: Salle Favart
Architect: Louis Bernier
Opened 1898
The present Theatre National de l'Opera-Comique, also known as the Salle Favart, is the third theatre on the site, and opened December 7, 1898. In the years 1900–1950 the Opera-Comique company presented 401 productions by 206 composers, of these 136 were world premieres. In 1932 during the world financial crisis the Opera-Comique was merged with the Opera National de Paris. In 1972 the Opera-Comique company was shut down. The theatre itself was used for visiting productions. The company returned to its independent status in 1990, and reopened at the Salle Favart. Currently the company presents about eight productions a season. Concerts Pasdeloup was created in 1861 by Jules Pasdeloup as the Concerts Populaires. Pasdeloup is credited as one of the leaders in bringing a new audience to the musical life of Paris, he introducing works by Wagner and Schumann, and revived interest in Beethoven, Haydn, and Mozart. Concerts Populaires continued in operation until 1884. The orchestra was reborn in 1919, under Serge Sandberg, and renamed Concerts Pasdeloup. Today it is the Orchestra Pasdeloup. Over the years among the composers whose works were premiered by the orchestra were Bizet, Franck, Honneger, Prokofiev, Ravel, Saint-Saens, and Schoenberg.Trent Theatrem, Trenton, NJ
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Vintage postcard from the TheaterPrint Collection |
Triangle Theatre, Brooklyn, NY
409 Flatbush Avenue Extension
Other names: Montauk, Crescent, B.F. Keith's Crescent, Shubert-Crescent, Werba's Brooklyn, Minsky's
Architect: John B. McElfatrick and Sons,
Opened: September 2, 1895
When the cornerstone was laid for the Montauk Theatre, later the Triangle, in April, 1895, it was originally on Fulton Street going through to De Kalb Avenue. It opened with William H. Crane in His Wife's Father, April 1904 brought E.H. Sothern to the Montauk in The Proud Prince. In November, 1904, the relatively new Montauk was slated to be torn down to make way for the approach to the new Manhattan Bridge. When it was found that it would cost less to move the theatre rather than to tear it down, the Montauk was moved several hundred feet to the new Flatbush Avenue Extension. The theatre was intact except for a new facade built on the Extension, and then became the Crescent. 1915 brought films and a new name, the Triangle. Triangle was the name of a new film studio under the direction of D.W. Griffith, Thomas H. Ince, and Mack Sennett, and the Triangle became their showplace in Brooklyn. The Shuberts took control in 1917, renaming the theatre Shubert-Crescent. In 1921 the Shuberts chose the Shubert-Crescent as the Brooklyn home for their new, and eventually unsuccessful, vaudeville circuit. In 1923, the theatre was leased to Lewis F. Werba and renamed Werba's Brooklyn. The policy was to present pre- and post-Broadway engagements with a weekly change of program. Among the productions in the 1927 season were Lulu Belle, Honeymoon Lane, George White's Scandals, Criss-Cross, The Barker, and Earl Carroll's Vanities. Some of the stars of the 1920's to play the house were Jacob Ben-Ami, Fannie Brice, Joe E. Brown, Thais Lawton, Hal Skelly, and Queenie Smith. With the depression, Werba lost the house in bankruptcy and it then became Billy Minsky's Brooklyn Burlesque, presenting such productions as fEtta Napple from Eden. When the city cracked down on burlesque, the old theatre was closed and was demolished in 1940.
