211-676: The Richard Rodgers Theatre (formerly Chanin's 46th Street Theatre and the 46th Street Theatre ) is a Broadway theater at 226 West 46th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City . Opened in 1925, it was designed by Herbert J. Krapp and was constructed for Irwin Chanin . It has approximately 1,400 seats across two levels and is operated by the Nederlander Organization . Both
422-403: A Bank of America branch with three floor-to-ceiling stock ticker signs; a 19,000-square-foot (1,800 m ) Aeropostale clothing store; an Oakley, Inc. sports accessories store; and a Swatch watch store. Facing Shubert Alley was an Italian restaurant called Cucina and a Junior's restaurant. As of 2022 , Oakley, Kiko Milano, and Swatch were among the retail tenants. Originally,
633-418: A cornice supported by terracotta modillions . The roof of the auditorium has a terracotta balustrade with urns that divide it into bays. The center three bays of the balustrade have latticework while the outer bays have shields and foliate decorations. Another brick parapet, with terracotta coping , runs behind the terracotta balustrade. The stage-house wing is utilitarian in design. The first story of
844-476: A labor strike . The project faced some delays due to the inclusion of the Broadway theater at the building's base, as well as rising costs and decreasing demand for office space. Although Minskoff & Sons president Jerome Minskoff had agreed to the theater as "our way of paying the city back", he said this had increased costs by up to 30 percent, from $ 55 to $ 70 million. Furthermore, Selden insisted that
1055-504: A stage behind the proscenium arch. The auditorium space is designed with plaster decorations in low relief . According to the Nederlander Organization, the auditorium has 1,319 seats; meanwhile, The Broadway League cites a capacity of 1,400 seats and Playbill cites 1,321 seats. The original configuration had 1,500 seats, composed of 640 in the orchestra and 850 in the balcony, as well as eight boxes. The theater
1266-433: A "core building" to his portfolio but, according to Crain's New York magazine, those in the real estate industry believed that Green had overvalued the building. Alliance Building Service, operated by Green's son Gary, was hired to provide cleaning and security services for the building. After acquiring the building, SL Green sought to replace five storefronts on Broadway with one large retailer. SL Green also bought out
1477-511: A $ 625,000 loan the following January, and the Chanins finalized their lease that month. Krapp designed the 46th Street Theatre with ornate decorations, including theatrical masks, in sharp contrast to simpler brick-faced theaters that he had designed for the Shuberts. The 46th Street, as the theater was called, officially opened on February 8, 1925, with a production of Is Zat So? . Most of
1688-549: A 2008 renovation by Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF), the glass facade of the studios and theater was extended upward by 42 feet (13 m). Two pairs of three-story-high LED signs are installed along the base's northeast and southeast corners. Each pair of signs consists of a primary display facing each intersection, used for advertising, and a smaller display facing Times Square's western sidewalk, used for displaying show information for Minskoff Theatre. The primary displays measure 48 feet (15 m) high by 36 feet (11 m) wide, while
1899-522: A 50-story tower without any theaters. Following a series of discussions, the Minskoff Theatre was included in exchange for additional floor area. Construction began on October 10, 1968, and the first tenants moved into the building in May 1971, with the building being completed the next year. One Astor Plaza was originally named for its anchor tenant, the W. T. Grant retail chain, which only occupied
2110-452: A 54-story office tower above a low base. The tower stories are set back 135 feet (41 m) from Broadway. Under normal zoning regulations, the maximum floor area ratio (FAR) for any building on the tower's site was 15, but the developers received two bonuses of 20 percent each, bringing the FAR to 21.6. The developers had to include privately owned public space at the building's base for
2321-472: 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
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#17327806802892532-494: A Dream in 2013. In 2013, the Richard Rodgers underwent a $ 3.5 million renovation conducted by EverGreene Architectural Arts . Up to 20 layers of paint were removed, and light-gray wall patterns and proscenium murals were installed. In addition, all 1,319 seats were replaced and a second arch in front of the original proscenium was removed. The first production at the renovated theater was Romeo and Juliet , which had
2743-839: 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
2954-505: A Wife , which opened the next year, featured Henry Fonda in his Broadway premiere alongside Margaret Hamilton . After Cole Porter 's Anything Goes was staged at the 46th Street in 1935, the theater hosted short-lived productions for several years. Olsen and Johnson 's hit revue Hellzapoppin opened at the 46th Street in 1938, succeeded by Porter's DuBarry Was a Lady in 1939. Porter produced another musical, Panama Hattie , which opened in 1940 and ran for 501 performances. During
3165-549: A bank branch on the second story in March 1971. An internal newsletter in October 1971 described the tower as being "80 percent leased"; that rate had increased to 87 percent by the next month. Fawcett Publications was the first tenant at the building, moving into the 12th through 16th floors on May 26, 1971. One Astor Plaza was still incomplete at the time, but Fawcett's lease at its previous location had already expired, forcing
3376-449: 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,
3587-447: A casino at 1515 Broadway to attract tourists. In October 2022, SL Green and casino operator Caesars Entertainment jointly submitted a formal proposal for a casino in the building. The bid was also sponsored by Roc Nation and mayor Eric Adams 's former chief of staff Frank Carone . Broadway theatrical trade association The Broadway League expressed opposition to the casino, while trade union Actors' Equity Association supported
3798-663: 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
4009-434: 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
4220-540: 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
4431-565: 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
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#17327806802894642-409: A facade of stone and tinted glass. There would be a 125-foot-deep (38 m) plaza along Broadway, as well as plazas along the sides and rear, to comply with the 1961 Zoning Resolution . The Minskoffs requested zoning amendments to allow the construction of an office building, as well as a modification of the site's sky exposure plane to maximize the amount of office space that faced Broadway. At
4853-906: 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
5064-518: A half floors. By January 1973, the Minskoff was ready to open, but the basement cinema had not even been furnished yet because of continuing disputes over subway soundproofing. The Minskoff Theatre officially opened on March 13, 1973. Reade ended his lease of the basement movie theater the next month, citing financial difficulties. Further issues concerned the building's valuation, which had been reduced from $ 45.3 to $ 40.8 million during 1971–1972;
5275-515: A half floors. However, W. T. Grant subsequently decided to leave the building altogether, so the company's signage was removed from One Astor Plaza in March 1976. This created about 330,000 square feet (31,000 m ) of vacant space, about a quarter of the whole building. The third floor was also reconstructed in 1976 to accommodate the Minskoff Recording Studios. Research firm Frederick Atkins Inc. leased four floors of
5486-591: A heavy wind. The two incidents prompted an investigation, but the city's acting buildings commissioner could not find a clear cause for the falling glass. By 1970, a combined 5 million square feet (460,000 m ) of office space was being developed along Broadway in Midtown, much of which stood vacant due to a slowdown in office leasing. W. T. Grant became the building's largest tenant in December 1970, leasing 400,000 square feet (37,000 m ), including
5697-476: 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
5908-561: A limited engagement; it was succeeded by If/Then in 2014. As part of a settlement with the United States Department of Justice in 2014, the Nederlanders agreed to improve disabled access at their nine Broadway theaters, including the Richard Rodgers. Miranda's musical Hamilton opened at the theater in 2015 and has performed there since then. All Broadway theaters temporarily closed on March 12, 2020 , due to
