Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre
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The Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre (formerly the Royale Theatre and the John Golden Theatre) is a
Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
theater at 242 West 45th Street (
George Abbott Way George Abbott Way is a section of West 45th Street west of Times Square between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in New York City, named for Broadway producer and director George Abbott. It is just east of Restaurant Row. Notable buildings The are ...
) in the
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of Midtown Manhattan in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
. Opened in 1927, the theater was designed by Herbert J. Krapp in a Spanish style and was built for real-estate developer Irwin S. Chanin. It has 1,100 seats across two levels and is operated by
The Shubert Organization The Shubert Organization is a theatrical producing organization and a major owner of theatres based in Manhattan, New York City. It was founded by the three Shubert brothers in the late 19th century. They steadily expanded, owning many theaters ...
. Both the facade and the auditorium interior are New York City landmarks. The facade is designed in a Spanish style with golden brick,
terracotta Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based unglazed or glazed ceramic where the fired body is porous. In applied art, craft, construction, and architecture, terracotta ...
, and stone and is divided into two sections. The western portion of the facade contains the theater's entrance, with five double-height arched windows and a curved
pediment Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pedim ...
above. The eastern portion is the stage house and is topped by a
loggia In architecture, a loggia ( , usually , ) is a covered exterior gallery or corridor, usually on an upper level, but sometimes on the ground level of a building. The outer wall is open to the elements, usually supported by a series of columns ...
. The auditorium contains Spanish-style detailing, a large balcony, and an expansive vaulted ceiling. The auditorium's interior features murals by
Willy Pogany William Andrew Pogany (born Vilmos András Pogány; August 24, 1882 – July 30, 1955) was a prolific Hungarian illustrator of children's and other books. His contemporaries include C. Coles Phillips, Joseph Clement Coll, Edmund Dulac, Harvey Du ...
as well as several
box A box (plural: boxes) is a container used for the storage or transportation of its contents. Most boxes have flat, parallel, rectangular sides. Boxes can be very small (like a matchbox) or very large (like a shipping box for furniture), and can ...
seats. The Royale, Majestic, and Masque (now John Golden) theaters, along with the Lincoln Hotel, were all developed by the Chanin brothers and designed by Krapp as part of a theater/hotel complex. The Royale was the first of the three theaters to be completed, opening on January 11, 1927. The
Shubert family The Shubert family was responsible for the establishment of the Broadway district, in New York City, as the hub of the theater industry in the United States. They dominated the legitimate theater and vaudeville in the first half of the 20th cen ...
took over the Royale in 1930 but subsequently went into
receivership In law, receivership is a situation in which an institution or enterprise is held by a receiver—a person "placed in the custodial responsibility for the property of others, including tangible and intangible assets and rights"—especially in c ...
, and producer
John Golden John Lionel Golden (June 27, 1874 – June 17, 1955) was an American actor, songwriter, author, and theatrical producer. As a songwriter, he is best-known as lyricist for " Poor Butterfly" (1916). He produced many Broadway shows and four films. ...
leased the theater in 1932. Golden renamed the theater after himself in 1934, but the Shuberts took over in 1936 and leased the theater to CBS Radio. The Royale was restored as a legitimate theater under its original name in 1940. The theater was renamed for longtime Shubert Organization president Bernard B. Jacobs in 2005.


Site

The Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre is at 242 West 45th Street, on the south side between Eighth Avenue and
Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
, near
Times Square Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and neighborhood in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway, Seventh Avenue, and 42nd Street. Together with adjacent ...
in the
Theater District A theater district (also spelled theatre district) is a common name for a neighborhood containing several of a city's theatres. Places *Theater District, Manhattan, New York City *Boston Theater District *Buffalo Theater District *Cleveland Theater ...
of Midtown Manhattan in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
. The nearly rectangular land lot covers , with a frontage of on 44th Street and a depth of . The Golden Theatre shares the city block with the
Row NYC Hotel Row NYC Hotel is a hotel at 700 Eighth Avenue, between 44th and 45th Streets, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. The hotel is 27 stories tall with 1,331 rooms. Designed by Schwartz & Gross, with Herbert J. Krapp as consul ...
to the west. It adjoins six other theaters: the
Gerald Schoenfeld Gerald Schoenfeld (September 22, 1924 – November 25, 2008) was chairman of The Shubert Organization from 1972 to 2008. Career After graduating from the University of Illinois, Schoenfeld fought in World War II. On his return, he obtained a law ...
and
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to the east, the Broadhurst and Shubert to the southeast, the Majestic to the south, and the
Golden Golden means made of, or relating to gold. Golden may also refer to: Places United Kingdom *Golden, in the parish of Probus, Cornwall * Golden Cap, Dorset *Golden Square, Soho, London *Golden Valley, a valley on the River Frome in Gloucestershi ...
to the west. Other nearby structures include the
Music Box Theatre The Music Box Theatre is a Broadway theater at 239 West 45th Street ( George Abbott Way) in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1921, the Music Box Theatre was designed by C. Howard Crane in a Palladian-inspir ...
and
Imperial Theatre The Imperial Theatre is a Broadway theater at 249 West 45th Street ( George Abbott Way) in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1923, the Imperial Theatre was designed by Herbert J. Krapp and was constructed ...
to the north; the New York Marriott Marquis to the northeast;
One Astor Plaza One Astor Plaza, also known as 1515 Broadway and formerly 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 ...
to the east; and
Sardi's Sardi's is a continental restaurant located at 234 West 44th Street, between Broadway and Eighth Avenue, in the Theater District of Manhattan, New York City. Sardi's opened at its current location on March 5, 1927. It is known for the carica ...
restaurant, the
Hayes Theater The Hayes Theater (formerly the Little Theatre, New York Times Hall, Winthrop Ames Theatre, and Helen Hayes Theatre) is a Broadway theater at 240 West 44th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Named for actres ...
, and the St. James Theatre one block south. The Jacobs is part of the largest concentration of Broadway theaters on a single block. The adjoining block of 45th Street is also known as
George Abbott Way George Abbott Way is a section of West 45th Street west of Times Square between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in New York City, named for Broadway producer and director George Abbott. It is just east of Restaurant Row. Notable buildings The are ...
, and foot traffic on the street increases box-office totals for the theaters there. The Majestic, Masque (Golden), and Royale (Jacobs) theaters and the Lincoln Hotel (Row NYC Hotel) had all been developed concurrently. The site of all four buildings had previously occupied by twenty brownstone residences. The site was part of the
Astor family The Astor family achieved prominence in business, society, and politics in the United States and the United Kingdom during the 19th and 20th centuries. With ancestral roots in the Italian Alps region of Italy by way of Germany, the Astors settled ...
estate from 1803 to 1922, when it was sold to Henry Claman. The plots collectively measured wide along Eighth Avenue, along 44th Street, and along 45th Street.


Design

The Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, originally the Royale Theatre, was designed by Herbert J. Krapp in a Spanish style and was constructed from 1926 to 1927 for the Chanin brothers. It was part of an entertainment complex along with the Lincoln Hotel and the Majestic and Masque theaters, which were also designed by Krapp in a Spanish style.; The Royale was designed to be the medium-sized theater of the complex, with about 1,200 seats initially. The Chanin Realty and Construction Company constructed all four structures. The Jacobs is operated by
the Shubert Organization The Shubert Organization is a theatrical producing organization and a major owner of theatres based in Manhattan, New York City. It was founded by the three Shubert brothers in the late 19th century. They steadily expanded, owning many theaters ...
.