Cast page for The Proud Prince 1904 |
Montauk Theatre Exit Plan 1902 from the TheaterPrint Collection
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Program for Etta Napple from Eden 1932 |
Program for The Proud Prince 1904 |
Program for The Way of the World 1902 |
Winter Garden Theatre, New York, NY
1634 Broadway
Other Name: Cadillac Winter Garden
Architect: William Albert Swasey
Architect Renovation: Herbert J. Krapp
Opening Production: Bow Sing/ La Belle Paree/Tortajada and Her Sixteen Moorish Dancing Girls in a Spanish Ballet,
Opening Night: March 20, 1911
In 1910 William K. Vanderbilt leased the American Horse Exchange to the Shuberts. They hired architect William A. Swasey to convert the building into the Winter Garden Theatre. In it's original appearance the Winter Garden had exposed steel trusses and was decorated to give the feeling of the then popular outdoor roof gardens, this gave the auditorium an unfinished look and poor acoustics. The opening production consisted of a three part evening Bow Sing A Chinese Opera in One Act; La Belle Paree A Jumble of Jollity in Two Acts and Ten Scenes; and a Ballet. The most historically important part of the evening was La Belle Paree with music by Jerome Kern and the Broadway debut of Al Jolson. Starting in 1912 the Winter Garden became the home of the Shubert's annual Passing Show revues. The theatre had a runway extending into the orchestra that became known as "The Bridge of Thighs". In 1922 the Winter Garden was completely remodeled by the Shuberts' house architect Herbert J. Krapp. The ceiling was lowered the trusses were covered and the auditorium was elegantly redecorated. Over the years the Winter Garden was twice leased for showing films from 1928 - 33 and 1945-48. Among notable productions that played the Winter Garden were Sinbad (1918), Hold Your Horses (1933), Ziegfeld Follies of 1934, Life Begins at 8:40 (1934), At Home Abroad (1935), Ziegfeld Follies of 1936, The Show is On (1937), Hooray for What! (1937), Hellzapoppin (1938), Sons O'Fun (1941), Mexican Hayride (1944), Make a Wish (1951), Top Banana (1951), Wonderful Town (1953), Peter Pan (1954), West Side Story (1957), The Unsinkable Molly Brown (1960), Funny Girl (1964), Mame (1966), Follies (1971), Pacific Overtures (1976), 42nd Street (1980), Cats (1982), and currently Mamma Mia! (2001)
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Vintage postcard Winter Garden Theatre |
Copyright © 2008 TheaterPrint, LLC |
Winter Garden Fire Escape Grillwork, |
Winter Garden Theatre seating chart from |
Yiddish Art Theatre
New York, NY
114 East 14th Street,
Near Union Square
Other Names: City Theatre
Architect: Thomas W. Lamb
Opening Production: Miss Innocence April 18, 1910
When the City Theatre opened it was intended to play Broadway attractions at low prices. The house had 2,500 hundred seats on four levels, orchestra, first balcony, second balcony and gallery, a rare arrangement for a New York playhouse. The opening production Miss Innocence starred Anna Held the next attraction was billed as "The Cyclonic Eva Tanguay in Ziegfeld's Revue Follies of 1909". Later the City switched to a movie and vaudeville policy. In 1928 Maurice Schwartz took a ten year lease on the theatre renaming it the Yiddish Art. After the Yiddish Art Theatre's tenure the theatre reverted back to the City name and a movie only policy until it's demolition in 1952 for a parking lot.
Yiddish Art Theatre, New York, NY
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City Theatre Exit Plans
Ziegfeld Moulin Rouge, New York, NY
Broadway between 44th and 45th Streets
Other Names: Olympia Music Hall, New York, Loew's New York
Architect: J.B. McElfatrick
Opening Production: Opened as vaudeville house, November 25, 1895.
First legitimate production The Man in the Moon, 1899
In 1895, Oscar Hammerstein opened a huge entertainment center occupying the full block on Broadway, from 44th to 45th Streets as Hammerstein's Olympia Theatre. The Olympia housed four main performance spaces: the Olympia Music Hall, Lyric Theatre, Roof Garden and Concert Hall. There was also a restaurant, billiard parlor, bowling alley, and Turkish Bath. With the purchase of a ticket the customer received admission to all of the attractions. The Music Hall was in the style of a grand opera house, seating 2,800 with 124 boxes. The Lyric Theatre had seating for 1,700 in equally lavish style, with the Roof Garden seating over 1,000. In 1897 the Music Hall and Lyric Theatre were rebuilt as conventional two balcony theatres. A year later, Hammerstein lost control of the Olympia and in 1899, the Music Hall was renamed the New York, opening with Marie Dressler in The Man in the Moon. It was followed by such productions as Quo Vadis, Ben Hur, Little Johnny Jones with George M. Cohan, Forty-five Minutes from Broadway and OThe Man Who Owns Brooklyn. 1910 brought Naughty Marietta. In 1912 the theatre became the Ziegfeld Moulin Rouge opening with A Winsome Widow followed by Ziegfeld Follies of 1912. In 1915, the theatre became Loew's New York playing films and vaudeville until it was demolished in 1935. It was replaced by the Criterion movie theatre and the International Casino.
Vintage postcard New York and Criterion Theatres 1906 from the TheaterPrint Collection |
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