6119-651: A luncheon to benefit the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts , the Nederlanders renamed the theater to honor the composer Richard Rodgers. The first production to be staged at the renamed theater was Alexander H. Cohen and Hildy Parks 's Accomplice , and the musical Oh, Kay! was revived later in 1990. The Neil Simon play Lost in Yonkers opened in 1991, ultimately running 780 performances. The Boys Choir of Harlem appeared at
6330-484: A memorial for lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II during 1962. The 46th Street then hosted Do I Hear a Waltz? , which opened in 1965 and was the only collaboration between composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist Stephen Sondheim . The theater's late-1960s hits were I Do! I Do! , a 1967 play that featured only Mary Martin and Robert Preston , and 1776 , a musical that opened in 1969. After 1776 moved to another theater,
6541-457: A modern technical system be installed in the new theater, which would add $ 400,000 to the cost. A fire broke out on the upper stories in August 1970, and glass fell from the building during two separate incidents that November, when facade installation was progressing on the lower stories. Several glass panes fell on November 5, and a worker was injured on November 29 when glass panes fell during
Richard Rodgers Theatre - Misplaced Pages Continue
6752-526: 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
6963-439: A motif of a spiral leaf. There is a cartouche above the middle of the proscenium. Backstage, the theater was designed with 16 private rooms and five triple-sized rooms, connected to the stage by an elevator. A sounding board curves onto the ceiling above the proscenium arch, separated from the proscenium and the ceiling by a pair of ribs. The sounding board is decorated with low relief plasterwork and latticework. The ceiling has
7174-539: 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
7385-1152: 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
7596-490: A newcomer to the Broadway theater industry, so he hired Herbert Krapp, an experienced architect who had designed multiple Broadway theaters for the Shubert brothers. Krapp designed the theater's facade in a more ornate manner than his previous commissions. Irwin Chanin, who built the theater with his brother Henry, wished to lure visitors with architecture because they did not have the booking chain or an established reputation in
7807-651: A portion of the MTV Studios space (replacing CBS This Morning , which aired from the CBS Broadcast Center ), using a modified version of the election set. The studio was christened "Studio 1515" in reference to the building's address. MTV retains a portion of studio space in the southern end of the building (which formerly comprised the Downtown Studio) for its weekly Fresh Out Live program. Comedy Central's The Daily Show with Trevor Noah
8018-500: 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
8229-628: A reception room, a lounge, changing rooms, and four studios overlooking 45th Street. In addition, the Alvin Ailey dance school operated within a space off the Minskoff Arcade. A theater museum was also being planned for the arcade at the time. One Astor Plaza was fully rented by 1980. Two years later, the Museum of the City of New York opened a museum in the ground-story arcade, dedicated to
8440-517: A red-brick facade, a mansard roof , and a lobby with a 22-foot-high colonnade . According to architecture writer Robert A. M. Stern , the Astor inspired "a new species of popular hotels that soon clustered around Times Square, vast amusement palaces that catered to crowds with scenographic interiors that mirrored the theatricality of the Great White Way ." One Astor Plaza was developed by
8651-643: A routine matter, but a member of the New York City Planning Commission (CPC) notified the Urban Design Group (UDG) about the application. This brought the attention of New York City mayor John Lindsay , a fan of Broadway theater. The UDG proposed that One Astor Plaza include a theater, a suggestion that the Minskoffs initially opposed. The family brought their concerns to CPC chairman Donald H. Elliott , who supported
Richard Rodgers Theatre - Misplaced Pages Continue
8862-431: 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
9073-460: A shallow dome surrounded by a molded band. There are bands within the dome itself, dividing the dome's surfaces into panels. The center of the dome has a plasterwork medallion at the center, from which hangs a chandelier. The rest of the ceiling, surrounding the dome, is divided into panels by moldings. These panels contain grilles as well as medallions in low relief. Times Square became the epicenter for large-scale theater productions between 1900 and
9284-458: A short run of Baby Mine . The 46th Street's first hit was Laurence Schwab 's musical Good News , which opened in September 1927 and ran 551 performances. Schwab and his collaborators staged another hit in 1929, the golf-themed Follow Thru , with 401 performances. The decade ended with Top Speed , which featured Ginger Rogers in her Broadway debut. The early 1930s opened with two hits:
9495-481: 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
9706-459: A smaller mezzanine. The Nederlander Organization operates the theater. Formerly, the third floor also contained the Minskoff Recording Studios, which opened in 1976. Originally, the studios ranged in size from 11 by 11 feet (3.4 by 3.4 m) to 32 by 38 feet (9.8 by 11.6 m). Each studio was soundproofed, enabling numerous tenants to use the studios simultaneously. These studios hosted rehearsals for many large Broadway musicals, as they were
9917-456: A stake in the operation of the 46th Street in 1984. This was followed by Neil Simon 's Brighton Beach Memoirs in 1985, then Joseph Kesselring 's Arsenic and Old Lace in 1986. August Wilson 's play Fences opened in 1987 and ran for 526 performances. The 46th Street then hosted revivals of Born Yesterday and The Merchant of Venice in 1989. The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) started to consider protecting
10128-614: A studio. Paramount Global subsequently occupied nearly all of the building's office space. Paramount Global fired hundreds of the building's employees in mid-2024. The mortgage loan on the building went into special servicing that October, but SL Green was able to extend the loan to avoid a default. New York state officials announced in April 2022 that they would issue three casino licenses in Downstate New York . Following this announcement, SL Green proposed constructing
10339-587: A tax incentive of $ 15 million to retain its offices at One Astor Plaza and three other buildings. The state UDC, which had occupied nine floors, left the building in the following years as Viacom continued to expand. In September 1997, MTV opened studios at One Astor Plaza's second floor after an $ 8 million renovation. By then, Viacom was one of several major media companies on Times Square, and ABC and CBS were also contemplating studios on Times Square. CBS and Viacom announced in 1999 that they would merge, and Viacom renewed its lease at One Astor Plaza, though
10550-580: 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
10761-580: A year. SL Green also agreed to upgrade 1515 Broadway for Viacom and installed three-story-tall advertising screens on the Times Square facade in 2013; the building was refinanced that year for $ 900 million. SL Green was looking to sell a minority stake in the building by 2017, and the China Investment Corporation reportedly expressed interest. That November, Allianz bought a 43 percent ownership stake and some of
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#173278068028910972-413: Is a segmentally arched wall section with four boxes, arranged in two tiers. The fronts of the boxes are curved outward and contain molded wave decorations and friezes with foliate motifs. The undersides contain molded decorations with light fixtures. Above each arch is a medallion with swags. Next to the boxes is an elliptical proscenium arch. The archway is surrounded by a molded rounded band, containing
11183-427: Is also unofficially known as Minskoff Alley. The space covers 5,800 square feet (540 m ). The arcade provides an entrance to the Minskoff Theatre, which is accessed primarily by escalators. From 1982 to 1986, the arcade also contained a museum dedicated to the history of Broadway theatre, including photographs and memorabilia. The ground level also contains retailers. During the 2000s and 2010s, these included
11394-475: 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
