26-464: The Daryl Roth Theatre is an off-Broadway performance space at 101 East 15th Street, at the northeast corner of the intersection with Union Square East , near Union Square in Manhattan , New York City . The theater, which opened in 1998, is housed in the four-story Union Square Savings Bank building, which was designed by Henry Bacon and built between 1905 and 1907. The original structure,
52-534: A New York City landmark , houses a theater that can accommodate 300 seated or 499 standing patrons. The DR2 Theatre, located in an annex at 103 East 15th Street, seats 99. The Union Square Savings Bank was founded in 1848 as the Institution for the Savings of Merchants' Clerks, which was originally located as 5 Beekman Street in Manhattan 's Financial District and later relocated to 516 Broadway . In 1867,
78-529: A bank, the Daryl Roth Theatre building was among the many "monumental" bank buildings at street corners. The style was compared to temples in ancient Greece and Rome that had also served as banks. Bank architects, influenced by the World's Columbian Exposition in 1893, placed Renaissance and neoclassical features into banks such as the Daryl Roth Theatre building. The Daryl Roth Theatre building
104-509: A new outlet for "poets, playwrights, actors, songwriters, and designers. ... The first great Off-Broadway musical was the 1954 revival" of The Threepenny Opera , which proved that off-Broadway productions could be financially successful. Critic John Gassner argued at the time, however, that "Broadway is just as eclectic – and just as footless – as 'Off-Broadway'." Theatre Row , on West 42nd Street between 9th and 10th Avenues in Manhattan,
130-521: A professional venue in Manhattan with a seating capacity of at least 100, but not more than 499, or a production that appears in such a venue and adheres to related trade union and other contracts. Previously, regardless of the size of the venue, a theatre was considered a Broadway (rather than off-Broadway) house if it was within the "Broadway Box", extending from 40th Street north to 54th Street and from Sixth Avenue west to Eighth Avenue , including Times Square and West 42nd Street . This change to
156-589: A venue and adheres to related trade union and other contracts. Some shows that premiere off-Broadway are subsequently produced on Broadway. The term originally referred to any venue, and its productions, on a street intersecting Broadway in Midtown Manhattan 's Theater District , the hub of the American theatre industry. It later became defined by the League of Off-Broadway Theatres and Producers as
182-482: Is a concentration of off-Broadway and off-off-Broadway theatres. It was developed in the mid-1970s and modernized in 2002. Many off-Broadway shows have had subsequent runs on Broadway, including such musicals as Hair , Godspell , Little Shop of Horrors , Sunday in the Park with George , Rent , Grey Gardens , Urinetown , Avenue Q , The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee , Rock of Ages , In
208-407: Is located above a foundation of brick , with a concrete base, and contains a facade with white granite cladding. The interior structure is supported by walls and piers made of brick, while the upper floors are located on a structure of metal columns and girders. The main facade is on the western side, facing Union Square. It contains a portico supported by four Corinthian columns, and below
234-547: The Lucille Lortel Award (created in 1985 by the League of Off-Broadway Theatres & Producers), and the Drama League Award . Although off-Broadway shows are not eligible for Tony Awards , an exception was made in 1956 (before the rules were changed), when Lotte Lenya won Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical for the off-Broadway production of The Threepenny Opera . Capacity
260-728: The Real Estate Record in October 1905 depicted a 25-by-100-foot (7.6 by 30.5 m), two-story marble building costing $ 100,000. However, drawings published two months later in the Architecture magazine showed a slightly larger structure. The final plans were for a 52-by-125-foot (16 by 38 m) granite-faced building that cost $ 275,000. Construction began in May 1906 and the new bank opened on March 7, 1907. The Union Square Savings Bank started opening branches in 1923, following
286-539: The 300-seat main auditorium. The southern facade of the main building, facing 15th Street, is divided into five vertical bays , each separated by pilasters topped by Corinthian-style capitals , Each of these bays contains large windows with bronze window bars. Carved panels are located above these windows, and a side entrance is located below the easternmost window. As of October 2019, the Daryl Roth Theater has hosted at least 33 productions. Fuerza Bruta
SECTION 10
#1732780777162312-667: The Broadway Box are the Laura Pels Theatre and The Theater Center . The off-Broadway movement started in the 1950s as a reaction to the perceived commercialism of Broadway and provided less expensive venues for shows that have employed many future Broadway artists. An early success was Circle in the Square Theatre 's 1952 production of Summer and Smoke by Tennessee Williams . According to theatre historians Ken Bloom and Frank Vlastnik, off-Broadway offered
338-932: The Heights , Spring Awakening , Next to Normal , Hedwig and the Angry Inch , Fun Home , Hamilton , Dear Evan Hansen , Hadestown , and Kimberly Akimbo . In particular, two that became Broadway hits, Grease and A Chorus Line , encouraged other producers to premiere their shows off-Broadway. Plays that have moved from off-Broadway houses to Broadway include Doubt , I Am My Own Wife , Bridge & Tunnel , The Normal Heart , and Coastal Disturbances . Other productions, such as Stomp , Blue Man Group , Altar Boyz , Perfect Crime , Forbidden Broadway , Nunsense , Naked Boys Singing , Bat Boy: The Musical , and I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change have had runs of many years off-Broadway, never moving to Broadway. The Fantasticks ,