Facade

The facade contains two sections. The western section is wider and is symmetrical, containing the auditorium entrance. The eastern section, which contains the stage house, is narrower and taller than the western section. In both sections, the ground floor is clad in rusticated blocks of
terracotta Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based unglazed or glazed ceramic where the fired body is porous. In applied art, craft, construction, and architecture, terracotta ...
above a granite
water table The water table is the upper surface of the zone of saturation. The zone of saturation is where the pores and fractures of the ground are saturated with water. It can also be simply explained as the depth below which the ground is saturated. T ...
. At ground level, the auditorium entrance includes five pairs of glass and aluminum doors, which lead to the ticket office and auditorium. There are also rectangular aluminum-framed sign boards beside the openings. The entrance is topped by a marquee. Four sets of aluminum doors lead from the stage house portion of the facade. A terracotta cornice runs above the base. The stage door is at 270 West 45th Street (next to the Golden Theatre) and is shared with the Majestic and Golden theaters. The upper stories contain gold-colored, bonded Roman brick. The brick facade was designed to relate to the adjacent theaters and hotel. On the upper stories, the auditorium section has a set of five arches on the second and third stories. The arches rise above terracotta piers that contain
Corinthian Corinthian or Corinthians may refer to: *Several Pauline epistles, books of the New Testament of the Bible: **First Epistle to the Corinthians **Second Epistle to the Corinthians **Third Epistle to the Corinthians (Orthodox) *A demonym relating to ...
-style capitals. Each arch contains iron-framed sash windows with multiple panes, separated by horizontal transom bars. A similar, narrower arcade exists on the neighboring Golden Theatre. A sign with the theater's name is placed between the auditorium and stage sections. The
parapet A parapet is a barrier that is an extension of the wall at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony, walkway or other structure. The word comes ultimately from the Italian ''parapetto'' (''parare'' 'to cover/defend' and ''petto'' 'chest/breast'). ...
of the auditorium facade contains a terracotta
coping Coping refers to conscious strategies used to reduce unpleasant emotions. Coping strategies can be cognitions or behaviours and can be individual or social. Theories of coping Hundreds of coping strategies have been proposed in an attempt to ...
. Above the center portion of the facade, there is a rounded
pediment Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pedim ...
with finials and an ornamental lunette. The stage house has five sash windows on each of the second through fifth stories. These windows contain sills made of terracotta. At the fifth story, the three center windows are placed within a
loggia In architecture, a loggia ( , usually , ) is a covered exterior gallery or corridor, usually on an upper level, but sometimes on the ground level of a building. The outer wall is open to the elements, usually supported by a series of columns ...
, which in turn is placed on
brackets A bracket is either of two tall fore- or back-facing punctuation marks commonly used to isolate a segment of text or data from its surroundings. Typically deployed in symmetric pairs, an individual bracket may be identified as a 'left' or ' ...
. The loggia has paired columns with decorative capitals, which support a Spanish tile roof. There is a pyramidal tile roof above the stage house. The Jacobs's loggia complements a similar one on the Golden Theatre.


Auditorium

The Jacobs's interior was designed with a red, orange, and gold color scheme. The layout was part of an effort by
Irwin Chanin Irwin Salmon Chanin (October 29, 1891 – February 24, 1988) was an American architect and real estate developer, best known for designing several Art Deco towers and Broadway theaters. Biography Irwin Chanin was born to a Jewish family, the son ...
, one of the developers, to "democratize" the seating arrangement of the theater. The Jacobs was designed with a single balcony rather than the typical two, since Chanin had perceived the second balcony to be distant. The Chanin brothers wanted the three theaters' interior designs to be distinct while still adhering to a Spanish motif, in the belief that beautiful and comfortable theaters would be able to compete against other performing-arts venues. Roman Melzer was credited for the overall design, while
Willy Pogany William Andrew Pogany (born Vilmos András Pogány; August 24, 1882 – July 30, 1955) was a prolific Hungarian illustrator of children's and other books. His contemporaries include C. Coles Phillips, Joseph Clement Coll, Edmund Dulac, Harvey Du ...
painted murals and Joseph Dujat created plasterwork. By the 2010s, the Jacobs was designed with a red and gray color palette. The auditorium has an orchestra level, one balcony, boxes, and a
stage Stage or stages may refer to: Acting * Stage (theatre), a space for the performance of theatrical productions * Theatre, a branch of the performing arts, often referred to as "the stage" * ''The Stage'', a weekly British theatre newspaper * Sta ...
behind the proscenium arch. The auditorium's width is greater than its depth, and the space is designed with plaster decorations in high
relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term '' relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that th ...
. According to the Shubert Organization, the auditorium has 1,092 seats, while according to
The Broadway League The Broadway League, formerly the League of American Theatres and Producers and League of New York Theatres and Producers, is the national trade association for the Broadway theatre industry based in New York, New York. Its members include theat ...
, there are 1,078 seats. The physical seats are divided into 636 seats in the orchestra, 168 at the front of the balcony, 252 at the rear of the balcony, and 16 in the boxes. There are 20 standing-only spots. Below the orchestra are restrooms and drinking fountains. The Jacobs and the neighboring Schoenfeld are two of the most desired theaters among producers because of their good sightlines from the seating areas.


Seating areas

The rear of the orchestra contains a promenade with two columns supporting the balcony level. The orchestra floor is raked. The orchestra and its promenade contain walls with paneled baseboards, above which are rough stucco blocks. The side walls contain doors, above which are
exit sign An exit sign is a pictogram or short text in a public facility (such as a building, aircraft, or boat) denoting the location of the closest emergency exit to be used in case of fire or other emergency that requires rapid evacuation. Most rele ...
s within bracketed panels. The rearmost row has a standing rail behind it. Two staircases lead between the orchestra and the balcony. These staircases have metal railings and elaborate balustrades. In front of the orchestra level is an orchestra pit, which is placed below the stage. The orchestra level is wheelchair-accessible but there are no elevators to the balcony. The balcony level is divided into front and rear sections by an aisle halfway across the depth. The walls consist of paneled stucco blocks. Above the wall is a
frieze In architecture, the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Paterae are also usually used to decorate friezes. Even when neither columns nor ...
with rosettes, which forms the wall's cornice. Light fixtures and square panels with
arabesque The arabesque is a form of artistic decoration consisting of "surface decorations based on rhythmic linear patterns of scrolling and interlacing foliage, tendrils" or plain lines, often combined with other elements. Another definition is "Foli ...
s are placed at the front of the balcony's
soffit A soffit is an exterior or interior architectural feature, generally the horizontal, aloft underside of any construction element. Its archetypal form, sometimes incorporating or implying the projection of beams, is the underside of eaves (t ...
, or underside. Behind this, the center of the soffit is decorated with a medallion containing a light fixture and acanthus-leaf motifs. The outer portions of the soffit are divided into rhombus-shaped panels, which contain latticework and arabesques surrounded by acanthus-leaf and rope moldings. In front of the balcony are moldings of swags and rosettes. The soffit has been modified with the installation of air-conditioning grilles, while lights have been installed in front of the balcony. On either side of the stage is an elliptically arched wall section with two boxes at the balcony level. The front box on either side is lower than the rear box. Each wall section is surrounded by a rope molding. In front of each box is a railing with shield motifs; the center motif is flanked by griffins. The underside of each box is decorated with a medallion containing a light fixture, as well as acanthus-leaf motifs. The coved ceilings above the boxes contain Spanish-inspired brass chandeliers.