11605-403: Is made of steel floor spans around a concrete core. The superstructure contains some uncommon features due to the presence of the Minskoff Theatre at the base. In typical skyscrapers, the columns of the superstructure could extend directly to the underlying bedrock, but One Astor Plaza's eastern section was directly above the theater and had to be supported entirely by the theater's roof. The steel
11816-583: Is named for the Hotel Astor , which had occupied the site from 1904 to 1967. SL Green Realty and Allianz own One Astor Plaza, which as of 2022 serves as the headquarters for Paramount Global (previously ViacomCBS). The building consists of a low base that occupies most of the site, as well as a 745-foot-tall (227 m) tower section with smaller floor areas. The facade is designed in glass and stone, with large signs. The upper stories have dark glass windows, with stone mechanical shafts on all sides of
12027-403: Is on 226 West 46th Street, on the south sidewalk between Eighth Avenue and Broadway , near Times Square in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City . The square land lot covers 11,295 sq ft (1,049.3 m). The theater has a frontage of 112 ft (34 m) on 46th Street and a depth of 100 ft (30 m). The Richard Rodgers shares the block with
12238-492: Is the highest-grossing week for any show in Broadway history. 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
12449-571: 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
12660-610: 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
12871-515: The Bernard B. Jacobs , and John Golden Theatres to the southwest. Prior to the theater's construction, the site was occupied by six brownstone residences. The Richard Rodgers Theatre, originally the 46th Street Theatre, was designed by Herbert J. Krapp in the neo-Renaissance style and was constructed in 1924 for the Chanin brothers. The exterior and interior designs were particularly ornate, even when compared with other Broadway theaters, because
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#173278068028913082-643: The Booth , Gerald Schoenfeld , Bernard B. Jacobs , and John Golden theaters on 45th Street. The Music Box Theatre , Imperial Theatre , and Richard Rodgers Theatre are across 45th Street to the northwest, and the New York Marriott Marquis hotel is to the north. Across Times Square are 1540 Broadway to the northeast, 1530 Broadway and the Millennium Times Square New York to the east, and 1500 Broadway to
13293-727: The COVID-19 pandemic . The Richard Rodgers reopened on September 14, 2021, with performances of Hamilton . The Richard Rodgers Theatre has housed 11 Tony Award -winning Best Plays and Best Musicals , more than any other Broadway theater. In order of when the productions won, these are Guys and Dolls ( 1951 Best Musical ), Damn Yankees ( 1956 Best Musical ), Redhead ( 1959 Best Musical ), How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying ( 1962 Best Musical ), 1776 ( 1969 Best Musical ), Raisin ( 1974 Best Musical ), Nine ( 1982 Best Musical ), Fences ( 1987 Best Play ), Lost in Yonkers ( 1991 Best Play ), In
13504-597: The Cooper Union . He subsequently recalled that he had been "humiliated" by having to use a separate door whenever he bought cheap seats in an upper balcony level. Chanin acquired the residences at 226 to 236 West 46th Street in January 1924. Two months later, the Chanin Construction Company filed plans for the construction of a new theater on 46th Street, to cost $ 1.1 million. Irwin Chanin was
13715-580: 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;
13926-589: The Mark Hellinger Theatre was completed in 1930. The Minskoffs were allowed to build 47 stories as-of-right, or without any zoning bonuses, but the Minskoffs could add 125,000 square feet (11,600 m ) in exchange for building a Broadway theater. The CPC approved the theater amendment that November, and the New York City Board of Estimate gave final approval to the proposal the next month. As planning progressed, members of
14137-659: The Music Box Theatre to the south, the Imperial Theatre to the west, and the New York Marriott Marquis to the east. Other nearby buildings include the Paramount Hotel (including Sony Hall ) and Lena Horne Theatre to the northwest; the Hotel Edison and Lunt-Fontanne Theatre to the north; One Astor Plaza to the southeast; the Booth and Gerald Schoenfeld Theatres to the south; and
14348-427: 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
14559-476: 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
14770-822: The Sam Minskoff and Sons company and designed by Kahn and Jacobs , with Der Scutt as the principal architect. In addition, Ben Schlanger was hired as a consultant for the design of two theaters in the building: the Minskoff Theatre , a Broadway house on the third floor, and the Loews Astor Plaza (now the Palladium Times Square ), originally a movie house in the basement. The building engineers are Shmerykowsky Consulting Engineers. The building has 54 stories and measures 745 feet (227 m) to its pinnacle. According to Emporis ,
14981-472: The September 11 attacks . SL Green had a 55 percent ownership stake while its partner SITQ Immobilier (a subsidiary of Canadian pension fund CDPQ ), had the remaining 45 percent. SL Green was required to have terrorism insurance on the building, and the sale demonstrated that large buildings such as One Astor Plaza could obtain such insurance. SL Green chairman Stephen L. Green considered One Astor Plaza
15192-738: The Shuberts , and Jujamcyn collectively sued the LPC in June 1988 to overturn the landmark designations of 22 theaters, including the 46th Street, 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 the designations were ultimately upheld in 1992. On March 27, 1990, at
15403-419: The W. T. Grant Building , is a 54-story office building on Times Square in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City . Designed by Der Scutt of Ely J. Kahn & Jacobs , the building was developed by Sam Minskoff and Sons . One Astor Plaza occupies a site bounded by Broadway to the east, 45th Street to the north, Shubert Alley to the west, and 44th Street to the south. The building
15614-409: The facade and the auditorium interior are New York City landmarks . The facade is divided into two sections. The eastern section, containing the auditorium, is designed in the neo-Renaissance style with white brick and terracotta . The auditorium's ground floor has an entrance under a marquee , above which is a loggia of three double-height arches, as well as a entablature and balustrade at
15825-409: 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
16036-401: The 46th Street Theatre as a landmark in 1982, with discussions continuing over the next several years. The LPC designated the 46th Street's facade and interior as landmarks on November 17, 1987. This was part of the commission'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 Nederlanders,
16247-623: The 46th Street Theatre from the City Investing Company, having already acquired the Eugene O'Neill Theatre from City Investing. After short runs of Christine and a revival of Finian's Rainbow , the theater continued to produce major musicals into that decade. These included Tenderloin , which opened in 1960 and starred Maurice Evans . The next hit was How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying , which opened in 1961 and ran for 1,417 performances. The theater also hosted
16458-944: The 46th Street hosted the revival of No, No, Nanette with Ruby Keeler in 1971, which ran for 855 performances. The theater subsequently hosted Clare Boothe Luce 's The Women in 1973, followed the same year by Raisin , the latter of which ran for 847 performances. Next was a revival of the Noël Coward play Private Lives in 1975; the musical Chicago was also revived later that year, lasting 898 performances. The theater hosted Working briefly in 1978, and that production's producers Stephen R. Friedman and Irwin Meyer bought Osterman's ownership stake. The 46th Street then staged The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas , an off-Broadway transfer, until early 1982. Meyer and Friedman had placed
16669-418: The 46th Street was the first theater developed by Irwin Chanin . Since 1990, the theater has been named after composer Richard Rodgers (1902–1979). It is operated by the Nederlander Organization . The facade consists of two sections. The eastern section is wider and is symmetrical, containing the auditorium entrance. It is made of glazed white brick with white terracotta decorations. The upper stories of
16880-530: The 46th Street's early runs consisted of shows that were transferred from other theaters, including Is Zat So? , which had transferred from the 39th Street Theatre . The Greenwich Village Follies was staged at the 46th Street in December 1925, after which Is Zat So? returned to the theater to complete its run. Following this were John Colton 's The Shanghai Gesture in 1926 and an eight-week long engagement by Sacha Guitry and his wife Yvonne Printemps later that year. The Spider premiered in 1927, followed by
