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146-731: The Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre , formerly the Plymouth Theatre , is a Broadway theater at 236 West 45th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City . Opened in 1917, the theater was designed by Herbert J. Krapp and was built for the Shubert brothers . The Schoenfeld Theatre is named for Gerald Schoenfeld , longtime president of the Shubert Organization , which operates

292-427: A fire escape made of cast iron and wrought iron . There are doors and windows on both levels, leading to the fire escape. In addition, the fire escape's third-floor railing contains cast-iron depictions of ribands and shields, while a sheet-metal canopy covers the fire escape. Above the center of the third floor, on 45th Street, is a terracotta cartouche containing depictions of swags . The curved corner contains

438-472: A 7:00 p.m. or 8:00 p.m. "curtain". The afternoon " matinée " performances are at 2:00 p.m. on Wednesdays and Saturdays and at 3:00 p.m. on Sundays. This makes for an eight-performance week. On this schedule, most shows do not play on Monday and the shows and theatres are said to be "dark" on that day. The actors and the crew in these shows tend to regard Sunday evening through Monday evening as their weekend. The Tony award presentation ceremony

584-839: A Theater Advisory Council, which included Papp. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City , Broadway theaters closed on March 12, 2020, shuttering 16 shows that were playing or were in the process of opening. The Broadway League shutdown was extended first to April, then to May, then June, then September 2020 and January 2021, and later to June 1, 2021. Then-governor Andrew Cuomo announced that most sectors of New York would have their restrictions lifted on May 19, 2021, but he stated that Broadway theatres would not be able to immediately resume performances on this date due to logistical reasons. In May 2021, Cuomo announced that Broadway theaters would be allowed to reopen on September 14, and

730-449: A booming economy and abundant creative talent kept Broadway hopping. To this day, the shows of the 1950s form the core of the musical theatre repertory." Kenrick notes that "the late 1960s marked a time of cultural upheaval. All those changes would prove painful for many, including those behind the scenes, as well as those in the audience." Of the 1970s, Kenrick writes: "Just when it seemed that traditional book musicals were back in style,

876-663: A cast. There are still, however, performers who are primarily stage actors, spending most of their time "on the boards", and appearing in screen roles only secondarily. As Patrick Healy of The New York Times noted: Broadway once had many homegrown stars who committed to working on a show for a year, as Nathan Lane has for The Addams Family . In 2010, some theater heavyweights like Mr. Lane were not even nominated; instead, several Tony Awards were given for productions that were always intended to be short-timers on Broadway, given that many of their film-star performers had to move on to other commitments. According to Mark Shenton, "One of

1022-434: A challenge to the stage. At first, films were silent and presented only limited competition. By the end of the 1920s, films like The Jazz Singer were presented with synchronized sound, and critics wondered if cinema would replace live theatre altogether. While live vaudeville could not compete with these inexpensive films that featured vaudeville stars and major comedians of the day, other theatres survived. The musicals of

1168-540: A company of twelve actors from Britain to the colonies with his brother Lewis as their manager. They established a theatre in Williamsburg, Virginia , and opened with The Merchant of Venice and The Anatomist . The company moved to New York in 1753, performing ballad operas and ballad-farces like Damon and Phillida . During the Revolutionary War , theatre was suspended in New York City. But after

1314-565: A discount of 20 to 50%. The TKTS booths are located in Times Square , in Lower Manhattan , and at Lincoln Center . This service is run by Theatre Development Fund . Many Broadway theatres also offer special student rates, same-day "rush" or "lottery" tickets, or standing-room tickets to help ensure that their theatres are as full—and their grosses as high—as possible. According to The Broadway League , total Broadway attendance

1460-423: A double door, above which is a glass transom panel. The corner entrance is topped by a broken pediment , which is supported by console brackets on either side and contains an escutcheon at the center. Both the curved corner and the 45th Street facade contain terracotta frames, which are flanked by terracotta pilasters with stylized capitals . Along 45th Street, the auditorium's second and third floors contain

1606-906: A few exceptions, compared with London runs, until World War I . A few very successful British musicals continued to achieve great success in New York, including Florodora in 1900–01. In the early years of the twentieth century, translations of popular late-nineteenth century continental operettas were joined by the "Princess Theatre" shows of the 1910s, by writers such as P. G. Wodehouse , Guy Bolton , and Harry B. Smith . Victor Herbert , whose work included some intimate musical plays with modern settings as well as his string of famous operettas ( The Fortune Teller (1898), Babes in Toyland (1903), Mlle. Modiste (1905), The Red Mill (1906), and Naughty Marietta (1910)). Beginning with The Red Mill , Broadway shows installed electric signs outside

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1752-452: A flute making company. In 1783, John Jacob left for Baltimore, Maryland , leaving his brother in charge of the London business, and was active first as a dealer in woodwind instruments , then in New York as a merchant in opium , furs , pianos , and real estate . After moving to New York, John met and married Sarah Cox Todd (1762–1842). She worked alongside her husband as a consultant, and

1898-667: A hiatus in mid-1932, the production returned for the rest of that year. Clare Kummer 's comedy Her Master's Voice then opened in 1933, featuring Laura Hope Crews and Roland Young . Meanwhile, the theater had gone into receivership in March 1933, though the receiver then deeded the theater to the Plymouth Theatre Corporation. During 1934, the Plymouth hosted Dark Victory with Tallulah Bankhead and Accent on Youth with Constance Cummings . The next year,

2044-532: A larger theatre. Other productions are first developed through workshops and then out-of-town tryouts before transferring to Broadway. Merrily We Roll Along famously skipped an out-of-town tryout and attempted to do an in-town tryout—actually preview performances —on Broadway before its official opening, with disastrous results. After, or even during, successful runs in Broadway theatres, producers often remount their productions with new casts and crew for

2190-695: A marquee replacement ceremony on May 9, 2005. While Schoenfeld appeared to be proud of the renaming, the renaming was controversial among producers and theatrical fans, despite the longstanding tradition of renaming Broadway houses after their producers. The musical Brooklyn , which had opened in October 2004 before the renaming, had 284 performances. The first two shows at the renamed theater were not successful; Chita Rivera: The Dancer's Life opened in late 2005 and ran for two months, while The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial flopped after two weeks in May 2006. Conversely,

2336-455: A month. The comedy Separate Rooms , with Alan Dinehart , Glenda Farrell , and Lyle Talbot , moved to the Plymouth the same year to complete its 612-performance Broadway run. The drama Guest in the House ran for 153 performances in the first half of 1942. It was followed that year by Thornton Wilder 's The Skin of Our Teeth with Tallulah Bankhead, which ran for 355 performances. In 1943,

2482-526: A more experimental, challenging, and intimate performance than is possible in the larger Broadway theatres. Some Broadway shows, however, such as the musicals Hair , Little Shop of Horrors , Spring Awakening , Next to Normal , Rent , Avenue Q , In the Heights , Fun Home , A Chorus Line , Dear Evan Hansen , and Hamilton , began their runs Off-Broadway and later transferred to Broadway, seeking to replicate their intimate experience in