Other design features

Next to the boxes is an elliptical proscenium arch. The archway is surrounded by rope moldings, above which is a wide band, consisting of four-part leaves surrounded by a guilloche motif. The proscenium measures about high and wide. A sounding board curves onto the ceiling above the proscenium arch. The sounding board has a large decorated latticework panel in the center, which is surrounded by a molding that depicts overlapping leaves. The rest of the sounding board was originally decorated with Spanish-style motifs and is surrounded by moldings on all sides. The depth of the auditorium to the proscenium is , while the depth to the front of the stage is . The ceiling consists of a groin vault that extends over the balcony. The vault is surrounded by a molding with laurel leaves. The ceiling is divided into ribs, containing laurel-leaf and talon moldings. The center of the ceiling contains a latticework grille with arabesques, marking the convergence of the ribs. In addition, there are two arches along the walls on either side of the vault; they contain a set of murals by Willy Pogany, entitled ''Lovers of Spain''. These arches each depict a woman in a procession of musicians. The arches are surrounded by molded
acanthus leaves The acanthus ( grc, ἄκανθος) is one of the most common plant forms to make foliage ornament and decoration, and even as the leaf distinguishing the heraldic coronet of a manorial lord from other coronets of royalty or nobility, which us ...
and shells, and there are square panels with rosettes on the arches' outer reveals. According to a contemporary account, the arches measured across.


History

Times Square became the epicenter for large-scale theater productions between 1900 and
the Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
. During the 1900s and 1910s, many theaters in Midtown Manhattan were developed by the
Shubert brothers The Shubert family was responsible for the establishment of the Broadway district, in New York City, as the hub of the theater industry in the United States. They dominated the legitimate theater and vaudeville in the first half of the 20th cen ...
, 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 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. By October 1926, the Chanins had decided to construct and operate a theatrical franchise "in New York and half a dozen other large cities in the United States". Herbert Krapp had already designed the 46th Street, Biltmore, and Mansfield theaters for the Chanins in 1925 and 1926.


Development and early years


Chanin operation

The Chanin brothers had acquired the Klaman site in May 1925. The Chanins planned to build a hotel on Eighth Avenue and three theaters on the side streets. In March 1926, Krapp filed plans with the
New York City Department of Buildings The New York City Department of Buildings (DOB) is the department of the New York City government that enforces the city's building codes and zoning regulations, issues building permits, licenses, registers and disciplines certain construction ...
for the hotel and theaters, which were projected to cost $4.5 million. Local news media reported that there would be a large theater on 44th Street and a medium-sized theater and a small theater on 45th Street. The brownstones on the site were razed starting in May, and the site was cleared by the next month. That July, the Chanin brothers received a $7.5 million loan for the four developments from S. W. Straus & Co. Irwin Chanin launched a competition the same month, asking the public to suggest names for the three theaters. The names of the three theaters were announced in December 1926. The large theater became the Majestic; the mid-sized theater, the Royale; and the small theater, the Masque. The following month, the Chanins gave A. L. Erlanger exclusive control over bookings at the three new theaters and their five existing houses. The Royale Theatre was the first of the three theaters to open, showing the play ''Piggy'' on January 11, 1927. The opening of the Majestic, Masque, and Royale signified the westward extension of the traditional Broadway theater district, as well as an expansion of the Chanins' theatrical developments. Each of the Chanin theaters was intended for a different purpose: the 1,800-seat Majestic for "revues and light operas", the 1,200-seat Royale for "musical comedies", and the 800-seat Masque for "intimate" plays. By developing a small, medium, and large theater concurrently, the Chanins were able to lower their development costs.
Burns Mantle Robert Burns Mantle (December 23, 1873February 9, 1948) was an American theater critic. He founded the ''Best Plays'' annual publication in 1920.Chansky, Dorothy (2011)"Burns Mantle and the American Theatregoing Public" in ''Theatre History Stu ...
wrote for the '' New York Daily News'' that the Royale had "a handsome auditorium with a Willy Pogany interior, well proportioned stage, and the established atmosphere of a hospitable and well-run theatre". ''Piggy'' (renamed mid-run to ''I Told You So'') had a weak script, but comedian
Sam Bernard Sam Bernard (born Samuel Barnett, 5 June 1863 – 16 May 1927) was an English-born American vaudeville comedian who also performed in musical theatre, comic opera and burlesque and appeared in a few silent films. Life and career Bernard was bor ...
carried the show for 79 performances. The Royale next hosted ''Judy'' with
Queenie Smith Queenie Smith (September 8, 1898 – August 5, 1978) was an American stage, television, and film actress. Life and career Smith was born in Texas. Her family moved from Texas to New York shortly before Smith began studying at the Metropol ...
.; ; This was followed by the short-running ''Oh, Ernest!'', though the Chanins unsuccessfully tried to prevent the producers from relocating prematurely. The Black revue '' Rang Tang'' also played at the Royale in 1927, as did three Gilbert and Sullivan works: ''
The Mikado ''The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert, their ninth of fourteen Gilbert and Sullivan, operatic collaborations. It opened on 14 March 1885, in London, whe ...
'', '' Iolanthe'', and ''
The Pirates of Penzance ''The Pirates of Penzance; or, The Slave of Duty'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. Its official premiere was at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York City on 31 December 187 ...
''. The Royale's productions in 1928 included ''The Madcap'',; as well as ''Sh! The Octopus'', its first
straight play A play is a work of drama, usually consisting mostly of dialogue between characters and intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. The writer of a play is called a playwright. Plays are performed at a variety of levels, fr ...
. Later that year, the Royale had its first major hit,; ; the
Mae West Mae West (born Mary Jane West; August 17, 1893 – November 22, 1980) was an American stage and film actress, playwright, screenwriter, singer, and sex symbol whose entertainment career spanned over seven decades. She was known for her breezy ...
play '' Diamond Lil''. It was followed in 1929 by the
flop In computing, floating point operations per second (FLOPS, flops or flop/s) is a measure of computer performance, useful in fields of scientific computations that require floating-point calculations. For such cases, it is a more accurate meas ...
''Woof, Woof'',; ; then by the moderately successful comedy ''Kibitzer''. In July 1929, the Shubert brothers bought the Chanin brothers' half-ownership stakes in the Majestic, Masque, and Royale theaters for a combined $1.8 million. In exchange, the Shuberts sold a parcel of land on the
Upper West Side The Upper West Side (UWS) is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Central Park on the east, the Hudson River on the west, West 59th Street to the south, and West 110th Street to the north. The Upper West ...
to the Chanins, who bought several adjacent lots and developed the Century apartment building there.