17091-536: 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,
17302-552: 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
17513-559: The Broadway-theatre industry expressed concerns that theatrical experts had not been consulted in the design of One Astor Plaza's theater. The Lehman Brothers became partners in One Astor Plaza in March 1968. At the time, the vacant site was being used for parking, since the Minskoffs were requesting city approval for another modification that would allow a movie theater to be built in the basement. The next month,
17724-609: 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
17935-569: The CPC scheduled a public hearing to determine whether the Astor and Uris theater permits should be approved, including a second theater in the Uris Building. Six parties testified in favor; the Shubert Organization, the largest operator of Broadway theaters, was the only dissenting speaker. The CPC approved the theater over the Shuberts' objections, as did the Board of Estimate. In the meantime,
18146-574: 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
18357-530: The Chapter 11 filing was so Equitable could renegotiate the 13.6 percent interest rate on the building's mortgage . An Equitable official said at the time that the partnership had lost $ 30 million a year for the past several years, and the rental income could not cover the mortgage payments. As a result of the Chapter 11 proceeding, ownership of One Astor Plaza reverted to Manufacturers Hanover Trust , one of several banks that had collectively lent $ 300 million to
18568-456: 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
18779-606: The Great Depression . During the 1900s and 1910s, many theaters in Midtown Manhattan were developed by the Shubert brothers , one of the major theatrical syndicates of the time. The Chanin brothers developed another grouping of theaters in the mid-1920s. Though the Chanins largely specialized in real estate rather than theaters, Irwin Chanin had become interested in theater when he was an impoverished student at
18990-494: The Heights ( 2008 Best Musical ), and Hamilton ( 2016 Best Musical ). Productions are listed by the year of their first performance. Hamilton achieved the box office record for the Richard Rodgers Theatre. The production grossed $ 4,041,493 for the week ending December 30, 2018, with a top ticket price of $ 849 and 101.87% of the theatre's gross potential. Hamilton's gross for the week of December 30, 2018,
19201-457: 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
19412-604: 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
19623-535: 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
19834-621: The Richard Rodgers Gallery, a space with to memorabilia of the composer. This was followed in 2007 by Cyrano de Bergerac , then by Lin-Manuel Miranda 's musical In The Heights from 2008 to 2011. The theater's other productions of the early 2010s included Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo in 2011; Porgy and Bess and Lewis Black 's Running on Empty in 2012; and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and The Rascals: Once Upon
20045-443: The Richard Rodgers in 1993, followed the same year by Fool Moon . Simon's Laughter on the 23rd Floor , which also opened in late 1993, lasted for 320 performances. How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying returned to the Richard Rodgers in 1995 and had 548 performances. This was followed by two musicals with scores by John Kander and Fred Ebb : a revival of Chicago in 1996 and Steel Pier in 1997. During late 1997,
20256-556: The Shubert Theatre and other nearby theaters. The 1,562-seat movie theater was leased in January 1969 by Walter Reade , who also planned to operate the fourth through ninth floors of offices. Fawcett Publications signed a long-term lease for three floors in One Astor Plaza that February, followed the next month by Quality Bakers of America 's lease of two floors. Work on One Astor Plaza temporarily stopped in July 1969 due to
20467-557: The Square , and American Place theaters were all constructed under the Special Theater District amendment of 1967 as a way to give their respective developers additional floor area. The escalators from the building's ground-story arcade lead to the third-floor grand foyer, where additional escalators lead to the auditorium seating. The Minskoff Theatre has 1,621 seats across two levels: a steeply raked orchestra and
20678-463: The UDG subsequently recalled as "a mindless, ominous, faceless structure, legal under existing zoning, with two low, clawlike appendages [...] pinching a small plaza between them". Though Weinstein said he initially remembered "feeling very depressed" at the Minskoffs' tower-with-theater plans, Elliott was "elated", saying: "I think you guys have got your theater". When Weinstein expressed his doubts about
20889-600: The Viacom lease. Furthermore, several existing tenants including Diamandis Communications and Ted Bates Worldwide were moving out, leaving the owners without enough income to make further improvements to the building. Nonetheless, Viacom moved into One Astor Plaza in 1990 and was one of several companies to take up large amounts of space in Times Square. 1515 Broadway Associates LP filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in October 1990, shortly after Tishman Speyer gave up its general-partnership interest. The main reason for
21100-503: The adjacent alley in 1948, with murals depicting eight productions at the theater. The theater hosted Love Life in 1948 and Regina in 1949, both produced by Cheryl Crawford . In 1950, the 46th Street Theatre hosted Arms and the Girl , featuring Nanette Fabray , for 134 performances. Frank Loesser 's musical Guys and Dolls opened the same year, with about 1,200 performances over the next three years. The next production to be staged
21311-490: The adjoining section of Broadway was converted into a permanent pedestrian plaza in the 2010s. One Astor Plaza's rectangular land lot is bounded by Times Square to the east, 45th Street to the north, Shubert Alley to the west, and 44th Street to the south. The lot spans 65,764 square feet (6,109.7 m ), with a frontage of 200 feet (61 m) on Times Square and 327 feet (100 m) on 44th and 45th Streets. Shubert Alley, which covers 6,400 square feet (590 m ) of
21522-451: The arches is a fire stair and a brick wall with terracotta lyres , swags , and bellflowers . The outer bays contain white-brick wall sections, which are topped by swags and rectangular panels with masks. There are pilasters next to each of the outer bays, and a sign with the theater's name is suspended from the easternmost bay. Running above the facade is a entablature , containing a frieze with panels, shields, and rinceaux , as well as
21733-455: The artwork Alight Embrace by Chris Cosma, which was installed in 2010. The artwork consists of a 4,000-square-foot (370 m ) section of wall between the two entrances, weighing 60 short tons (54 long tons; 54 t), and is made up of 1,100 glass panels measuring 16 by 36 by 2 inches (406 by 914 by 51 mm). At the first floor, there is a covered arcade under the center of the building, connecting 44th and 45th Streets. This passageway
21944-474: The auditorium-entrance section are designed as a colonnade with a central loggia . The western section, which contains the stage house , is seven stories high and contains a buff-brick facade. Early sources cite the theater facade as also containing limestone . The first story of the auditorium facade is symmetrically arranged, though the eastern section is shorter than its width. There is a water table made of terrazzo , above which are rusticated blocks. On
22155-492: 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
22366-402: The balcony promenade contains plasterwork panels, as at orchestra level. A technical booth is also installed on the rear wall. The plasterwork panels continue onto the walls. The balcony's underside has light fixtures, moldings, and plasterwork panels. The front railing has molded wave decorations and friezes with foliate motifs; these are obscured by light boxes. On either side of the proscenium
22577-435: 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
22788-476: 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
22999-550: 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
23210-407: The building after coming across Related president Stephen M. Ross during a morning jog. At the time, the real estate market in New York City was growing, and Equitable had projected that the building would generate $ 40 million in gross income by 1991. In 1985, Tishman Speyer formed a limited partnership , 1515 Broadway Associates LP, to assume ownership of the building; the partnership's only asset