2628-539: A negative COVID-19 test (PCR within 72 hours or antigen within six hours of the performance start time). Beginning November 8, those ages 5–11 also had the option to provide proof of at least one vaccination shot. Effective December 14, in accordance with NYC's vaccination mandate, guests ages 5–11 were required to have at least one vaccination shot until January 29, 2022, where they had to be fully vaccinated. The vaccine mandate lasted until April 30, and attendees were also required to wear face masks until July 1. During

2774-1152: A new age of American playwright with the emergence of Eugene O'Neill , whose plays Beyond the Horizon , Anna Christie , The Hairy Ape , Strange Interlude , and Mourning Becomes Electra proved that there was an audience for serious drama on Broadway, and O'Neill's success paved the way for major dramatists like Elmer Rice , Maxwell Anderson , Robert E. Sherwood , Clifford Odets , Tennessee Williams , and Arthur Miller , as well as writers of comedy like George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart . Classical revivals also proved popular with Broadway theatre-goers, notably John Barrymore in Hamlet and Richard III , John Gielgud in Hamlet , The Importance of Being Earnest and Much Ado About Nothing , Walter Hampden and José Ferrer in Cyrano de Bergerac , Paul Robeson and Ferrer in Othello , Maurice Evans in Richard II and

2920-482: A pediment above the cornice; it consists of a shield with console brackets on either side. The balcony contains a promenade at its rear, with plasterwork panels on the walls. At the rear of the balcony are four paneled piers (corresponding to those at orchestra level), which are topped by Corinthian -style capitals . These piers support a frieze that depicts sphinxes holding swags, alternating with urns. The balcony's side walls also contain plasterwork panels, above which

3066-579: A quarter of all plays and three-quarters of theatrical ticket sales in the U.S. by 1925. The Shubert brothers had constructed the Shubert and Booth theaters as a pair in 1913, having leased the site from the Astor family. Only the eastern half of the land was used for the Shubert/Booth project; following the success of the two theaters, the Shubert brothers decided to develop another pair of theaters to

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3212-500: A rate acceptable to the producers, they may continue to run in the expectation that, eventually, they will pay back their initial costs and become profitable. In some borderline situations, producers may ask that royalties be temporarily reduced or waived, or even that performers—with the permission of their unions—take reduced salaries, to prevent a show from closing. Theatre owners, who are not generally profit participants in most productions, may waive or reduce rents, or even lend money to

3358-507: A revival of George Bernard Shaw 's comedy The Apple Cart in 1956, with Evans and Signe Hasso . In 1957, the theater staged Arnold Schulman 's play A Hole in the Head , as well as Peter Ustinov 's comedy Romanoff and Juliet . Afterward, the comedy The Marriage-Go-Round with Charles Boyer , Claudette Colbert , Julie Newmar , and Edmon Ryan opened at the theater in 1958; it ran for two years. The musical Irma La Douce opened at

3504-737: A revival of Gilbert and Sullivan operettas at the Plymouth Theatre. Both of Ames's shows were hits: Iolanthe opened in April 1926 and ran for 255 performances, while The Pirates of Penzance opened that December for a 128-performance run. In 1927, Hopkins renewed his lease on the theater for ten years, paying $ 60,000 a year and giving one-fourth of his profits to the Shuberts. The same year, Hopkins and George Manker Watters's play Burlesque opened with Hal Skelly and Barbara Stanwyck ; it lasted for 372 performances. Hopkins also directed

3650-580: A revival of Noël Coward 's Present Laughter featuring Clifton Webb . Bankhead reappeared at the theater in 1947 for an adaptation of the French play The Eagle Has Two Heads , which lasted for 29 performances. This was followed in 1948 by Joy to the World , featuring Alfred Drake and Marsha Hunt . The same year, Bankhead and Donald Cook appeared in another Coward play, Private Lives , which ran for 248 performances. Arthur Hopkins continued to operate

3796-431: A run of 253 performances. The first theatre piece that conforms to the modern conception of a musical, adding dance and original music that helped to tell the story, is considered to be The Black Crook , which premiered in New York on September 12, 1866. The production was five-and-a-half hours long, but despite its length, it ran for a record-breaking 474 performances. The same year, The Black Domino/Between You, Me and

3942-481: A show to keep it running. Some Broadway shows are produced by non-commercial organizations as part of a regular subscription season— Lincoln Center Theatre , Roundabout Theatre Company , Manhattan Theatre Club , and Second Stage Theater are the four non-profit theatre companies that currently have permanent Broadway venues. Some other productions are produced on Broadway with "limited engagement runs" for several reasons, including financial issues, prior engagements of

4088-441: A third-floor window, topped by an oval escutcheon that is decorated with swags and fleur-de-lis . A terracotta cornice and a brick parapet run above the auditorium facade. The parapet is stepped and contains a coping made of sheet metal . The stage house is six stories high. The 45th Street facade is made of buff brick, containing interspersed diamond patterns, and the side walls are faced with plain brick. The ground floor of

4234-580: A venue for plays under the name Burton's Theatre. The Astor Opera House opened in 1847. A riot broke out in 1849 when the lower-class patrons of the Bowery Theatre objected to what they perceived as snobbery by the upper-class audiences at Astor Place: "After the Astor Place Riot of 1849, entertainment in New York City was divided along class lines: opera was chiefly for the upper-middle and upper classes, minstrel shows and melodramas for

4380-436: Is a small technical gallery above the rear of the balcony. The front railing of the gallery contains moldings of swags. On either side of the stage is a wall section with three boxes at the balcony level. The boxes step downward toward the stage; the front box curves forward into the proscenium arch, while the rear box curves backward into the balcony. At the orchestra level, there are three rectangular openings, corresponding to

4526-416: Is an Adam-style cornice. There are doorways with pediments on the side walls, similar to those on the orchestra's south and east walls. Rhombus panels, containing medallions with light fixtures, are placed on the balcony's soffit and underside. There are also air-conditioning vents on the balcony's soffit. In front of the balcony are acanthus-leaf arabesques , which are mostly hidden behind light boxes. There

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4672-413: Is an arched lunette panel, which supports the ceiling's sounding board . Next to the boxes is an elliptical, splayed proscenium arch. The archway contains an Adam-style band with vine motifs and medallions. The proscenium opening measures about 38 feet (12 m) tall and 40 feet (12 m) wide. A sounding board curves onto the ceiling above the proscenium arch. The sounding board has a large panel in

4818-475: Is an internationally prominent tourist attraction in New York City . According to The Broadway League , shows on Broadway sold approximately US$ 1.54 billion worth of tickets in both the 2022-2023 and the 2023–2024 seasons. Both seasons featured theater attendance of approximately 12.3 million each. Most Broadway shows are musicals . Historian Martin Shefter argues that "Broadway musicals, culminating in

4964-539: Is named after John Jacob Astor. There are towns of Astor in the states of Florida , Georgia , Iowa , and Kansas and there are Astorias in Illinois , Missouri , and Oregon . In Astoria, Oregon, the primary elementary school, a filming location for the 1990 film Kindergarten Cop , is called John Jacob Astor Elementary . The city is also home to the Astoria Column . In Maidstone, Kent, United Kingdom, there

5110-571: Is usually held on a Sunday evening in June to fit this schedule. In recent years, some shows have moved their Tuesday show time an hour earlier to 7:00 pm. The rationale for this move was that since fewer tourists take in shows midweek, Tuesday attendance depends more on local patrons. The earlier curtain makes it possible for suburban patrons to get home by a reasonable hour after the show. Some shows, especially those produced by Disney , change their performance schedules fairly frequently depending on