Great Depression and ownership changes

The Shuberts obtained the exclusive rights to operate the Royale in 1930. Under Shubert management, the Royale hosted '' Second Little Show'' in 1930, which was followed by '' Lew Leslie's Blackbirds'' and ''Stepping Sisters''.; Another Mae West play, ''Constant Sinner'', was presented at the Royale in 1931, along with numerous unsuccessful productions. After West unsuccessfully tried to show a revival of ''Macbeth'', the Royale hosted the
Chicago Shakespeare Theater Chicago Shakespeare Theater (CST) is a non-profit, professional theater company located at Navy Pier in Chicago, Illinois. Its more than six hundred annual performances performed 48 weeks of the year include its critically acclaimed Shakespeare s ...
for two weeks in late 1931. By then, the Shuberts were in
receivership In law, receivership is a situation in which an institution or enterprise is held by a receiver—a person "placed in the custodial responsibility for the property of others, including tangible and intangible assets and rights"—especially in c ...
and were forced to give up the Royale, though they kept the Majestic and Masque. In July 1932, producer
John Golden John Lionel Golden (June 27, 1874 – June 17, 1955) was an American actor, songwriter, author, and theatrical producer. As a songwriter, he is best-known as lyricist for " Poor Butterfly" (1916). He produced many Broadway shows and four films. ...
granted the right to lease the Royale for 21 months, despite objections from
Lee Shubert Lee Shubert (born Levi Schubart; March 25, 1871– December 25, 1953) was a Lithuanian-born American theatre owner/operator and producer and the eldest of seven siblings of the theatrical Shubert family. Biography Born to a Jewish family, the so ...
. That November, Golden officially signed a 21-month lease with the theater's receiver. At the time, Golden had recently lost the right to operate his eponymous theater on 58th Street. The Royale hosted Golden's comedy ''When Ladies Meet'' in late 1932, and the
Theatre Guild The Theatre Guild is a theatrical society founded in New York City in 1918 by Lawrence Langner, Philip Moeller, Helen Westley and Theresa Helburn. Langner's wife, Armina Marshall, then served as a co-director. It evolved out of the work of th ...
next hosted two productions: ''
Both Your Houses ''Both Your Houses'' is a 1933 play written by American playwright Maxwell Anderson. It was produced by the Theatre Guild and staged by Worthington Miner with scenic design by Arthur P. Segal. It opened at the Royale Theatre on March 5, 1933 and r ...
'' (1933); and ''They Shall Not Die'' (1934). Otherwise, the Royale's productions during this time were largely flops. After the Royale hosted the comedy ''Every Thursday'', Golden renewed his lease in September 1934 and renamed the Royale for himself. The first productions at the renamed theater included '' Small Miracle''; ; and ''Rain from Heaven''. The Irish group Abbey Theatre Players started hosting repertory productions in November 1934, changing the shows every week. This was followed in 1935 by ''The Bishop Misbehaves'' and ''A Touch of Brimstone.'' Afterward, the Golden (Royale) hosted several short-lived productions in 1936, among them ''Three Wise Fools'', '' Ghosts'', and ''Double Dummy''. The Broadway theater industry declined during the Great Depression, and the Majestic, Masque, and Golden (Royale) were auctioned in November 1936 to satisfy a $2 million mortgage against the theaters. A representative of the Shubert family bought the rights to operate the theaters for $700,000, but the
Bankers Securities Corporation Bankers Securities Corporation (B.S.C.) was a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-based investment company formed in 1927, by Albert M. Greenfield for general investment banking and trading in securities. It eventually became the parent company for virtual ...
retained a half interest. John Golden, undeterred by the auction proceeding, moved his production to the Masque and renamed that theater after himself. The Shuberts leased the former Royale to CBS Radio the following month, and CBS started operating the studio in January 1937 as CBS Radio Theatre No. 1. At the time, CBS had converted several theaters around Times Square into broadcast studios. The studio closed in May 1940 due to a lack of programming, and the theater reverted to the Shuberts. The Magoro Operating Corporation, on behalf of the Shuberts, took over the Royale in October 1940 after CBS's lease ended, and the theater assumed its previous name.


Shubert operation


1940s to 1970s

The Royale Theatre reopened on October 21, 1940, with ''
Du Barry Was a Lady ''Du Barry Was a Lady'' is a Broadway musical, with music and lyrics by Cole Porter, and the book by Herbert Fields and Buddy DeSylva.
''. The Royale subsequently hosted several productions relocated from other theaters,; including ''Flight to the West'' and ''
The Corn Is Green ''The Corn Is Green'' is a 1938 semi-autobiographical play by Welsh dramatist and actor Emlyn Williams. The play premiered in London at the Duchess Theatre in September 1938; with Sybil Thorndike as Miss Moffat and Williams himself portraying Mo ...
'' in 1941.; Some of the subsequent productions were hits with several hundred performances, including ''Counsellor-at-Law'' in 1942,; as well as ''Ramshackle Inn'' with
ZaSu Pitts Zasu Pitts (; January 3, 1894 – June 7, 1963) was an American actress who starred in many silent dramas, including Erich von Stroheim's epic 1924 silent film ''Greed'', and comedies, transitioning successfully to mostly comedy films with the ...
;; ; ''School for Brides'' with
Roscoe Karns Roscoe, also spelled Rosco or Roscow, may refer to: People * Roscoe (name) Places United States * Roscoe, California (disambiguation) * Roscoe Township (disambiguation) * Roscoe, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Roscoe, Illinois, a villag ...
;; ; and ''
Catherine Was Great ''Catherine Was Great'' is a 1944 play written by and starring Mae West. The play was a dramatisation of the life of the Russian monarch Catherine the Great. The play ran for 191 performances and then went on tour. It was produced by theater and f ...
'' with Mae West in 1944. Less successful were the 1945 productions of ''Good Night, Ladies'' and '' Strange Fruit'', which both ran for less than a hundred performances before ending.; In addition, the Shubert brothers bought the Majestic, John Golden (Masque), and Royale theaters from the Bankers Securities Corporation in 1945, giving the family full ownership of these theaters. The productions in 1946 included ''The Magnificent Yankee'', featuring
Louis Calhern Carl Henry Vogt (February 19, 1895 – May 12, 1956), known professionally as Louis Calhern, was an American stage and screen actor. Well known to film noir fans for his role as the pivotal villain in 1950's '' The Asphalt Jungle'', he was ...
and
Dorothy Gish Dorothy Elizabeth Gish (March 11, 1898June 4, 1968) was an American actress of the screen and stage, as well as a director and writer. Dorothy and her older sister Lillian Gish were major movie stars of the silent era. Dorothy also had great s ...
; ''
The Glass Menagerie ''The Glass Menagerie'' is a memory play by Tennessee Williams that premiered in 1944 and catapulted Williams from obscurity to fame. The play has strong autobiographical elements, featuring characters based on its author, his Histrionic persona ...
''; ''
The Front Page ''The Front Page'' is a Broadway comedy about newspaper reporters on the police beat. Written by former Chicago reporters Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur, it was first produced in 1928 and has been adapted for the cinema several times. Plot T ...
''; and ''Fatal Weakness'', featuring
Ina Claire Ina Claire (born Ina Fagan; October 15, 1893February 21, 1985) was an American stage and film actress. Early years Ina Fagan was born October 15, 1893 in Washington, D.C. After the death of her father, Claire began doing imitations of fellow b ...
. Subsequently, ''
The Importance of Being Earnest ''The Importance of Being Earnest, A Trivial Comedy for Serious People'' is a play by Oscar Wilde. First performed on 14 February 1895 at the St James's Theatre in London, it is a farcical comedy in which the protagonists maintain fictitious ...
'', ''
Love for Love ''Love for Love'' is a Restoration comedy written by British playwright William Congreve. It premiered on 30 April 1695 at the Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre. Staged by Thomas Betterton's company the original cast included Betterton as Valenti ...
'', and ''
Medea In Greek mythology, Medea (; grc, Μήδεια, ''Mēdeia'', perhaps implying "planner / schemer") is the daughter of King Aeëtes of Colchis, a niece of Circe and the granddaughter of the sun god Helios. Medea figures in the myth of Jason an ...
'' were all produced in 1947.; The comedy ''Light Up the Sky'' ran over 200 performances in 1948, and ''
The Madwoman of Chaillot ''The Madwoman of Chaillot'' (french: La Folle de Chaillot) is a play, a poetic satire, by French dramatist Jean Giraudoux, written in 1943 and first performed in 1945, after his death. The play is in two acts. The story concerns an eccentric woma ...
'' played the Royale the next year. The following decade began with productions of '' The Devil's Disciple'' and ''
The Lady's Not for Burning ''The Lady's Not for Burning'' is a 1948 play by Christopher Fry. A romantic comedy in three acts, in verse, it is set in the Middle Ages ("1400, either more or less or exactly"). It reflects the world's "exhaustion and despair" following Wor ...
'' in 1950, as well as a relocated production of ''Darkness at Noon'' in 1951.; Following that was ''Borscht Capades'' and a series of short-lived productions. The Royale then hosted ''
New Faces of 1952 ''New Faces of 1952'' is a musical revue with songs and comedy skits. It ran on Broadway for nearly a year in 1952 and was then made into a motion picture in 1954. It helped launch the careers of several young performers including Paul Lynde, Alic ...
'', which turned out to be the last popular Broadway revue for several years due to the growing popularity of television. ''
The Immoralist ''The Immoralist'' (french: L'Immoraliste) is a novel by André Gide, published in France in 1902. Plot ''The Immoralist'' is a recollection of events that Michel narrates to his three visiting friends. One of those friends solicits job search ...
'' played at the Royale in 1954,; ; as did ''The Boy Friend'', the latter of which featured Julie Andrews's Broadway debut. The same year saw the shortest production at the Royale on record: a single performance of ''The Starcross Story'', which had premiered just before ''The Immortalist''. In 1955, the Royale featured ''
The Matchmaker ''The Matchmaker'' is a 1954 play by Thornton Wilder, a rewritten version of his 1938 play ''The Merchant of Yonkers''. History The play has a long and colorful history. John Oxenford's 1835 one-act farce ''A Day Well Spent'' had been exte ...
'',; ; which was adapted from a flop but had 486 performances. Other popular productions during the decade were ''The Tunnel of Love'' in 1957; ; and '' The Entertainer'' in 1958. Following a screening of the film '' Gigi'' in May 1958, the Royale again hosted theatrical productions that November with ''
La Plume de Ma Tante ' is a 1955 musical comedy, written, devised, and directed by Robert Dhéry, with music by Gérard Calvi, and English lyrics by Ross Parker. The play consisted of a number of short sketches in English, French, and pantomime, satirizing French ...
'', which ran over 800 performances. In the early 1960s, the Royale hosted numerous productions including ''
Becket ''Becket or The Honour of God'' (french: Becket ou l'honneur de Dieu) is a 1959 play written in French by Jean Anouilh. It is a depiction of the conflict between Thomas Becket and King Henry II of England leading to Becket's assassination in 117 ...
in'' 1960,
''From the Second City'' in 1961,; ''
The Night of the Iguana ''The Night of the Iguana'' is a stage play written by American author Tennessee Williams. It is based on his 1948 short story. In 1959, Williams staged it as a one-act play, and over the next two years he developed it into a full-length play, p ...
'' in 1961,
and ''Lord Pengo'' in 1962. The Royale additionally presented a four-week engagement of the Karmon Israeli Dancers in May 1963. Following were ''The Rehearsal'' in 1963 and ''The Chinese Prime Minister'',; ''
The Subject Was Roses ''The Subject Was Roses'' is a Pulitzer Prize-winning 1964 play written by Frank D. Gilroy, who also adapted the work in 1968 for a film with the same title. Background The play premiered on Broadway at the Royale Theatre on May 25, 1964, st ...
'', and '' Hughie'' in 1964. For much of the rest of the decade, the Royale was taken up by '' Cactus Flower'', which premiered in 1965 and ran for 1,234 performances.; ''Man in the Glass Booth'', which premiered in 1968, was the Royale's last major production of the 1960s. The Royale hosted '' Child's Play'' in 1970 and ''
Moonchildren ''Moonchildren'' (originally titled ''Cancer'') is a play by Brooklyn-based playwright Michael Weller. The play chronicles a year in the life of the "moonchildren" referred to in the title: eight college students living communally together in an ...
'' in 1972. From 1972 to 1980, the Royale hosted the musical '' Grease.''; ; The production became the longest-running show on Broadway, and the set was peeling by the time ''Grease'' stopped playing at the Royale.