23421-399: The building in some capacity since 2003. One Astor Plaza is at 1515 Broadway, along Times Square , in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City . While the building carries a Broadway address, it is actually on the west side of Seventh Avenue . The section of Broadway and Seventh Avenue between 43rd and 45th Streets is officially listed on city maps as "Times Square", but
23632-441: The building is 730 feet (220 m) tall to its main roof. Internally, One Astor Plaza is served by 36 elevators. The New York City Department of City Planning cites the building as having a Gross Floor Area of 1,721,814 square feet (160,000 m ), while The Skyscraper Center gives a floor area of 1,931,982 square feet (179,000 m ). Underneath the building is a parking lot for 225 cars. One Astor Plaza consists of
23843-594: The building's floor area, Elliott responded: "Oh, that. That just shows they're ready to negotiate." In October 1967, the CPC proposed the Special Theater District Zoning Amendment, which gave zoning bonuses to office-building developers who included theaters. The proposed legislation would directly allow theaters in One Astor Plaza and the Uris Building , which would be the first completely new Broadway theaters since
24054-501: The building's services and attempted to not only retain existing occupants but also attract new tenants by providing favorable concessions. For example, a new advertising tenant received a non-disturbance agreement and a low rental rate, and an existing merchandising tenant expanded its space in the building at a lower rental rate. Additionally, Equitable covered the brokers' fees and tenant-improvement charges for new tenants for several years. Equitable's success in leasing One Astor Plaza
24265-403: The center three openings; it replaced the original marquee, which has since been removed. The auditorium's second and third stories contain outer bays that flank a loggia with three arches. Each arch has a keystone with a console bracket , and they are flanked by pilasters with Corinthian -style capitals with terracotta swans. The bottoms of the central bays contain an iron railing. Behind
24476-530: The company planned to sell CBS's nearby headquarters, the CBS Building . By early 2001, Viacom had planned to buy One Astor Plaza in conjunction with its sale of the CBS Building. That August, Equitable hired Goldman Sachs to market One Astor Plaza; Equitable had rejected an offer to swap One Astor Plaza for the CBS Building directly because the latter building was worth much less. The transaction
24687-421: The company to move into the building. The building was planned to be formally renamed that November when W. T. Grant moved in, but the company's relocation into the building was then delayed to mid-1972. The movie theater in the basement was supposed to open in December 1971, but the opening was delayed indefinitely because of what Reade said were "construction difficulties beyond our control". Among these issues
24898-444: The company was moving some divisions elsewhere, including Comedy Central . Viacom renewed its lease in December 2008, extending it by five years. The same year, SL Green also hired KPF to renovate the lobby and facade to make the building compliant with LEED Silver green building standards. The work was completed in 2009 for $ 40 million. Though other tenants continued to occupy the building, including law firms, Times Square
25109-400: The court hearing, Manufacturers Hanover and Equitable agreed to a tentative settlement in which Equitable would extend a $ 95 million line of credit to the limited partners. In exchange, Manufacturers Hanover's lawsuit and Equitable's Chapter 11 filing would be withdrawn. The bankruptcy filing was thus dropped in December 1991. Throughout these legal disputes, Equitable continued to maintain
25320-403: The debt in a deal that valued 1515 Broadway at $ 1.95 billion. At the time, Viacom occupied 85 percent of the building. SL Green used the proceeds from the ownership stake's sale to buy back some of its stock. After Viacom merged back into CBS Corporation in 2019, ViacomCBS (later Paramount Global ) retained offices at One Astor Plaza. CBS News converted part of the MTV Studios space into
25531-422: 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
25742-588: The early 1940s, the 46th Street hosted productions including Junior Miss (1941), Beat the Band (1942), and Sons o' Fun (1943). Also in 1943, the United States Army staged a single performance of five plays written and performed by soldiers, which raised $ 100,000 for charity. One Touch of Venus appeared at the 46th Street in 1944, running 567 performances, and the hit Dark of the Moon followed
25953-426: The eastern side of the ground-floor facade, a double metal door connects to a service alley. To the right, or west, are three glass-and-aluminum double doors connecting with the box office lobby. Next to that, terrazzo steps lead to emergency-exit doors from the auditorium. The westernmost opening consists of a metal stage door. The ground story has wooden display boxes and is topped by a cornice . A marquee hangs over
26164-577: 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,
26375-512: The entire 40th through 53rd floors. In exchange, One Astor Plaza would be formally known as the W. T. Grant Building, and the company's name would be placed in large letters atop the building. Simultaneously, the Minskoffs agreed to pay off the lease on W. T. Grant's existing office space at 1441 Broadway. The next month, the Walter Reade Organization sought to sublet all six floors of its own space. Bankers Trust leased
26586-480: 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. One Astor Plaza One Astor Plaza , also known as 1515 Broadway and formerly
26797-456: 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,
27008-434: The expanded Viacom took up 25 floors, housing subsidiaries such as Nickelodeon and MTV in the building. Viacom thus became the tower's largest tenant, occupying 800,000 square feet (74,000 m ), with options to take other floors as existing tenants' leases expired. Equitable had been able to remove the asbestos and rent nearly all the space at rates of around $ 30 to $ 39 per square foot ($ 320 to $ 420/m ). Viacom received
27219-437: The first bonus, and they built a new theater for the second bonus. The Minskoff Theatre was among the first theaters built under a 1968 regulation that allowed office buildings to include a legitimate theater in exchange for additional floor area. The bonus applied only to Broadway theaters; the movie theater in the basement did not provide any FAR bonus for the building. The building has two privately operated public spaces:
27430-467: 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
27641-648: The former W. T. Grant space in March 1977. The New York Telephone Company took another four floors in May 1979. By then, most of the building's vacant space had been filled; the other tenants included CBS and the New York State Urban Development Corporation (UDC). Also in 1979, the architectural firm of Battaglia, Seckler completed a three-story complex for the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater within One Astor Plaza. The complex included
27852-588: The growing popularity of automobiles, visitors could stay in a suburb rather than the city's center. In January 1966, Sam Minskoff and Sons paid $ 10.5 million for the Hotel Astor and the eastern section of Shubert Alley, with plans to erect a 40-story office building on the site. At the time, a tax assessment valued the land at $ 8.4 million. Within a week of the sale being announced, Minskoff & Sons president Henry Minskoff said several companies had expressed interest in leasing large amounts of space in
28063-404: The heaviest in any building at the time, and they had to be delivered in several pieces from the factory, itself an intricate operation. The Loews Astor Plaza movie theater originally occupied the building's public space below street level, accessible from 44th Street. It opened on June 26, 1974, and was the city's largest capacity cinema at 1,440 or 1,500 seats. The single-screen theater
28274-798: 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,
28485-589: The history of Broadway theater. One Astor Plaza was sold in July 1984 to Tishman Speyer and the Equitable Life Assurance Society . The price was variously cited as $ 190 million, $ 200 million, $ 202 million, or $ 210 million. The sale included a contract between the Minskoffs and a joint venture of The Related Companies and Shearson / American Express , which in turn sold its contract to Tishman Speyer and Equitable. According to Jerry Speyer of Tishman Speyer, he had decided to buy