5256-610: The American Theatre Wing , a service organization. While the League and the theatrical unions are sometimes at loggerheads during those periods when new contracts are being negotiated, they also cooperate on many projects and events designed to promote professional theatre in New York. Of the four non-profit theatre companies with Broadway theatres, all four ( Lincoln Center Theater , Manhattan Theatre Club , Roundabout Theatre Company , and Second Stage Theatre ) belong to

5402-606: The Frederick Knott drama Dial "M" for Murder opened with Maurice Evans and Gusti Huber , staying for 552 performances. Next was Herman Wouk 's play The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial , with Henry Fonda , John Hodiak , and Lloyd Nolan ; it opened in 1954 and had 405 performances. The following year, the Plymouth hosted the revue 3 for Tonight with Gower and Marge Champion , Harry Belafonte , and Hiram Sherman , The comedy Janus also opened in 1955, with Margaret Sullavan and Claude Dauphin . The Plymouth hosted

5548-680: The Helen Hayes Theatre to the Schoenfeld in 2016, a relatively rare move that was required because the Hayes was being renovated. The Humans had to close at the beginning of 2017 to make way for the musical Come from Away , which opened in March 2017. Come From Away continued at the Schoenfeld for four years until the theater closed on March 12, 2020 , due to the COVID-19 pandemic . The Schoenfeld reopened on September 21, 2021, with Come From Away , which closed in October 2022 as

5694-580: The League of Resident Theatres and have contracts with the theatrical unions which are negotiated separately from the other Broadway theatre and producers. ( Disney also negotiates apart from the League, as did Livent before it closed down its operations.) The majority of Broadway theatres are owned or managed by three organizations: the Shubert Organization , a for-profit arm of the non-profit Shubert Foundation, which owns seventeen theatres;

5840-622: The Lincoln Center Theater 's revival of Edward Albee's A Delicate Balance in 1996. The theater's last show of the 20th century was the musical Jekyll & Hyde , which opened in April 1997 and ran for 1,543 performances through the beginning of 2001. The Plymouth's first new production of the 2000s was a revival of the Betty Comden , Adolph Green , and Jule Styne musical Bells Are Ringing , which opened in April 2001 with Faith Prince ; it ran for two months. This

5986-503: The Nederlander Organization , which controls nine theatres; and ATG Entertainment , which owns seven Broadway houses. Both musicals and straight plays on Broadway often rely on casting well-known performers in leading roles to draw larger audiences or bring in new audience members to the theatre. Actors from film and television are frequently cast for the revivals of Broadway shows or are used to replace actors leaving

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6132-610: The New York Public Library . English descendants of the Astors hold two hereditary peerages : Viscount Astor and Baron Astor of Hever . While many Astor family members joined the Episcopal Church , John Jacob Astor remained a member of a Reformed congregation to his death. For many years, the members of the Astor family were known as "the landlords of New York". Their New York City namesakes are

6278-476: The Roaring Twenties , borrowing from vaudeville, music hall , and other light entertainment, tended to ignore plot in favor of emphasizing star actors and actresses, big dance routines, and popular songs. Florenz Ziegfeld produced annual spectacular song-and-dance revues on Broadway featuring extravagant sets and elaborate costumes, but there was little to tie the various numbers together. Typical of

6424-480: The Shubert brothers between 44th and 45th Streets, occupying land previously owned by the Astor family . The Broadhurst and Schoenfeld were built as a pair, occupying land left over from the development of the Shubert and Booth, which were also paired. The Broadhurst/Schoenfeld theatrical pair share an alley to the east, parallel to the larger Shubert Alley east of the Shubert/Booth pair. The Broadhurst/Schoenfeld alley

6570-507: The facades of the two theaters are similar in arrangement, the interiors have a different design both from each other and from their respective facades. The Schoenfeld is operated by the Shubert Organization . Krapp designed the Broadhurst and Plymouth theaters with relatively simple brick-and-stone facades, instead relying on the arrangement of the brickwork for decorative purposes. The Broadhurst and Schoenfeld contain curved corners at

6716-409: The 1920s were lighthearted productions such as Sally ; Lady Be Good ; Sunny ; No, No, Nanette ; Harlem ; Oh, Kay! ; and Funny Face . Their books may have been forgettable, but they produced enduring standards from George Gershwin , Cole Porter , Jerome Kern , Vincent Youmans , and Rodgers and Hart , among others, and Noël Coward , Sigmund Romberg , and Rudolf Friml continued in

6862-460: The 1970s, the Plymouth continued to host successes. The Jean Kerr play Finishing Touches opened in February 1973, featuring Barbara Bel Geddes and James Woods , and ran for 164 performances over the next five months. Later that year, Peter Cook and Dudley Moore collaborated on the revue Good Evening . The theater then hosted Peter Shaffer 's West End play Equus in 1974, which ran for

7008-492: The Broadhurst and Plymouth theaters following the success of the Booth and Shubert theaters directly to the east. The Plymouth Theatre was leased to Arthur Hopkins and opened on October 10, 1917, with the comedy A Successful Calamity . The Shuberts retained ownership of the theater and took over after Hopkins's death in 1950. The theater has hosted not only musicals but also revues, comedies, and dramas throughout its history. It

7154-536: The Broadway national tour, which travels to theatres in major cities across the country. Sometimes when a show closes on Broadway, the entire production, with most if not all of the original cast intact, is relaunched as a touring company, hence the name "Broadway national tour". Some shows may even have several touring companies out at a time, whether the show is still running in New York or not, with many companies "sitting down" in other major cities for their own extended runs. For Broadway national tours of top-tier cities,

7300-619: The Broadway orchestra is governed by an agreement with the musicians' union (Local 802, American Federation of Musicians) and The Broadway League. For example, the agreement specifies the minimum size of the orchestra at the Minskoff Theatre to be eighteen, while at the Music Box Theatre it is nine. Most Broadway shows are commercial productions intended to make a profit for the producers and investors ("backers" or "angels"), and therefore have open-ended runs (duration that

7446-614: The COVID-19 shutdown, the Shubert Organization, the Nederlander Organization, and Jujamcyn had pledged to increase racial and cultural diversity in their theaters, including naming at least one theater for a Black theatrical personality. The August Wilson Theatre , owned by Jujamcyn, had been renamed after Black playwright August Wilson in 2005. The Shuberts announced in March 2022 that the Cort Theatre , which

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7592-574: The Cakewalk (1898), and the highly successful In Dahomey (1902). Hundreds of musical comedies were staged on Broadway in the 1890s and early 1900s made up of songs written in New York's Tin Pan Alley involving composers such as Gus Edwards , John Walter Bratton , and George M. Cohan ( Little Johnny Jones (1904), 45 Minutes From Broadway (1906), and George Washington Jr. (1906)). Still, New York runs continued to be relatively short, with

7738-518: The County of Kent (1916), and [REDACTED] Baron Astor of Hever , of Hever Castle in the County of Kent (1956), were granted with the standard remainder to the legitimate male heirs of the bodies of the original grantees. Both of the current titleholders continue to sit in the House of Lords following the expulsion of the majority of the hereditary peers by the House of Lords Act 1999 . The following