364-483: The bank to be preserved in its original state, though Tigrett stated that he would not change the inside of the bank. The project was delayed, and by March 1995, construction was reported to be imminent. However, that June, the House of Blues withdrew its application for a liquor license, which would have enabled the restaurant to contain a bar. Manhattan Community Board 5 , which covers Union Square, expressed concerns about
390-462: The contractual definition of "off-Broadway" benefited theatres satisfying the 499-seat criterion because of the lower minimum required salary for Actors' Equity performers at Off-Broadway theatres as compared with the salary requirements of the union for Broadway theatres. The adoption of the 499-seat criterion occurred after a one-day strike in January 1974. Examples of off-Broadway theatres within
416-528: The corners of intersections. In 1895, the Institution acquired the adjacent 22 Union Square East to the north, and subsequently demolished both rowhouses at 20–22 Union Square East. The bank changed its name to the Union Square Savings Bank in 1904. The Union Square Savings Bank announced its intention to build a new structure on the combined site the same year, and hired Henry Bacon to draw up building plans. The initial plans published in
442-498: The effects of a concert venue in the neighborhood, so the House of Blues agreed to delay construction in exchange for postponement of a public hearing. In 1996, the building was acquired by Daryl Roth , who had devised plans to turn the bank into an off-Broadway venue. Upon the theater's opening in 1998, The New York Times described the bank building as one of a "growing number of unconventional spaces" that were converted into theaters. The 99-seat DR2 Theatre opened in 2002 within
468-457: The former banking annex in 103 East 15th Street. While Fuerza Bruta was in production at the theater from 2005 to 2016, the theater entrance was through a side door on the 15th Street side, while the main building entrance at Union Square was unused. In 2017, while making his theatrical directorial debut with In and Of Itself, Frank Oz changed the layout of the theater to incorporate its visually striking Union Square facade as an entrance to
494-563: The institution bought a Greek Revival -style rowhouse at 20 Union Square East, on the northeast corner with 15th Street and adjacent to Union Square Park . The next year, the bank moved to the renovated rowhouse. Starting in the 1870s, the area surrounding the park became populated with hotels, theaters, and commercial enterprises. At the time, commercial banks in New York City were mostly located in converted structures, while savings banks were located in standalone, imposing buildings at
520-681: The longest-running musical in theatre history, spent its original 42-year run off-Broadway and had another off-Broadway run from 2006 to 2017. Off-Broadway shows, performers, and creative staff are eligible for the following awards: the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award , the Outer Critics Circle Award , the Drama Desk Award , the Obie Award (presented since 1956 by The Village Voice ),
546-401: The passage of a law that removed a ban on savings bank branches, but kept the original building as its headquarters. A penthouse was built in 1937, and a four-story office annex was built at 103 East 15th Street in 1955. The interior was renovated in 1961. The Union Square Savings Bank acquired Kings County Savings Bank in 1969 to form United Mutual Savings Bank. United Mutual failed in 1982 and
SECTION 20
#1732780777162572-431: The portico, a small flight of steps leads up to the banking floor. An entablature and parapet run along the portico, and a cornice with various depictions of lentils, lions, and egg-and-dart motifs is located at the top of the portico. In the center of the facade, on the ground floor, is a tall vertical opening, which includes glass doors below an opaque-glass grid; this formerly led to the banking floor but now leads to
598-432: The theater between August and October 2022. Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres , but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer than 100. An "off-Broadway production" is a production of a play , musical , or revue that appears in such
624-401: The theater. The renovations required moving the box office around, but upon the completion of work, the audience was able to enter through the front doors on Union Square East. The Daryl Roth Theatre is located on a lot measuring 52 feet (16 m) wide, along Union Square, and 125 feet (38 m) long on 15th Street. It is 60 feet (18 m) tall and contains four stories. When it served as
650-542: Was acquired by American Savings Bank . Upon the latter's insolvency in 1992, the Union Square branch was closed. In 1993, the House of Blues concert-venue company bought the bank and its annex at 103 East 15th Street for a combined $ 2.06 million. Isaac Tigrett , the House of Blues' founder, planned to open the venue with a live-music venue and 300-seat eatery in 1994. This drew concern among preservationists, who wanted
676-548: Was produced at the Daryl Roth Theatre from 2006 to 2016, while Striking 12 ran from November to December 2006. Gloria: A Life opened at the theater in October 2018 and closed in March 2019. At the DR2 theater, Bunnicula ran between February and April 2013, while That Golden Girls Show ran from October 2016 to January 2017. Hyprov , a comedy show that is a fusion of stage hypnosis and improvisation , performed 70 shows at
#161838