28696-478: The hotel in 1954, they pledged to keep the hotel operating. Astor Associates bought the hotel in 1958 and took over operation after Webb and Knapp went bankrupt in 1965. Webb and Knapp's former president William Zeckendorf formed Place de L'Etoile Inc. in December 1965, seeking to buy the Astor Hotel, but this was unsuccessful. The New York Times attributed the hotel's decline to the fact that, because of
28907-510: The hotel in January 1967, anticipating to complete the job within five months. However, the demolition was delayed because of the hotel's structural durability (the hotel had contained 2-foot-thick (0.61 m) walls and heavy- gauge structural steel) and city regulations that required all wood to be removed from the building. The hotel was not completely demolished until February 1968. In January 1967, Kahn and Jacobs announced that Minskoff's tower, One Astor Plaza, would be 50 stories tall with
29118-455: The land lot, is a private passageway shared with the Shubert Organization . The intersection of Times Square and 44th Street, directly outside One Astor Plaza, was renamed after Viacom founder Sumner Redstone in 2021. The surrounding area is part of Manhattan's Theater District and contains many Broadway theatres . 1515 Broadway shares the block with seven theaters to the west: the Shubert , Broadhurst , and Majestic on 44th Street and
29329-477: The lease of the Loews Astor Plaza movie theater and closed it in 2004; reopening it the next year as an event venue operated by AEG Live. CBS and Viacom ultimately split in 2005. By 2008, the downsized Viacom was still the largest office tenant of One Astor Plaza, occupying 1.5 million square feet (140,000 m ); the building only had 130,000 square feet (12,000 m ) available for lease. Viacom's leases were scheduled to expire within two years, and
29540-421: The lobby and elevators in 1989. The same year, Viacom International Inc. negotiated to lease several stories in One Astor Plaza for 20 years. The company planned to occupy 400,000 square feet (37,000 m ) initially, with an option to expand by another 200,000 square feet (19,000 m ). Though the building's owners hoped to gain additional large tenants, they did not sign another lease for 14 months after
29751-557: 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
29962-406: The musical Side Show was staged at the Richard Rodgers; it flopped despite positive reviews. Conversely, Footloose opened the next year, and it ran 737 performances over two years, despite negative reviews. Seussical , which opened in 2000, ended up closing after six months at a $ 10 million loss. In 2001, several Broadway performers and directors launched a celebration of Rodgers's work at
30173-458: The new skyscraper. The Minskoffs hired Kahn and Jacobs as the architects in May 1966, and the hotel was closed on June 30, 1966, the day before Minskoff & Sons took title to the site. The old hotel's furnishings were sold off in October 1966. The Minskoffs demolished the rear of the hotel first because there was a restaurant at the front of the hotel, whose lease did not expire until 1967. The Hercules Wrecking Corporation began demolishing
30384-420: 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
30595-423: The next year. The theater was sold to Robert W. Dowling 's City Investing Company in early 1945, but the Shuberts successfully sued to block the City Investing Company from acquiring the theater until Dark of the Moon closed. The 46th Street's next production was a transfer of the operetta The Red Mill . Finian's Rainbow opened in 1947, ultimately running for 725 performances. A smoker's promenade opened in
30806-557: 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
31017-446: The only studios in the area that could accommodate large Broadway productions. By the late 1980s, the studio sizes ranged from 270 square feet (25 m ) for studio 7 to 1,856 square feet (172.4 m ) for studio 3. Rental rates for the studios varied depending on the studios' sizes, with studio 7 charging $ 10 an hour and studio 3 charging $ 5 per hour, although discounted rates were charged for eight-hour and week-long rentals. Despite
31228-399: The open-air Shubert Alley, as well as a ground-floor arcade beneath the center of the tower. At the base of the tower, the facade's Broadway elevation contains a glass front. The second-floor studios contain full-height windows facing Times Square. A rooftop restaurant was originally planned for the setback above the Minskoff Theatre on the third floor, but it was never built. During
31439-453: The orchestra contains a promenade with decorative bands on its ceiling. The orchestra is raked , but its rear rows contain stadium seating that is more steeply sloped than the front rows. While the front rows are at ground level, the rearmost level is almost one story higher, allowing the entrance foyer to be placed under the rear of the orchestra. This stadium seating configuration was supposedly used to improve visibility and acoustics, though
31650-412: The orchestra's side walls, which contain shallow pilasters and moldings. The balcony is cantilevered over the orchestra, reducing obstructed views from the rear rows of the orchestra. The balcony level is similarly divided into front and rear sections by an aisle halfway across the depth. There are decorative iron railings surrounding the double staircase from the orchestra to the balcony. The rear wall of
31861-550: The partnership. Shortly afterward, Manufacturers Hanover sued Equitable for $ 600 million, claiming that Equitable had backtracked on an agreement to cover the partners' cash deficit. Manufacturers Hanover also claimed that Tishman Speyer's chief executive, Gerald Speyer, had opposed a bankruptcy proceeding. At a court hearing in March 1991, an Equitable official testified that he had misled the limited partners so they did not know about Equitable's intention to file for bankruptcy protection until it had already happened. Shortly after
32072-556: 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
32283-402: The plan. The project received support from 17 trade unions, as well as from local property owners. If Caesars, SL Green, and Roc Nation received a casino license, they also planned to spend $ 250 million on quality-of-life improvements to the surrounding neighborhood. One Astor Plaza's construction had spurred developers to acquire several buildings around Times Square. When One Astor Plaza
32494-468: 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
32705-423: 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
32916-645: 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
33127-498: The rear rows have poor visibility as a result of the steep slope. There is a double staircase to the balcony level from the center of the orchestra's rear section. A partial cross-aisle and a wrought-iron railing separate the orchestra's front and rear portions. There are exit doors from the partial wide aisles. Two aisles lead from the orchestra's front to the rear, connecting with the exit doors. The orchestra and its promenade contain walls with plasterwork paneling. There are arches along
33338-704: The reduction had been granted because the Minskoffs falsely stated that One Astor Plaza was mostly vacant. The building's name also caused problems, as mail addressed to "1 Astor Pl." could be meant either for the building in Times Square or a car-rental agency on Astor Place several miles south. The Loews movie chain leased the basement movie theater in April 1974, and the Loews Astor Plaza movie theater opened on June 25, 1974. That December, Ted Bates & Co. subleased some of its space to W. R. Grace and Company , Gralla Publications, and Nathan's Famous . One Astor Plaza's anchor tenant W. T. Grant had gone bankrupt by late 1975 and initially planned to downsize to four and
33549-469: The remaining space as other tenants' leases expired. This was the fourth-largest lease in New York City history and the largest that was not a sale and lease back by a building's previous owner. In conjunction with this lease, the Bank of China gave SL Green a $ 775 million, seven-year first mortgage for the building. At the time, Viacom provided the bulk of the building's rental income, paying $ 78 million
33760-539: The removal of asbestos . The average rent for offices at One Astor Plaza was $ 8 per square foot ($ 86/m ), far below the market rate, but Tishman Speyer and Equitable had planned to upgrade the building and raise rents. Consequently, the Minskoff Recording Studios were nearly evicted in October 1984, but the studio's operators negotiated a concession in which the studio would pay $ 10 per square foot ($ 110/m ). The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre
33971-553: The revue Sweet and Low in 1930 and You Said It the next year. With the Chanins experiencing financial trouble, the Shuberts acquired the fee to the theater's site in January 1931 for about $ 1.2 million. The Chanins' name was removed from the theater in 1932, and Margaret Sullavan appeared in the drama Happy Landing the same year. This was followed by two transfers: Of Thee I Sing and Autumn Crocus . The 46th Street then staged Howard Lindsay 's comedy She Loves Me Not in 1933, which had 367 performances. The Farmer Takes
34182-531: 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
34393-473: 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
34604-518: The second floor was occupied by a branch of the Bankers Trust bank. The branch adjoined the building's main lobby and contained a domed ceiling, as well as design features reminiscent of early-20th-century banks. The bank's office also contained a glass enclosure with an escalator between the lobby and the Minskoff Theatre, as well as a vault. By the 1990s, this level served as offices for Viacom 's human-resources department. Viacom repurposed
34815-506: The smaller displays are 48 feet high by 7 feet 10 inches (2.39 m) wide. The tower's facade is largely made of dark glass. Vertically aligned, stone-clad mechanical ducts are placed on each side, separating the leftmost quarter from the rightmost three-quarters of the facade. These mechanical shafts rise above the roof, terminating in pointed pinnacles at each corner of the roof. The shafts were overlaid by aluminum panels during KPF's 2008 renovation. A stone band also runs at
35026-576: The southeast. One Astor Plaza is also close to 1501 Broadway to the south and 229 West 43rd Street , the Hayes Theater , and the St. James Theatre to the southwest. Prior to the development of One Astor Plaza, the site had been owned by the Astor family . The site had contained the eleven-story Hotel Astor, which had been designed by Clinton & Russell in a Beaux-Arts style and opened in 1904 with 1,000 guest rooms. The hotel had contained
35237-421: The space as a 20,000-square-foot (1,900 m ) television studio for MTV Networks , launching operations in 1997. According to MTV president Judy McGrath , the studio had full-height windows on Times Square because "We want to get people to feel what it's like to be in New York, to be part of that incredible playground down there". The MTV broadcasting complex initially consisted of three studios. The largest
35448-466: The space from 2010 until 2016. Viacom re-leased the Aeropostale space in 2017 in preparation for its relaunch of TRL . In 2020, after CBS Corporation and Viacom merged again, CBS News used part of the MTV Studios space for its coverage of the 2020 presidential election ; the windows were blanked out for security reasons. In September 2021, CBS's new morning show CBS Mornings premiered in
35659-436: The space until 1976. Tishman Speyer and the Equitable Life Assurance Society bought One Astor Plaza in 1984. Tishman Speyer sold its ownership stake in 1990, just before Equitable filed a bankruptcy proceeding against the building, which was withdrawn after a lawsuit. Viacom leased space at One Astor Plaza starting in 1990, and its successors gradually came to occupy most of the building. SL Green Realty has owned or co-owned
35870-470: 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
36081-504: The stage house contains a water table made of terrazzo. There are openings for the stage door, as well as larger doors to transport sets and other large items. On the upper stories, there are four window openings on each floor, as well as brick pilasters. Above the stage house's seventh floor is a cornice with modillions; it is made of sheet metal and decorated in the Adam style . The auditorium has an orchestra level, one balcony, boxes , and
36292-442: The studios' popularity, they closed in 1989 due to rising rents. After World War II, development of theaters around Times Square stalled, and the area began to evolve into a business district. The first proposal to convert the Astor Hotel site to offices had been put forth in 1947, when Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer had unsuccessfully proposed leasing the entire hotel for its own offices. When real estate developers Webb and Knapp leased
36503-434: 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
36714-410: The theater for sale by 1980, and they sought to rename the theater after Ethel Merman , but this did not happen. Both the Shubert Organization and the Nederlander Organization were interested in acquiring the theater. In 1981, the Nederlanders purchased a half-interest in the 46th Street. The musical Nine opened at the theater the next year and ran until February 1984. Jerry Weintraub also purchased
36925-402: The theater, a year before what would have been his 100th birthday. The same year saw the premiere of another Simon hit, 45 Seconds from Broadway . This was followed in 2002 by a run of Private Lives and a comparatively much longer run of Movin' Out , which ran for four years. The musical Tarzan appeared at the Richard Rodgers in 2006, and the theater was renovated with the addition of
37136-407: The theater, then to mayor Lindsay, who not only endorsed the CPC and UDG but convinced the Minskoffs to include a theater in their tower. The Minskoffs then submitted several alternative plans for a tower on the Astor site. The first such plan called for a tower that had twice the site's maximum floor area ratio , with a theater in the back. A second plan called for a tower, which Richard Weinstein of
37347-534: 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
37558-444: The theatrical industry. The New York Times quoted Irwin as saying: "We hope with this particular theater to carry out the new modern thought in the art of the theatrical world." The Chanins had no experience in operating theaters, and they hired Andrew J. Cobe to lease the theater to an operator. In October 1924, the Shuberts leased Chanin's 46th Street Theatre for twenty-one years at a cost of $ 2 million. The theater's owners received
37769-481: 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
37980-481: The time, city officials were encouraging the westward expansion of office towers in Manhattan. There were few efforts to preserve existing Broadway theaters, since theatrical experts believed the existing theaters (all built before World War II) were functionally obsolete. Consequently, the plans for One Astor Plaza initially did not include a theater. The Minskoffs' application for zoning amendments would have been
38191-461: 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
38402-434: The top of the roof. The use of pinnacles and stonework was a departure from previous International Style buildings with flat roofs. Initially, the top of the building contained signs on all four sides, spelling out the name W. T. Grant, the original anchor tenant. The signs consisted of illuminated 20-foot-tall (6.1 m) letters. They were removed in 1976 when W. T. Grant went bankrupt. One Astor Plaza's superstructure
38613-458: The top. The facade's western section, comprising the stage house, is seven stories high and is faced in buff-colored brick. The auditorium contains neo-Renaissance detailing, steep stadium seating in the orchestra level, a large balcony, and a shallow domed ceiling. Due to the slope of the seats, the rear of the orchestra is one story above ground. There are also box seats near the front of the auditorium on two tiers. Chanin's 46th Street Theatre
38824-449: The tower. The lower stories contain a public passageway and retail at ground level, as well as a lobby and Paramount Global's Studio 1515 at the second story. The building was constructed with two theaters: a Broadway house called the Minskoff Theatre on the third floor, as well as a cinema in the basement (now an event venue called Palladium Times Square ). Sam Minskoff and Sons bought the Hotel Astor site in 1966 and initially proposed
39035-568: 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 ,
39246-522: The under-construction Marriott Marquis hotel, One Astor Plaza, Paramount Plaza , and four planned towers at Times Square's south end were "actively destroy[ing] something that is turning out to be far more fragile than we had once believed—that rough-and-tumble honky-tonk that is the physical essence of Times Square". After Caesars Entertainment's casino bid was announced, Karrie Jacobs of Curbed wrote in 2023: "It's fitting that 1515 Broadway, designed by architect Der Scutt (who later designed Trump Tower),