7884-456: The Erlanger syndicate. During this time, the play Lightnin' by Winchell Smith and Frank Bacon became the first Broadway show to reach 700 performances. From then, it would go on to become the first show to reach 1,000 performances. Lightnin' was the longest-running Broadway show until being overtaken in performance totals by Abie's Irish Rose in 1925. The motion picture mounted

8030-680: The Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre was set by the 2017 musical Come From Away . The production grossed $ 1,834,218 over nine performances for the week ending December 31, 2017. Broadway theatre Broadway theatre , or Broadway , is a theatre genre that consists of the theatrical performances presented in 41 professional theaters , each with 500 or more seats, in the Theater District and Lincoln Center along Broadway , in Midtown Manhattan , New York City . Broadway and London 's West End together represent

8176-800: The LPC in June 1988 to overturn the landmark designations of 22 theaters, including the Plymouth, on the merit that the designations severely limited the extent to which the theaters could be modified. The lawsuit was escalated to the New York Supreme Court and the Supreme Court of the United States , but these designations were ultimately upheld in 1992. The Plymouth hosted the George Bernard Shaw play Pygmalion in 1987, with Amanda Plummer and Peter O'Toole . It

8322-457: The League confirmed that performances would begin to resume in the fall season. Springsteen on Broadway became the first full-length show to resume performances, opening on June 26, 2021, to 1,721 vaccinated patrons at the St. James Theatre . Pass Over then had its first preview on August 4, and opened on August 22, 2021, becoming the first new play to open. Hadestown and Waitress were

8468-561: The Lord and Lady Astor Suites; the hotel salon is called Astor's. There is even a Hostel in York , England called The Astor. In addition, a dormitory at St. George's School in Newport, Rhode Island, bears Astor's name. The Danubius Hotel Astoria in the center of Pest, Budapest, Hungary, opened in 1914, was given its name by the original hotel owners and Mihály Gellér, the first General Manager of

8614-697: The Maidstone campus of Mid-Kent College. At one time the Oakwood Park Estate also contained an educational farm attached to the Astor of Hever School. There is a neighborhood called Astor Park just south of downtown Green Bay, Wisconsin . At the heart of this neighborhood is a park (also called "Astor Park"); the Astor family donated this land for the building of a trade school. The Astors were also prominent on Mackinac Island , Michigan , and Newport, Rhode Island , with their summer house, Beechwood . At Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island, there are

8760-604: The Opera at the Majestic Theatre became the longest-running Broadway musical, with 7,486 performances, overtaking Cats . The Phantom of the Opera closed on Broadway on April 16, 2023, soon after celebrating its 35th anniversary, after a total of 13,981 performances. Attending a Broadway show is a common tourist activity in New York. The TKTS booths sell same-day tickets (and in certain cases, next-day matinee tickets) for many Broadway and Off-Broadway shows at

8906-440: The Plymouth Theatre until he died in 1950, after which the Shuberts took over. Samuel Taylor 's play Happy Time , produced by Rodgers and Hammerstein , opened the same year with Claude Dauphin , Eva Gabor , and Kurt Kasznar ; it lasted 614 performances. Subsequently, Don Juan In Hell opened at the Plymouth in April 1952, featuring Charles Boyer , Cedric Hardwicke , Charles Laughton , and Agnes Moorehead . Later that year,

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9052-489: The Plymouth as a landmark in 1982, with discussions continuing over the next several years. The LPC designated the Plymouth's facade and interior as landmarks on December 15, 1987. This was part of the LPC's wide-ranging effort in 1987 to grant landmark status to Broadway theaters. The New York City Board of Estimate ratified the designations in March 1988. The Shuberts, the Nederlanders , and Jujamcyn collectively sued

9198-584: The Plymouth hosted the Dodie Smith play Lovers and Friends with Raymond Massey and Katharine Cornell , which ran for five months. This was followed by a transfer of the comedy Chicken Every Sunday from Henry Miller's Theatre in 1944. The next year, Spencer Tracy starred in The Rugged Path at the theater for 81 performances. In 1946, the theater hosted the musical Lute Song with Mary Martin , Yul Brynner , and Nancy Davis , as well as

9344-460: The Plymouth hosted the play The Real Thing by Tom Stoppard , featuring Christine Baranski , Glenn Close , and Jeremy Irons ; it ran for 566 performances over the next year and a half. Lily Tomlin appeared in a solo show the next year, The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe . The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) had started considering protecting

9490-538: The Plymouth in 1960, featuring Elizabeth Seal and Keith Michell . The theater next hosted the Paddy Chayefsky play Gideon in 1961, with Fredric March , and Tchin-Tchin in 1962 with Anthony Quinn and Margaret Leighton . In 1963, the Plymouth was home to a short run of Lillian Hellman 's play My Mother, My Father and Me , as well as a more successful adaptation of Arnold Wesker 's West End play Chips with Everything . The play Dylan opened at

9636-507: The Plymouth in 1979, staying for two years. In 1981, the Plymouth Theatre hosted the play Piaf with Jane Lapotaire , which ran for four months. Later that year, catwalks were installed within the theater to accommodate the Royal Shakespeare Company 's production of The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby , which ran for three months. The play was unusual not only for its high ticket price of $ 100 but also for

9782-535: The Post was the first show to call itself a "musical comedy". Tony Pastor opened the first vaudeville theatre one block east of Union Square in 1881, where Lillian Russell performed. Comedians Edward Harrigan and Tony Hart produced and starred in musicals on Broadway between 1878 ( The Mulligan Guard Picnic ) and 1890, with book and lyrics by Harrigan and music by his father-in-law David Braham . These musical comedies featured characters and situations taken from

9928-544: The Shubert and Booth theaters. Nevertheless, the use of curved east-facing corners was common to all four theaters. The Schoenfeld's facade is divided into two sections: the auditorium to the east and a stage house to the west. The facade is generally shorter than its width. The ground floor of the auditorium contains a water table made of granite. The rest of the facade is largely made of architectural terracotta , which surrounds patches of buff brick in Flemish bond . Along

10074-466: The Shuberts agreed to improve disabled access at their 16 landmarked Broadway theaters, including the Plymouth. The Stephen Belber drama Match was shown at the Plymouth during early 2004. In September 2004, the Shubert Organization's board of directors voted to rename the Plymouth for then-current president Gerald Schoenfeld , as well as the neighboring Royale for its longtime president Bernard B. Jacobs . The two theaters were officially renamed with

10220-400: The Shuberts' names had to appear on theatrical programs and on the theater itself. The theater was subsequently named the Plymouth. It was the fourth theater developed by the Shuberts in New York City during 1917, as well as the nineteenth such theater overall. With the Plymouth's completion, the surrounding block of 45th Street had four theaters. The Plymouth opened on October 10, 1917, with

10366-603: The Theatre in 2010; The Motherfucker with the Hat and Bonnie & Clyde in 2011; The Best Man and Glengarry Glen Ross in 2012; and Orphans in 2013. Subsequently, the Schoenfeld was renovated in 2014. The Schoenfeld continued to host short runs of plays and musicals into the mid-2010s, with The Bridges of Madison County and It's Only a Play in 2014; The Audience and China Doll in 2015; and American Psycho in 2016. The play The Humans relocated from