1980s and 1990s

In February 1980, '' Whose Life is it Anyway?'' opened at the Royale,; with
Mary Tyler Moore Mary Tyler Moore (December 29, 1936 – January 25, 2017) was an American actress, producer, and social advocate. She is best known for her roles on ''The Dick Van Dyke Show'' (1961–1966) and ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' (1970–1977), which ...
playing what had previously been a male starring role. This was followed the same year by '' A Day in Hollywood / A Night in the Ukraine'', a double bill with 588 performances. The Royale then hosted ''Duet for One'' with
Anne Bancroft Anne Bancroft (born Anna Maria Louisa Italiano; September 17, 1931 – June 6, 2005) was an American actress. Respected for her acting prowess and versatility, Bancroft received an Academy Award, three BAFTA Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, two ...
and
Max von Sydow Max von Sydow ( , ; born Carl Adolf von Sydow; 10 April 1929 – 8 March 2020) was a Swedish-French actor. He had a 70-year career in European and American cinema, television, and theatre, appearing in more than 150 films and several television ...
for a month, followed by '' Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'', which also ran for over a year. Besides Broadway productions, the Royale also held college commencements. In the mid-1980s, the Royale had some brief runs, including '' The Human Comedy'' in 1984 and ''Home Front'' and ''
Pack of Lies ''Pack of Lies'' is a 1983 play by English writer Hugh Whitemore, itself adapted from his ''Act of Betrayal'', an episode of the BBC anthology series ''Play of the Month'' transmitted in 1971. Based on a true story, the plot centres on Bob an ...
'' in 1985.
The Royale next presented the two-act show ''
Song and Dance ''Song and Dance'' is a musical comprising two acts, one told entirely in "Song" and one entirely in " Dance", tied together by a unifying love story. The "Song" act is '' Tell Me on a Sunday'', with lyrics by Don Black and music by Andrew ...
'' in 1985, which ran for 474 performances.; This was followed by a four-performance revival of the play ''Broadway'' in 1987 to celebrate
George Abbott George Francis Abbott (June 25, 1887 – January 31, 1995) was an American theatre producer, director, playwright, screenwriter, film director and producer whose career spanned eight decades. Early years Abbott was born in Forestville, New Yo ...
's 100th birthday.; Other flops included '' Roza'' in 1987 and the
New York Shakespeare Festival Shakespeare in the Park (or Free Shakespeare in the Park) is a theatrical program that stages productions of Shakespearean plays at the Delacorte Theater, an open-air theater in New York City's Central Park. The theater and the productions ar ...
's off-Broadway production '' Serious Money'' in 1988.; The decade ended with two hits: ''
Speed-the-Plow ''Speed-the-Plow'' is a 1988 play by David Mamet that is a satirical dissection of the American movie business. As stated in ''The Producer's Perspective'', "this is a theme Mamet would revisit in his later films ''Wag the Dog'' (1997) and ''St ...
'', which opened in 1988 and played 287 performances, and ''
Lend Me a Tenor ''Lend Me a Tenor'' is a comedy by Ken Ludwig. The play was produced on both the West End (1986) and Broadway (1989). It received nine Tony Award nominations and won for Best Actor (Philip Bosco) and Best Director (Jerry Zaks). A Broadway re ...
'', which ran for over a year following its opening in 1989.
During the 1980s, the Shuberts renovated the Royale as part of a restoration program for their Broadway theaters. The
New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) is the New York City agency charged with administering the city's Landmarks Preservation Law. The LPC is responsible for protecting New York City's architecturally, historically, and cu ...
(LPC) had started considering protecting the Royale as a landmark in 1982, with discussions continuing over the next several years. The LPC designated the Royale's facade and interior as a landmark in December 1987. This was part of the LPC's wide-ranging effort in 1987 to grant landmark status to Broadway theaters. The
New York City Board of Estimate The New York City Board of Estimate was a governmental body in New York City responsible for numerous areas of municipal policy and decisions, including the city budget, land-use, contracts, franchises, and water rates. Under the amendments effec ...
ratified the designations in March 1988. The Shuberts, the Nederlanders, and
Jujamcyn Jujamcyn Theaters LLC , formerly the Jujamcyn Amusement Corporation, is a theatrical producing and theatre-ownership company in New York City. For many years Jujamcyn was owned by James H. Binger, former Chairman of Honeywell, and his wife, Virgi ...
collectively sued the LPC in June 1988 to overturn the landmark designations of 22 theaters, including the Royale, on the merit that the designations severely limited the extent to which the theaters could be modified. The lawsuit was escalated to the New York Supreme Court and the Supreme Court of the United States, but these designations were ultimately upheld in 1992. The first hit at the Royale in the 1990s was the 1992 play ''
Conversations with My Father ''Conversations with My Father'' is a play by Herb Gardner. The play, which ran on Broadway in 1992 to 1993, was a finalist for the 1992 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Overview The play focuses on Eddie Ross (born Goldberg), who is a Russian immigran ...
'', which ran for over a year. London's Royal National Theatre presented ''
An Inspector Calls ''An Inspector Calls'' is a play written by English dramatist J. B. Priestley, first performed in the Soviet Union in 1945 and at the New Theatre in London the following year. It is one of Priestley's best-known works for the stage and is c ...
'' in 1994, which ran 454 performances. The
National Actors Theatre The National Actors Theatre (NAT) was a theatre company founded in 1991 by Tony Randall, whose dream it was to create such an organization. He was chairman until his death in 2004, when the theatre also subsequently closed down. At first the company ...
was the next occupant of the Royale, presenting a revival of ''Inherit the Wind''. The Royal National Theatre also produced ''Skylight'' at the Royale in 1996, and ''Triumph of Love'' premiered in 1997. The play ''
Art Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...
'' opened in 1998,; running through the following year with 600 performances. The Royale's final production of the 1990s was a revival of ''The Price'' in 1999.