39457-467: The vacant lot was used in September 1968 for a benefit for the film Funny Girl , hosted by Barbra Streisand . Albert W. Selden had tentatively agreed to lease the Broadway theater in One Astor Plaza. The building was to contain 1.4 million square feet (130,000 m ) across 54 floors, including three restaurants and the two theaters. Mayor Lindsay attended the groundbreaking ceremony for One Astor Plaza on October 10, 1968. One Astor Plaza
39668-568: 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
39879-490: The venue in 1981 and renamed it to honor the composer Richard Rodgers in 1990. Over the years, the Richard Rodgers has hosted eleven Tony Award -winning productions: Guys and Dolls , Redhead , How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying , 1776 , Raisin , Nine , Fences , Lost in Yonkers , In the Heights , and Hamilton . Other long-running shows at the theater have included Panama Hattie and One Touch of Venus . The Richard Rodgers Theatre
40090-692: 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
40301-630: Was Ondine in 1954, followed the same year by On Your Toes and The Bad Seed . The three subsequent productions at the 46th Street Theatre, from 1955 to early 1960, all featured singer and dancer Gwen Verdon , who won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for all of these productions. These were Damn Yankees in 1955, New Girl in Town in 1957, and Redhead in 1959. Three short-lived productions were staged between New Girl in Town and Redhead . In March 1960, Lester Osterman bought
40512-519: 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,
40723-539: 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
40934-410: Was One Astor Plaza. The 25 limited partners, who gave a combined $ 77 million, were primarily executives at Bear Stearns . In exchange for a 30 percent stake in the building, Equitable agreed to be the general partner and guarantee 10 percent of the building's mortgage loan. One Astor Plaza needed to be renovated to comply with modern building codes, including the addition of fire sprinklers and
41145-551: Was Reade's concern that the auditorium needed to be insulated from the adjacent subway tunnels. Shortly after the building was completed, a window-washing scaffold fell from One Astor Plaza's facade in March 1972, killing two workers. The building's parking garage and three retail stores were leased in early 1972. Other tenants included the Bureau of Labor Statistics ; Billboard Publications , which leased one floor; and accounting firm Clarence Rainess & Co., which leased one and
41356-644: 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
41567-458: Was also influenced by the lack of tenants at two newer developments nearby, 1540 and 1585 Broadway , during the early 1990s. After an acquisition of Paramount Communications by Viacom was proposed in 1993, deputy mayor Barry F. Sullivan said the move had "exciting potential for Times Square" because the company might move into One Astor Plaza. Following Viacom's acquisition, Paramount relocated from 15 Columbus Circle to One Astor Plaza, and
41778-604: Was also nearly forced out because of the increasing rents. The theater museum in the ground-story arcade was closed in 1986 due to low attendance. Despite the success of the third-floor Minskoff Studios, they were in danger of eviction by 1988, and they ultimately closed the next year. The building's rising rents also displaced the Bureau of Labor Statistics in 1986 and the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in 1989. Tishman Speyer then renovated
41989-443: Was completed, city officials had expressed hope that the building would precipitate the transformation of Times Square into an entertainment hub. This did not happen immediately, leading architectural writer Robert A. M. Stern to write that "Times Square somehow seemed all the more tawdry for its overscaled, underembellished corporate guest", One Astor Plaza. In 1985, New York Times architectural critic Paul Goldberger wrote that
42200-458: Was designed with a steeply raked stadium seating layout and was intended to show the first runs of major films. There were 42 rows of seats facing the screen, which was 20 yards (18 m) wide. After an unsuccessful attempt to divide the theater into six screens in 1993, the theater closed in July 2004. After a $ 21 million renovation, the space reopened in 2005 as a music venue under the ownership of Anschutz Entertainment Group . The venue
42411-421: Was initially decorated in red and gold. The auditorium's orchestra level and balcony are both accessed from the same lobby. This layout was part of an effort by Irwin Chanin to "democratize" the seating arrangement of the theater. For a similar reason, the Richard Rodgers was designed with a single balcony rather than the typical two, since Chanin perceived second balconies to be too distant. The rear (east) end of
42622-483: Was no longer appealing to small tenants by then because of the high rents. In May 2010, a terrorist car bombing attempt occurred outside the building, although the bomb was defused before it could be detonated. SL Green refinanced 1515 Broadway for $ 475 million in 2010, and CDPQ sold its stake in the tower to SL Green the next year. In April 2012, Viacom signed a lease to take over all 1.6 million square feet (150,000 m ) at 1515 Broadway through 2031, taking
42833-426: Was one of 23 major office projects underway in New York City at the time. During excavation, the contractors bored holes up to 10 feet (3.0 m) deep, then placed dynamite sticks in the holes, covering the openings with 14-by-14-foot (4.3 by 4.3 m) blasting mats before detonating the dynamite. As part of an agreement with the Shubert Organization, the blasts did not occur when there were matinee performances at
43044-496: Was originally sponsored by Nokia , then by Best Buy in 2010 and PlayStation in 2015. The PlayStation Theater closed on December 31, 2019, and it reopened as the Palladium Times Square event venue in 2020. The building's main entrances are at the southeast and northeast corners, facing Times Square. Inside the entrances, escalators lead to the office lobby, which is on the second floor. The lobby contains
43255-465: Was provided by Bethlehem Steel ; its supervising engineer Thomas Connolly said One Astor Plaza's superstructure "would have been a snap from an engineering point of view", but the theater's presence made for "a humdinger of an engineering feat". The theater roof consists of a Vierendeel truss that rests on two girders , one weighing 89 short tons (79 long tons; 81 t) and the other weighing 109 short tons (97 long tons; 99 t). These girders were
43466-425: Was temporarily housed in One Astor Plaza from September 2021 to March 2022. One Astor Plaza's Broadway theater, Minskoff Theatre, was named after the building's developers and is on the building's third floor. Der Scutt designed the Minskoff, with Ben Schlanger as a consulting architect. Jo Mielziner was the consultant for the theater's original operator, Albert Selden. The Minskoff, Gershwin , Circle in
43677-633: Was the Uptown Studio, which had the full-height windows on Times Square and was used by Total Request Live . Two smaller studios, the Midtown Studio and the Downtown Studio, were used for MTV News and smaller programs. Despite reports that MTV planned to completely vacate its studio space, Viacom renewed its lease for a smaller portion of the space in late 2010. The remaining portion was leased to Aeropostale, which operated in
43888-484: Was the first Broadway theater developed by Irwin S. Chanin , and it was immediately leased to the Shubert brothers when it opened. The Shuberts bought the building outright in 1931 and renamed it the 46th Street Theatre. In 1945, the theater was taken over by Robert W. Dowling of the City Investing Company. In 1960, it was purchased by the producer Lester Osterman , who sold it to producers Stephen R. Friedman and Irwin Meyer in 1978. The Nederlander Organization purchased
44099-447: Was the leading edge of a '60s push to reinvent Times Square." At an exhibition of New York City buildings in 1999, New York Times critic Herbert Muschamp said: "No one needs additional reason to dislike 1515 Broadway, the fin-topped office building between 44th and 45th Streets that replaced the legendary Astor Hotel." According to C. Ray Smith, the asymmetrical shafts of the facade were characteristic of "the new design" character of
44310-501: Was ultimately canceled in November 2001. This was attributed in part to Viacom's demand that any buyer first acquire One Astor Plaza and then swap that for the CBS Building and cash; such a transaction would enable Viacom to avoid paying estate transfer taxes on the transaction. In March 2002, a joint venture led by SL Green Realty acquired One Astor Plaza for approximately $ 480 million, the city's largest real-estate transaction since
44521-602: 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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