10512-492: The authors and also in numerous unlicensed productions). They were imitated in New York by American productions such as Reginald Dekoven 's Robin Hood (1891) and John Philip Sousa 's El Capitan (1896), along with operas, ballets, and other British and European hits. Charles H. Hoyt 's A Trip to Chinatown (1891) became Broadway's long-run champion when it surpassed Adonis and its 603 total performances in 1893, holding

10658-435: The beginning of the nineteenth century, the area that now comprises the Theater District was owned by a handful of families and comprised a few farms. In 1836, Mayor Cornelius Lawrence opened 42nd Street and invited Manhattanites to "enjoy the pure clean air." Close to 60 years later, theatrical entrepreneur Oscar Hammerstein I built the iconic Victoria Theater on West 42nd Street. Broadway's first "long-run" musical

10804-476: The biggest changes to the commercial theatrical landscape—on both sides of the Atlantic—over the past decade or so is that sightings of big star names turning out to do plays has [sic] gone up; but the runs they are prepared to commit to has gone down. Time was that a producer would require a minimum commitment from his star of six months, and perhaps a year; now, the 13-week run is the norm." The minimum size of

10950-550: The bill was not passed. The Save the Theatres campaign then turned their efforts to supporting the establishment of the Theater District as a registered historic district . In December 1983, Save the Theatres prepared "The Broadway Theater District, a Preservation Development and Management Plan", and demanded that each theater in the district receive landmark designation. Mayor Ed Koch ultimately reacted by creating

11096-536: The ceiling contains latticework panels, which encompass circular medallions with overhanging chandeliers. The rear of the ceiling, above the technical gallery, is separated into panels by moldings; some of the panels are circular and contain light fixtures. Times Square became the epicenter for large-scale theater productions between 1900 and the Great Depression . Manhattan's theater district had begun to shift from Union Square and Madison Square during

11242-409: The center, which is surrounded by a band that depicts acanthus leaves. The outer ends of the sounding board contain circular medallions, from which hang chandeliers. Behind the sounding board and the box seats, a high-relief plasterwork band runs across the ceiling and the side walls. The depth of the auditorium to the proscenium is 26 feet 9 inches (8.15 m), while the depth to the front of

11388-807: The city block with the Row NYC Hotel to the west. It adjoins six other theaters: the Majestic to the southwest, the John Golden and Bernard B. Jacobs to the west, the Booth to the east, the Shubert to the southeast, and the Broadhurst directly to the south. Other nearby structures include the Music Box Theatre , Imperial Theatre , and Richard Rodgers Theatre to the north; the New York Marriott Marquis to

11534-540: The comedy A Successful Calamity , which had transferred from the Booth Theatre. The theater's first original production, Barbara , opened the next month and was unsuccessful. At the end of the year, Roland Young and Ernest Glendinning starred in The Gipsy Trail , which ran for 111 performances. This was followed in early 1918 by Alla Nazimova 's presentation of Henrik Ibsen plays in repertory. Later

11680-422: The decade ended with critics and audiences giving mixed signals." Ken Bloom observed that "The 1960s and 1970s saw a worsening of the area [Times Square] and a drop in the number of legitimate shows produced on Broadway." By way of comparison, in the 1950 to 1951 season (May to May) 94 productions opened on Broadway; in the 1969 to 1970 season (June to May) there were 59 productions (fifteen were revivals). In

11826-522: The east. The entrance facade is topped by fire-escape galleries and contains a curved corner facing east toward Broadway . The auditorium contains an orchestra level, a large balcony, a small technical gallery, a mostly flat ceiling, and a sounding board . The space is decorated in the Adam style with plasterwork designs. Near the front of the auditorium, flanking the elliptical proscenium arch, are box seats at balcony level. The Shubert brothers developed

11972-420: The eastern portions of their respective facades, facing Broadway , since most audience members reached the theaters from that direction. The use of simple exterior-design elements was typical of Krapp's commissions for the Shubert family, giving these theaters the impression that they were mass-produced. The Broadhurst and Plymouth theaters' designs contrasted with Henry Beaumont Herts 's earlier ornate designs of

12118-679: The effort. At Papp's behest, in July 1982, a bill was introduced in the 97th Congress , entitled "H.R.6885, A bill to designate the Broadway/Times Square Theatre District in the City of New York as a national historic site". The legislation would have provided certain U.S. government resources and assistance to help the city preserve the district. Faced with strong opposition and lobbying by Mayor Ed Koch's Administration and corporate Manhattan development interests,

12264-644: The eight-hour duration of each performance. The next year, the Circle in the Square Theatre presented Ugo Betti 's The Queen and the Rebels with Colleen Dewhurst . The New York Shakespeare Festival presented David Hare 's play Plenty in 1984, with Kate Nelligan and Edward Herrmann , followed the same year by a revival of the George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart play You Can't Take It With You . In 1984,

12410-658: The end of 1923, running for 245 performances. Another hit was a play Hopkins directed, the wartime drama What Price Glory? , which opened in September 1924 and had 435 performances. Less successful was the Philip Barry drama In a Garden with Laurette Taylor and Louis Calhern , which opened the next year. The Jest was revived in early 1926, but without the Barrymore brothers in the starring roles, it lasted for only 78 performances. Afterward, Winthrop Ames staged

12556-463: The end of 1966, running until August 1967. Edward Albee 's play Everything in the Garden followed in 1967. Simon's next hit at the Plymouth was Plaza Suite , which opened in 1968 with Maureen Stapleton and George C. Scott ; it had 1,097 performances over the next two years. Simon's drama The Gingerbread Lady premiered in late 1970, featuring Stapleton, and ran for 193 performances. Even in

12702-460: The entire Broadway production is transplanted almost entirely intact and may run for many months (or years) at each stop. For example, the first U.S. tour of The Phantom of the Opera required 26 53-foot-long (16.1 m) semi-trailers to transport all its sets, equipment, and costumes, and it took almost 10 days to properly unload all those trucks and install everything into a theater. Astor family John Jacob Astor (born Johann Jakob Astor)

12848-456: The everyday life of New York's lower classes and represented a significant step forward from vaudeville and burlesque, towards a more literate form. They starred high-quality professional singers ( Lillian Russell , Vivienne Segal , and Fay Templeton ), instead of the amateurs, often sex workers, who had starred in earlier musical forms. As transportation improved, poverty in New York diminished, and street lighting made for safer travel at night,

12994-523: The famous Waldorf-Astoria Hotel , an Astor Row , Astor Court , Astor Place , and Astor Avenue in the Bronx , where the Astors stabled horses. The neighborhood of Astoria, Queens , was renamed to incite John Jacob Astor to invest there. Beyond New York City, the Astor family name is imprinted in a great deal of United States history and geography. Astor Street , in Chicago's landmark Gold Coast district,

13140-550: The first decade of the 20th century. From 1901 to 1920, forty-three theaters were built around Broadway in Midtown Manhattan, including the Plymouth Theatre. The Plymouth was developed by the Shubert brothers of Syracuse, New York , who expanded downstate into New York City in the first decade of the 20th century. After the death of Sam S. Shubert in 1905, his brothers Lee and Jacob J. Shubert expanded their theatrical operations significantly. The brothers controlled