2000s to present

The Royale hosted a revival of the play ''Copenhagen'' in 2000, which ran 326 performances. The theater then staged '' One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'' and
John Leguizamo John Alberto Leguizamo Peláez (; ; born July 22, 196013:04) is an American actor, comedian, and film producer. He has appeared in over 100 films, produced over 20 films and documentaries, made over 30 television appearances, and has produced ...
's solo show ''Sexaholix'' in 2001, as well as ''
The Elephant Man Joseph Carey Merrick (5 August 1862 – 11 April 1890), often erroneously called John Merrick, was an English man known for having severe deformities. He was first exhibited at a freak show under the stage name "the Elephant Man" and then we ...
'' and Jackie Mason's solo comedy ''Prune Danish'' the next year. As part of a settlement with the
United States Department of Justice The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and administration of justice in the United Stat ...
in 2003, the Shuberts agreed to improve disabled access at their 16 landmarked Broadway theaters, including the Royale. Also in 2003, the Royale hosted the short-lived revivals ''
Ma Rainey's Black Bottom ''Ma Rainey's Black Bottom'' is a 1982 play – one of the ten-play Pittsburgh Cycle by August Wilson, and the only one not set in Pittsburgh – that chronicles the 20th-century African-American experience. The play is set in a recording stu ...
'' and '' "Master Harold"...and the Boys'', as well as the more successful ''
Anna in the Tropics ''Anna in the Tropics'' is a play by Nilo Cruz. It won the 2003 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Plot The play is set in Ybor City, a section of Tampa and the center of the cigar industry. When Cuban immigrants brought the cigar-making industry to F ...
''. The next year, the Royale held the productions ''
A Raisin in the Sun ''A Raisin in the Sun'' is a play by Lorraine Hansberry that debuted on Broadway in 1959. The title comes from the poem "Harlem" (also known as "A Dream Deferred") by Langston Hughes. The story tells of a black family's experiences in south Chi ...
'' and ''
'night, Mother ''night, Mother'' is a play by American playwright Marsha Norman. The play won the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Play. The play is about a daughter, Jessie, and her mother, Thelma. It begins with Je ...
''. In September 2004, the Shubert Organization's board of directors voted to rename the Royale for its longtime president Bernard B. Jacobs, as well as the neighboring Plymouth for then-current president
Gerald Schoenfeld Gerald Schoenfeld (September 22, 1924 – November 25, 2008) was chairman of The Shubert Organization from 1972 to 2008. Career After graduating from the University of Illinois, Schoenfeld fought in World War II. On his return, he obtained a law ...
. The two theaters were officially renamed with a marquee replacement ceremony on May 9, 2005. While Jacobs's family was "thrilled", the renaming was controversial among producers and theatrical fans, despite the longstanding tradition of renaming Broadway houses after their producers. The play '' Glengarry Glen Ross'' opened just before the renaming and had 137 performances. This was followed in 2006 by the short-running drama ''
Three Days of Rain ''Three Days of Rain'' is a play by Richard Greenberg that was commissioned and produced by South Coast Repertory in 1997. The title comes from a line from W. S. Merwin's poem, "For the Anniversary of My Death" (1967). The play has often been cal ...
'' and Martin Short's biographical revue ''Fame Becomes Me''; the Jacobs also hosted a memorial for
Lloyd Richards Lloyd George Richards (June 29, 1919 – June 29, 2006) was a Canadian-American theatre director, actor, and dean of the Yale School of Drama from 1979 to 1991, and Yale University professor emeritus. Biography Richards was born in Toron ...
the same year. Further productions of the late 2000s included ''Frost/Nixon'' and ''Rock 'n' Roll'' in 2007; ''The Country Girl'' and ''13'' in 2008; and ''
God of Carnage ''God of Carnage'' (originally in French ''Le Dieu du carnage'') is a play by Yasmina Reza that was first published in 2008. It is about two sets of parents; the son of one couple has hurt the son of the other couple at a public park. The paren ...
'' in 2009. The Jacobs hosted ''
Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson ''Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson'' is a rock musical with music and lyrics written by Michael Friedman and a book written by its director Alex Timbers. The show is a comedic historical rock musical about the founding of the Democratic Party. It r ...
'' in 2010, as well as ''
That Championship Season ''That Championship Season'' is a 1972 play by Jason Miller. It was the recipient of the 1973 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the 1973 Tony Award for Best Play. Plot synopsis The setting is 1972 at the Coach's home in Scranton, Pennsylvania. O ...
'' and ''
The Mountaintop ''The Mountaintop'' is a play by American playwright Katori Hall. It is a fictional depiction of Martin Luther King Jr.'s last night on earth set entirely in Room 306 of the Lorraine Motel on the eve of his assassination in 1968. Historical b ...
'' in 2011. The musical ''Once'' opened at the Jacobs in 2012 and was a hit, running for nearly three years. ''Once'' was followed by the comedy ''
It's Only a Play ''It's Only a Play'' is a play by Terrence McNally. The play originally opened off-off-Broadway in 1982. It was revived off-Broadway in 1986, and on Broadway in 2014. The plot concerns a party where a producer, playwright, director, actors and ...
'' in 2015. The Jacobs hosted two musicals over the following two years: ''
The Color Purple ''The Color Purple'' is a 1982 epistolary novel by American author Alice Walker which won the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the National Book Award for Fiction.
'' (2015) and ''
Bandstand A bandstand (sometimes music kiosk) is a circular, semicircular or polygonal structure set in a park, garden, pier, or indoor space, designed to accommodate musical bands performing concerts. A simple construction, it both creates an orname ...
'' (2017). Following were the dramas ''
The Iceman Cometh ''The Iceman Cometh'' is a play written by American playwright Eugene O'Neill in 1939. First published in 1946, the play premiered on Broadway at the Martin Beck Theatre on October 9, 1946, directed by Eddie Dowling, where it ran for 136 perf ...
'' and '' The Ferryman'' in 2018, as well as ''
Betrayal Betrayal is the breaking or violation of a presumptive contract, trust, or confidence that produces moral and psychological conflict within a relationship amongst individuals, between organizations or between individuals and organizations. ...
'' in 2019. The theater closed on March 12, 2020, due to the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
. It reopened on November 15, 2021, with previews of '' Company'', which ran until July 2022. Following the closure of ''Company'', the theater hosted ''
Almost Famous ''Almost Famous'' is a 2000 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Cameron Crowe, and starring Billy Crudup, Frances McDormand, Kate Hudson, and Patrick Fugit. It tells the story of a teenage journalist writing for ''Rolling Stone ...
'' starting in November 2022.