13286-467: The first musicals to resume performances on September 2, 2021. The 74th Tony Awards were also postponed; the Tony nominations were announced on October 15, 2020, and took place on September 26, 2021. On July 30, 2021, it was announced that all Broadway theaters required attendees to provide proof of full COVID-19 vaccination . The rule applied to guests ages 12+. Those under age 12 were required to provide

13432-595: The founding sire of all Standardbred horses in the United States today. The third brother Melchior remained in Germany. During the 19th century, the Astors became one of the wealthiest families in the United States . Toward the end of that century, some of the family moved from America to England and achieved high prominence there. During the 20th century, the number of American Astors began to decline, but their legacy lives on in their many public works including

13578-416: The ground floor on 45th Street, there are three glass-and-bronze double doors with aluminum frames and transoms , which lead to the lobby. There are display boxes on either side of the lobby doors, and a bronze stage door is to the right (west) of these doors. A marquee extends above the doors. The northeastern corner of the facade is curved and contains an entrance to the ticket lobby. This entrance contains

13724-798: The highest commercial level of live theater in the English-speaking world . While the Broadway thoroughfare is eponymous with the district, it is closely identified with Times Square . Only three theaters are located on Broadway itself: Broadway Theatre , Palace Theatre , and Winter Garden Theatre . The rest are located on the numbered cross streets, extending from the Nederlander Theatre one block south of Times Square on West 41st Street, north along either side of Broadway to 53rd Street , and Vivian Beaumont Theater , at Lincoln Center on West 65th Street. While exceptions exist,

13870-818: The hotel, who formerly worked for the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York. In Shanghai, China there is the Astor House Hotel in the Bund. Mount Astor in Antarctica was named after Vincent Astor by the explorer Richard E. Byrd . Both in the Peerage of the United Kingdom , the titles [REDACTED] Viscount Astor , of Hever Castle in the County of Kent (1917), with subsidiary title [REDACTED] Baron Astor , of Hever Castle in

14016-428: The locations of former boxes on that level. The front railings of the boxes contain acanthus-leaf arabesques. The underside of each box is decorated with a medallion containing a light fixture; this is surrounded by a molded band. Above the boxes on either side is an elliptical arch, which contains a curved pediment with acanthus-leaf arabesques on either side of a central medallion. Above the elliptical arch on either side

14162-557: The middle-class, variety shows in concert saloons for men of the working class and the slumming middle-class." The plays of William Shakespeare were frequently performed on the Broadway stage during the period, most notably by American actor Edwin Booth who was internationally known for his performance as Hamlet . Booth played the role for a famous 100 consecutive performances at the Winter Garden Theatre in 1865 (with

14308-523: The most desired theaters among producers because of their good sightlines from the seating areas. The Plymouth was originally decorated in a brown, blue, and gold color scheme. Like Krapp's other commissions for the Shuberts, the Schoenfeld's interior was designed with decorative elements in the Adam style . Low-relief plasterwork was used throughout the auditorium to highlight architectural features. These plasterwork decorations generally depict classical figures playing instruments. The rear or eastern end of

14454-502: The musical A Chorus Line opened in October 2006, running for almost two years. This was followed by All My Sons in 2008, as well as Impressionism and A Steady Rain in 2009. In the early 2010s, the Schoenfeld hosted a mixture of musicals and plays, which generally ran only a few months. The short runs were required because of the shortage of available Broadway theaters. They included A Behanding in Spokane and A Life in

14600-591: The next August. Rachel Crothers 's play Susan and God then opened in October 1937, with Gertrude Lawrence , and lasted until the next June. Sherwood's Pulitzer Prize -winning play Abe Lincoln in Illinois opened in 1938 and starred Raymond Massey ; it ran for one year. This was followed by Margin for Error in late 1939, which relocated to another theater the next year. In 1940, the theater hosted William Saroyan 's comedy Love's Old Sweet Song , with Jessie Royce Landis and Walter Huston , but it closed after

14746-498: The next show, Sophie Treadwell 's Machinal , which opened in 1928 and featured Zita Johann and Clark Gable . The same year, the theater hosted Philip Barry's play Holiday , featuring Hope Williams. In 1930, the Plymouth Theatre hosted the Donald Ogden Stewart 's play Rebound , in which Stewart co-starred with Hope Williams. Elmer Rice 's play Counsellor at Law opened the next year with Paul Muni ; after

14892-420: The next sixteen years. However, smaller vaudeville and variety houses proliferated, and Off-Broadway was well established by the end of the nineteenth century. A Trip to Coontown (1898) was the first musical comedy entirely produced and performed by African Americans in a Broadway theatre (inspired largely by the routines of the minstrel shows ), followed by the ragtime -tinged Clorindy: The Origin of

15038-527: The next two years before transferring. Another West End play came to the Plymouth in 1977, Simon Gray 's Otherwise Engaged featuring Tom Courtenay ; it ran for ten months. The Elizabeth Swados musical Runaways relocated from The Public Theater to the Plymouth in May 1978, with 274 performances on Broadway. Next, the Fats Waller revue Ain't Misbehavin ' relocated from the Longacre to

15184-527: The northeast; One Astor Plaza to the east; and Sardi's restaurant, the Hayes Theater , and the St. James Theatre one block south. The Schoenfeld is part of the largest concentration of Broadway theaters on a single block. The adjoining block of 45th Street is also known as George Abbott Way , and foot traffic on the street increases box-office totals for the theaters there. The Broadhurst, Schoenfeld, Booth, and Shubert theaters were all developed by

15330-557: The number of potential patrons for the growing number of theatres increased enormously. Plays could run longer and still draw in the audiences, leading to better profits and improved production values. As in England, during the latter half of the century, the theatre began to be cleaned up, with less prostitution hindering the attendance of the theatre by women. Gilbert and Sullivan 's family-friendly comic opera hits, beginning with H.M.S. Pinafore in 1878, were imported to New York (by

15476-491: The opening of Richard III . This was followed the same year by the comedy Little Old New York , a hit with just over 300 performances. The Plymouth hosted the Zoe Akins drama Daddy's Gone A-Hunting , featuring Marjorie Rambeau and Frank Conroy , in 1921. The next year, Hopkins presented Don Marquis 's The Old Soak with Harry Beresford and Minnie Dupree . J. P. McEvoy 's family comedy The Potters then opened at

15622-459: The orchestra contains a promenade. It contains four paneled piers supporting the balcony level. The promenade's ceiling is surrounded by a band of modillions and acanthus leaves . There are also rhombus-shaped panels on the promenade ceiling, which contain chandeliers suspended from medallions. Two staircases with metal railings lead from the promenade to the balcony. The orchestra level is raked , sloping down toward an orchestra pit in front of

15768-519: The overland Astor Expedition in 1810–1812 to reach the outpost, which was in the then-disputed Oregon Country . Control of Fort Astoria played a key role in English and American territorial claims on the region. John and George's brother Henry (born Heinrich) (1754–1833) also emigrated to America. Henry was a horse racing enthusiast, and purchased a thoroughbred named Messenger , who had been brought from England to America in 1788. The horse became

15914-556: The performers, or temporary availability of a theatre between the end of one production and the beginning of another. However, some shows with planned limited engagement runs may, after critical acclaim or box office success, extend their engagements or convert to open-ended runs. This was the case with 2007's August: Osage County , 2009's God of Carnage , 2012's Newsies , and 2022's Take Me Out . Historically, musicals on Broadway tend to have longer runs than "straight" (i.e., non-musical) plays. On January 9, 2006, The Phantom of

16060-468: The plays of George Bernard Shaw , and Katharine Cornell in such plays as Romeo and Juliet , Antony and Cleopatra , and Candida . In 1930, Theatre Guild 's production of Roar, China! was Broadway's first play with a majority Asian cast. As World War II approached, a dozen Broadway dramas addressed the rise of Nazism in Europe and the issue of American non-intervention. The most successful

16206-423: The production plays), meaning that the length of their presentation is not set beforehand, but depends on critical response, word of mouth, and the effectiveness of the show's advertising, all of which determine ticket sales. Investing in a commercial production carries a varied degree of financial risk. Shows need not make a profit immediately; should they make their "nut" (weekly operating expenses), or lose money at

16352-645: The productions of Rodgers and Hammerstein , became enormously influential forms of American popular culture " and contributed to making New York City the cultural capital of the world . New York City's first significant theatre was established in the mid-18th century, around 1750, when actor-managers Walter Murray and Thomas Kean established a resident theatre company at the Theatre on Nassau Street in Lower Manhattan , which held about 280 people. They presented William Shakespeare 's plays and ballad operas such as The Beggar's Opera . In 1752, William Hallam sent

16498-531: The run ending just a few months before Booth's brother John Wilkes Booth assassinated Abraham Lincoln ), and would later revive the role at his own Booth's Theatre (which was managed for a time by his brother Junius Brutus Booth Jr. ). Other renowned Shakespeareans who appeared in New York in this era were Henry Irving , Tommaso Salvini , Fanny Davenport , and Charles Fechter . Theatre in New York moved from Downtown gradually to Midtown Manhattan , beginning around 1850, seeking less expensive real estate. At

16644-529: The same year by the Brian Friel drama Dancing at Lughnasa , the latter of which had 421 performances. The flamenco dance special Gypsy Passion was hosted at the Plymouth in late 1992, following an engagement at Town Hall . The next year, the theater hosted The Song of Jacob Zulu and a short run of Wonderful Tennessee . The Stephen Sondheim musical Passion opened at the Plymouth in 1994, followed by Brian Friel 's Translations in 1995 and

16790-518: The same year, Hopkins presented the Tolstoy drama Redemption with John Barrymore , and the Shakespeare tragedy Hamlet was revived with Walter Hampden . The Plymouth hosted another Hopkins production in 1919: Sem Benelli 's drama The Jest , featuring John Barrymore and his brother Lionel , which ran for 179 performances. John Barrymore appeared at the theater yet again in 1920, with

16936-473: The season. This is done in order to maximize access to their target audience. Most Broadway producers and theatre owners are members of The Broadway League (formerly "The League of American Theatres and Producers"), a trade organization that promotes Broadway theatre as a whole, negotiates contracts with the various theatrical unions and agreements with the guilds, and co-administers the Tony Awards with

17082-470: The stage for 657 performances. Chinatown itself was surpassed by the musical Irene (1919) in 1921 as the longest-running Broadway musical, and even earlier, in March 1920, by Lightnin' (1918) as the longest-running Broadway show. In 1896, theatre owners Marc Klaw and A. L. Erlanger formed the Theatrical Syndicate , which controlled almost every legitimate theatre in the U.S. for

17228-401: The stage house contains a granite water table with two metal doors. The western door is double-height, allowing large sets to be transported into the theaters, while the eastern door contains signboard panels. The stage house has five sash windows on each of the third through sixth stories. These windows are placed within segmental arches made of brick. There is a metal fire escape in front of

17374-447: The stage house, which leads to the fire escape in front of the auditorium's third story. A parapet with corbels runs above the sixth story of the stage house. The auditorium has an orchestra level, one balcony, boxes , and a stage behind the proscenium arch. The auditorium's width is greater than its depth, and the space is designed with plaster decorations in relief . According to the Shubert Organization and The Broadway League ,

17520-414: The stage is 28 feet 3 inches (8.61 m). The ceiling is generally flat, except at the front, where it curves down to meet the sounding board. The flat ceiling is surrounded by a molding with acanthus leaves and modillions. Running around the ceiling's perimeter is an Adam-style band with cameo panels depicting fauns and the god Pan ; arabesque vines; and urn-and-sphinx motifs. The center of

17666-447: The stage. The orchestra and its promenade contain walls with plasterwork panels, as well as doorways. On the south (left) and east (rear) walls, the exit doors are placed within deep reveals and are flanked by paneled pilasters, which are topped by brackets. An entablature , a fluted frieze, and a cyma recta cornice run above these doors. The entrance doors on the north (right) wall are more simple in design. On all sides, each doorway has

17812-434: The term "Broadway theatre" is used predominantly to describe venues with seating capacities of at least 500 people. Smaller theaters in New York City are referred to as off-Broadway , regardless of location, while very small venues with fewer than 100 seats are called off-off-Broadway , a term that can also apply to non-commercial, avant-garde , or productions held outside of traditional theater venues. The Theater District

17958-417: The theater has 1,079 seats, while according to Playbill , there are 1,046 seats. The physical seats are divided into 653 seats in the orchestra, 392 on the balcony, and 24 in the boxes. There are 15 standing-only spots. The orchestra is wheelchair-accessible, but the balcony can only be reached by stairs. In the basement are restrooms and drinking fountains. The Schoenfeld and the neighboring Jacobs are two of

18104-662: The theater hosted Sidney Howard 's adaptation of the Humphrey Cobb novel Paths of Glory. This was followed the same year by a theatrical version of Pride and Prejudice , which transferred from the Music Box for a six-month run at the Plymouth. The theater hosted long-lasting productions in the late 1930s and was hosting shows continuously through the next decade. Among those was Robert E. Sherwood 's version of Jacques Deval 's Tovarich , featuring Marta Abba and John Halliday , which opened in October 1936 and ran until

18250-530: The theater in 1964, with Alec Guinness and Kate Reid . It was followed that year by William Hanley 's first Broadway play, Slow Dance on the Killing Ground . The Neil Simon comedy The Odd Couple premiered at the Plymouth with Walter Matthau and Art Carney in 1965, staying for over a year before it transferred. Simon's next show at the theater, The Star-Spangled Girl with Richard Benjamin , Anthony Perkins , and Connie Stevens , opened at

18396-477: The theater's longest-running show. This was followed the same month by Take Me Out , which had transferred from the Hayes Theater. Life of Pi opened at the theater in March 2023, running for four months. This was followed in 2024 by the musical The Notebook , running for nine months. Afterward, the musical Buena Vista Social Club is planned to open there in March 2025. Productions are listed by

18542-490: The theater. It has 1,079 seats across two levels. Both the facade and the auditorium interior are New York City landmarks . The neoclassical facade is simple in design and is similar to that of the Broadhurst Theatre , which was developed concurrently. The Schoenfeld's facade is made of buff -colored brick and terracotta and is divided into two sections: a stage house to the west and the theater's entrance to

18688-534: The theatres. Since colored bulbs burned out too quickly, white lights were used, and Broadway was nicknamed "The Great White Way". In August 1919, the Actors' Equity Association demanded a standard contract for all professional productions. After a strike shut down all the theatres, the producers were forced to agree. By the 1920s, the Shubert Brothers had risen to take over the majority of the theatres from