Notable productions


Royale Theatre/John Golden Theatre

* 1927: '' Rang Tang'' * 1927: ''
The Mikado ''The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert, their ninth of fourteen Gilbert and Sullivan, operatic collaborations. It opened on 14 March 1885, in London, whe ...
''
* 1927: '' Iolanthe''
* 1927: ''
The Pirates of Penzance ''The Pirates of Penzance; or, The Slave of Duty'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. Its official premiere was at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York City on 31 December 187 ...
''
* 1928: '' Diamond Lil''
* 1930: '' Second Little Show''
* 1930: '' Lew Leslie's Blackbirds''
* 1931: '' Dracula'' * 1931: ''
Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...
'', ''
Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, ...
'',
''
The Merchant of Venice ''The Merchant of Venice'' is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1596 and 1598. A merchant in Venice named Antonio defaults on a large loan provided by a Jewish moneylender, Shylock. Although classified as ...
'' * 1933: ''
Both Your Houses ''Both Your Houses'' is a 1933 play written by American playwright Maxwell Anderson. It was produced by the Theatre Guild and staged by Worthington Miner with scenic design by Arthur P. Segal. It opened at the Royale Theatre on March 5, 1933 and r ...
''
* 1934: '' Small Miracle'' * 1936: '' Mulatto'' * 1936: '' Star Spangled'' * 1936: '' Ghosts'' * 1940: ''
Du Barry Was a Lady ''Du Barry Was a Lady'' is a Broadway musical, with music and lyrics by Cole Porter, and the book by Herbert Fields and Buddy DeSylva.
'' * 1941: ''
The Corn Is Green ''The Corn Is Green'' is a 1938 semi-autobiographical play by Welsh dramatist and actor Emlyn Williams. The play premiered in London at the Duchess Theatre in September 1938; with Sybil Thorndike as Miss Moffat and Williams himself portraying Mo ...
'' * 1942: '' The Flowers of Virtue'' * 1943: ''
The World's Full of Girls ''The World's Full of Girls'' is a play in three acts by Nunnally Johnson which was adapted from Thomas Bell's 1943 novel ''Till I Come Back to You''. The work premiered on Broadway on December 6, 1943 at the Royale Theatre. The cast included Thom ...
'' * 1944: ''
Catherine Was Great ''Catherine Was Great'' is a 1944 play written by and starring Mae West. The play was a dramatisation of the life of the Russian monarch Catherine the Great. The play ran for 191 performances and then went on tour. It was produced by theater and f ...
''
* 1945: '' Strange Fruit''
* 1946: ''
The Glass Menagerie ''The Glass Menagerie'' is a memory play by Tennessee Williams that premiered in 1944 and catapulted Williams from obscurity to fame. The play has strong autobiographical elements, featuring characters based on its author, his Histrionic persona ...
''
* 1946: ''
The Front Page ''The Front Page'' is a Broadway comedy about newspaper reporters on the police beat. Written by former Chicago reporters Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur, it was first produced in 1928 and has been adapted for the cinema several times. Plot T ...
''
* 1947: ''
The Importance of Being Earnest ''The Importance of Being Earnest, A Trivial Comedy for Serious People'' is a play by Oscar Wilde. First performed on 14 February 1895 at the St James's Theatre in London, it is a farcical comedy in which the protagonists maintain fictitious ...
''
* 1947: ''
Love for Love ''Love for Love'' is a Restoration comedy written by British playwright William Congreve. It premiered on 30 April 1695 at the Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre. Staged by Thomas Betterton's company the original cast included Betterton as Valenti ...
''
* 1947: ''
Medea In Greek mythology, Medea (; grc, Μήδεια, ''Mēdeia'', perhaps implying "planner / schemer") is the daughter of King Aeëtes of Colchis, a niece of Circe and the granddaughter of the sun god Helios. Medea figures in the myth of Jason an ...
''
* 1949: ''
The Madwoman of Chaillot ''The Madwoman of Chaillot'' (french: La Folle de Chaillot) is a play, a poetic satire, by French dramatist Jean Giraudoux, written in 1943 and first performed in 1945, after his death. The play is in two acts. The story concerns an eccentric woma ...
''
* 1950: '' The Devil's Disciple''
* 1950: ''
Affairs of State ''Affairs of State'' is a 1950 Broadway comedy written and directed by Louis Verneuil. It opened at the Royale Theatre, then moved to the Music Box Theatre and played for a total of 610 performances. It was the first play Verneuil wrote in Engli ...
'' * 1950: ''
The Lady's Not for Burning ''The Lady's Not for Burning'' is a 1948 play by Christopher Fry. A romantic comedy in three acts, in verse, it is set in the Middle Ages ("1400, either more or less or exactly"). It reflects the world's "exhaustion and despair" following Wor ...
''
* 1952: ''
One Bright Day ''One Bright Day'' is the fourth album by Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers, released in 1989. It won the Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album The Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was ...
'' * 1952: ''
New Faces of 1952 ''New Faces of 1952'' is a musical revue with songs and comedy skits. It ran on Broadway for nearly a year in 1952 and was then made into a motion picture in 1954. It helped launch the careers of several young performers including Paul Lynde, Alic ...
''
* 1954: ''
The Immoralist ''The Immoralist'' (french: L'Immoraliste) is a novel by André Gide, published in France in 1902. Plot ''The Immoralist'' is a recollection of events that Michel narrates to his three visiting friends. One of those friends solicits job search ...
''
* 1954: ''
Sabrina Fair ''Sabrina Fair'' (subtitled "''A Woman of the World''") is a romantic comedy written by Samuel A. Taylor and produced by the Playwrights' Company. It ran on Broadway for a total of 318 performances, opening at the National Theatre on November ...
'' * 1954: '' The Boy Friend''
* 1955: ''
The Matchmaker ''The Matchmaker'' is a 1954 play by Thornton Wilder, a rewritten version of his 1938 play ''The Merchant of Yonkers''. History The play has a long and colorful history. John Oxenford's 1835 one-act farce ''A Day Well Spent'' had been exte ...
''
* 1957: '' Miss Isobel'' * 1958: '' The Entertainer''
* 1958: ''
La Plume de Ma Tante ' is a 1955 musical comedy, written, devised, and directed by Robert Dhéry, with music by Gérard Calvi, and English lyrics by Ross Parker. The play consisted of a number of short sketches in English, French, and pantomime, satirizing French ...
''
* 1960: ''
Becket ''Becket or The Honour of God'' (french: Becket ou l'honneur de Dieu) is a 1959 play written in French by Jean Anouilh. It is a depiction of the conflict between Thomas Becket and King Henry II of England leading to Becket's assassination in 117 ...
'' * 1961: ''
The Night of the Iguana ''The Night of the Iguana'' is a stage play written by American author Tennessee Williams. It is based on his 1948 short story. In 1959, Williams staged it as a one-act play, and over the next two years he developed it into a full-length play, p ...
'' * 1964: ''
The Subject Was Roses ''The Subject Was Roses'' is a Pulitzer Prize-winning 1964 play written by Frank D. Gilroy, who also adapted the work in 1968 for a film with the same title. Background The play premiered on Broadway at the Royale Theatre on May 25, 1964, st ...
''
* 1964: '' A Severed Head'' * 1964: '' Hughie''
* 1965: '' All in Good Time'' * 1965: '' And Things That Go Bump in the Night'' * 1965: ''
The Owl and the Pussycat "The Owl and the Pussy-cat" is a nonsense poem by Edward Lear, first published in 1870 in the American magazine '' Our Young Folks: an Illustrated Magazine for Boys and Girls'' and again the following year in Lear's own book ''Nonsense Songs, S ...
'' * 1965: '' Cactus Flower''
* 1970: '' Child's Play''
* 1971: ''
How the Other Half Loves ''How the Other Half Loves'' is a 1969 play in two acts by British playwright Alan Ayckbourn. It is a farce following the consequences of an adulterous affair between a married man and his boss’s wife and their attempts to cover their track ...
'' * 1971: ''
The Incomparable Max ''The Incomparable Max'' is a play by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee. It is based on the stories " Enoch Soames" and "A.V. Laider" in ''Seven Men'' by Max Beerbohm. Enoch Soames is a minor poet who makes a pact with the devil to spend a few h ...
'' * 1972: ''
Moonchildren ''Moonchildren'' (originally titled ''Cancer'') is a play by Brooklyn-based playwright Michael Weller. The play chronicles a year in the life of the "moonchildren" referred to in the title: eight college students living communally together in an ...
''
* 1972: '' Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris'' * 1972: '' Grease''
* 1980: '' Whose Life is it Anyway?''
* 1980: '' A Day in Hollywood / A Night in the Ukraine''
* 1982: '' Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat''
* 1983: '' You Can't Take It with You'' * 1984: '' The Human Comedy''
* 1985: ''
Pack of Lies ''Pack of Lies'' is a 1983 play by English writer Hugh Whitemore, itself adapted from his ''Act of Betrayal'', an episode of the BBC anthology series ''Play of the Month'' transmitted in 1971. Based on a true story, the plot centres on Bob an ...
'' * 1985: ''
Song and Dance ''Song and Dance'' is a musical comprising two acts, one told entirely in "Song" and one entirely in " Dance", tied together by a unifying love story. The "Song" act is '' Tell Me on a Sunday'', with lyrics by Don Black and music by Andrew ...
'';
* 1987: '' Sweet Sue'' * 1987: ''
Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
''
* 1987: '' Roza''
* 1988: '' Serious Money''
* 1988: ''
Speed-the-Plow ''Speed-the-Plow'' is a 1988 play by David Mamet that is a satirical dissection of the American movie business. As stated in ''The Producer's Perspective'', "this is a theme Mamet would revisit in his later films ''Wag the Dog'' (1997) and ''St ...
''
* 1989: ''
Lend Me a Tenor ''Lend Me a Tenor'' is a comedy by Ken Ludwig. The play was produced on both the West End (1986) and Broadway (1989). It received nine Tony Award nominations and won for Best Actor (Philip Bosco) and Best Director (Jerry Zaks). A Broadway re ...
'' * 1992: ''
Conversations with My Father ''Conversations with My Father'' is a play by Herb Gardner. The play, which ran on Broadway in 1992 to 1993, was a finalist for the 1992 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Overview The play focuses on Eddie Ross (born Goldberg), who is a Russian immigran ...
''
* 1993: '' The Kentucky Cycle'' * 1994: ''
An Inspector Calls ''An Inspector Calls'' is a play written by English dramatist J. B. Priestley, first performed in the Soviet Union in 1945 and at the New Theatre in London the following year. It is one of Priestley's best-known works for the stage and is c ...
''
* 1996: '' Inherit the Wind''
* 1996: '' Skylight''
* 1997: '' Triumph of Love''
* 1998: ''
Art Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...
''
* 1999: '' The Price''
* 2000: ''
Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
''
* 2001: '' One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest''
* 2002: ''
The Elephant Man Joseph Carey Merrick (5 August 1862 – 11 April 1890), often erroneously called John Merrick, was an English man known for having severe deformities. He was first exhibited at a freak show under the stage name "the Elephant Man" and then we ...
''
* 2003: ''
Ma Rainey's Black Bottom ''Ma Rainey's Black Bottom'' is a 1982 play – one of the ten-play Pittsburgh Cycle by August Wilson, and the only one not set in Pittsburgh – that chronicles the 20th-century African-American experience. The play is set in a recording stu ...
''
* 2003: '' "Master Harold"...and the Boys'' * 2003: ''
Anna in the Tropics ''Anna in the Tropics'' is a play by Nilo Cruz. It won the 2003 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Plot The play is set in Ybor City, a section of Tampa and the center of the cigar industry. When Cuban immigrants brought the cigar-making industry to F ...
'' * 2004: ''
A Raisin in the Sun ''A Raisin in the Sun'' is a play by Lorraine Hansberry that debuted on Broadway in 1959. The title comes from the poem "Harlem" (also known as "A Dream Deferred") by Langston Hughes. The story tells of a black family's experiences in south Chi ...
'' * 2004: ''
'night, Mother ''night, Mother'' is a play by American playwright Marsha Norman. The play won the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Play. The play is about a daughter, Jessie, and her mother, Thelma. It begins with Je ...
'' * 2005: '' Glengarry Glen Ross''


Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre

* 2006: ''
Three Days of Rain ''Three Days of Rain'' is a play by Richard Greenberg that was commissioned and produced by South Coast Repertory in 1997. The title comes from a line from W. S. Merwin's poem, "For the Anniversary of My Death" (1967). The play has often been cal ...
''
* 2006: ''Martin Short: Fame Becomes Me''
* 2007: ''Frost/Nixon'' * 2007: ''Rock 'n' Roll'' * 2008: ''The Country Girl'' * 2008: ''13'' * 2009: ''
God of Carnage ''God of Carnage'' (originally in French ''Le Dieu du carnage'') is a play by Yasmina Reza that was first published in 2008. It is about two sets of parents; the son of one couple has hurt the son of the other couple at a public park. The paren ...
'' * 2010: ''
Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson ''Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson'' is a rock musical with music and lyrics written by Michael Friedman and a book written by its director Alex Timbers. The show is a comedic historical rock musical about the founding of the Democratic Party. It r ...
'' * 2011: ''
That Championship Season ''That Championship Season'' is a 1972 play by Jason Miller. It was the recipient of the 1973 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the 1973 Tony Award for Best Play. Plot synopsis The setting is 1972 at the Coach's home in Scranton, Pennsylvania. O ...
'' * 2011: ''
The Mountaintop ''The Mountaintop'' is a play by American playwright Katori Hall. It is a fictional depiction of Martin Luther King Jr.'s last night on earth set entirely in Room 306 of the Lorraine Motel on the eve of his assassination in 1968. Historical b ...
'' * 2012: ''Once''
* 2015: ''
It's Only a Play ''It's Only a Play'' is a play by Terrence McNally. The play originally opened off-off-Broadway in 1982. It was revived off-Broadway in 1986, and on Broadway in 2014. The plot concerns a party where a producer, playwright, director, actors and ...
''
* 2015: ''The Color Purple'' * 2017: ''Bandstand'' * 2018: ''
The Iceman Cometh ''The Iceman Cometh'' is a play written by American playwright Eugene O'Neill in 1939. First published in 1946, the play premiered on Broadway at the Martin Beck Theatre on October 9, 1946, directed by Eddie Dowling, where it ran for 136 perf ...
'' * 2018: ''The Ferryman'' * 2019: ''Betrayal'' * 2021: ''Company''
* 2022: ''
Almost Famous ''Almost Famous'' is a 2000 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Cameron Crowe, and starring Billy Crudup, Frances McDormand, Kate Hudson, and Patrick Fugit. It tells the story of a teenage journalist writing for ''Rolling Stone ...
''


Box office record

''Once'' achieved the box office record for the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre. The production grossed $1,447,598 over nine performances, for the week ending December 30, 2012.


See also

*
List of Broadway theatres There are 41 active Broadway theaters listed by The Broadway League in New York City, as well as eight existing structures that previously hosted Broadway theatre. Beginning with the first large long-term theater in the city, the Park Theatr ...
*
List of New York City Designated Landmarks in Manhattan from 14th to 59th Streets A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List (surname) Organizations * List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America * SC Germania List, German rugby unio ...


References


Notes


Citations


Sources

* * * * *


External links

* * {{Authority control 1927 establishments in New York City Broadway theatres New York City Designated Landmarks in Manhattan New York City interior landmarks Shubert Organization Theater District, Manhattan Theatres completed in 1927