18834-481: The theatrical producer and director who established The Public Theater , led the "Save the Theatres" campaign. It was a not-for-profit group supported by the Actors Equity union to save the theater buildings in the neighborhood from demolition by monied Manhattan development interests. Papp provided resources, recruited a publicist and celebrated actors, and provided audio, lighting, and technical crews for

18980-461: The time, the average age of theatergoers was 40.4; nearly two-thirds of the audience were women; and 29% identified as a racial minority. The classification of theatres is governed by language in Actors' Equity Association contracts. To be eligible for a Tony, a production must be in a house with 500 seats or more and in the Theater District, which are the criteria that define Broadway theatre. Off-Broadway and off-off-Broadway shows often provide

19126-568: The twenties, there were 70–80 theaters, but by 1969, there were 36 left. During this time, many Broadway productions struggled due to low attendance rates, which resulted in perceived mediocrity among such plays. For this reason, the Theatre Development Fund was created with the purpose of assisting productions with high cultural value that likely would struggle without subsidization, by offering tickets to those plays to consumers at reduced prices. In early 1982, Joe Papp ,

19272-568: The vein of Victor Herbert. Live theatre has survived the invention of cinema. Leaving these comparatively frivolous entertainments behind and taking the drama a step forward, Show Boat premiered on December 27, 1927, at the Ziegfeld Theatre . It represented a complete integration of book and score, with dramatic themes, as told through the music, dialogue, setting, and movement, woven together more seamlessly than in previous musicals. It ran for 572 performances. The 1920s also spawned

19418-692: The war's end, theatre resumed in 1798, when the 2,000-seat Park Theatre was built on Chatham Street on present-day Park Row . A second major theatre, Bowery Theatre , opened in 1826, followed by others. By the 1840s, P.T. Barnum was operating an entertainment complex in Lower Manhattan. In 1829, at Broadway and Prince Street, Niblo's Garden opened and soon became one of New York's premier nightspots. The 3,000-seat theatre presented all sorts of musical and non-musical entertainments. In 1844, Palmo's Opera House opened and presented opera for only four seasons before bankruptcy led to its rebranding as

19564-532: The west. Krapp filed plans for a new theater at 234 West 45th Street with the New York City Department of Buildings in December 1916. Theatrical producer Arthur Hopkins leased the theater on 45th Street from the Shuberts in July 1917. Hopkins, who already operated a smaller theater, had wanted to acquire another theater to increase his profits. Hopkins could name the theater as he wished, but

19710-423: The year of their first performance. The limited engagement drama A Steady Rain achieved the box office record for the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre. The production grossed $ 1,292,210 over eight performances for the week ending December 6, 2009. This record was surpassed by the 2014 production It's Only a Play , which grossed $ 1,455,818 over eight performances for the week ending January 4, 2015. The current record for

19856-519: Was Lillian Hellman 's Watch on the Rhine , which opened in April 1941. After the lean years of the Great Depression , Broadway theatre had entered a golden age with the blockbuster hit Oklahoma! , in 1943, which ran for 2,212 performances. According to John Kenrick 's writings on Broadway musicals, "Every season saw new stage musicals send songs to the top of the charts. Public demand,

20002-539: Was 14.77 million in 2018–2019, compared to 13.79 million in 2017–2018. The average age of the Broadway audience in the 2017–18 theater season was 40, the lowest it had been in nearly two decades. By 2018, about 20% of Broadway tickets were sold to international visitors, although many visitors reported not being able to use their tickets. In 2022–2023, the first full season since the COVID-19 pandemic, Broadway theaters sold 12.3 million tickets, of which 35% were to local residents and 17% to international visitors. At

20148-591: Was a 50-performance hit called The Elves in 1857. In 1870, the heart of Broadway was in Union Square , and by the end of the century, many theatres were near Madison Square . Theatres arrived in the Times Square area in the early 1900s, and the Broadway theatres consolidated there after a large number were built around the square in the 1920s and 1930s. New York runs continued to lag far behind those in London, but Laura Keene 's "musical burletta" The Seven Sisters (1860) shattered previous New York records with

20294-517: Was a secondary state school named Astor of Hever School. It was located within Oakwood Park, a former residence of the Astor family, which the family gifted to the Borough of Maidstone to be used for educational purposes. Whilst the Astor of Hever School changed its name in the early 2010s, it is still located on the Oakwood Park Estate, along with a Grammar School, a Catholic Secondary school and

20440-481: Was accused of witchcraft after her success with the company in 1817. The accusations never led to legal action. They had eight children, including John Jacob Astor Jr. (1791–1869) and real estate businessman William Backhouse Astor Sr. (1792–1875). John Jacob's fur trading company established a Columbia River trading post at Fort Astoria in 1811, the first United States community on the Pacific coast. He financed

20586-489: Was followed the same year by Thou Shalt Not , which ran for three months. The play The Graduate , which opened in April 2002 and was based on the film of the same name , ran for nearly a year. Next to be staged was a revival of Eugene O'Neill 's play Long Day's Journey into Night as well as the musical Taboo in 2003. As part of a settlement with the United States Department of Justice in 2003,

20732-427: Was followed the same year by Lanford Wilson 's play Burn This , featuring John Malkovich and Joan Allen , which ran for 437 performances over the next year. Next, Wendy Wasserstein 's The Heidi Chronicles moved to the Plymouth from the off-Broadway Playwrights Horizons theater in March 1989, staying for a year and a half. The Plymouth hosted a short run of The Big Love with Tracey Ullman in 1991, followed

20878-457: Was renamed for Gerald Schoenfeld in 2005. The Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre is on 236 West 45th Street, on the south sidewalk between Eighth Avenue and Seventh Avenue , near Times Square in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City . The rectangular land lot covers 9,695 square feet (900.7 m), with a frontage of 96.5 feet (29.4 m) on 44th Street and a depth of 100.42 feet (31 m). The Schoenfeld Theatre shares

21024-470: Was required under New York City construction codes of the time but, unlike Shubert Alley, it was closed to the public shortly after its completion. The Shuberts bought the land under all four theaters from the Astors in 1948. The Schoenfeld Theatre was designed by Herbert J. Krapp and constructed in 1917 for the Shubert brothers as the Plymouth Theatre. The Broadhurst and Plymouth were two of Krapp's first theatrical designs as an independent architect. While

21170-776: Was the youngest of four sons born to Johann Jacob Astor (1724–1816) and Maria Magdalena vom Berg (1730–1764). The Astor family can trace their ancestry back to Giovan Asdour (1595–1668) and Gretta Ursula Asdour (1589–?). Giovan was born in Chiavenna , Italy, and died in Zürich , Switzerland. Their son, Hans Pieter Asdor, was born in Switzerland and died in Nußloch . John Jacob and his brother George, born in Walldorf left Germany and moved to London in 1778. There, they established

21316-663: Was under renovation at the time, would be renamed after actor James Earl Jones . In June 2022, the Nederlanders announced that the Brooks Atkinson Theatre would be renamed after Lena Horne , The James Earl Jones Theatre was rededicated in September 2022, while the Lena Horne Theatre was rededicated that November. Although there are some exceptions, shows with open-ended runs generally have evening performances Tuesday through Saturday, with

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