The Colonial Theatre 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 ...

was at

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 ...

and 62nd Street in what was then the

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neighborhood on the

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Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

.Aberjhani, and Sandra L. West. 2003. ''Encyclopedia of the Harlem Renaissance''. New York: Facts On File, Inc. . P. 290 Originally named the Colonial Music Hall, it was opened in 1905 by

Frederic Thompson Frederic Williams Thompson (October 31, 1873 – June 6, 1919) was an American architect, engineer, inventor, and showman known for creating amusement rides and one of the first large amusement parks. Biography Frederic Thompson was born i ...

and

Elmer "Skip" Dundy Elmer Scipio "Skip" Dundy Jr. (March 31, 1862 – February 5, 1907) was an American showman and promoter known for creating amusement rides and one of the first large amusement parks. Biography Elmer Scipio Dundy Jr. ("Skip") was born in Falls ...

.Krefft, Bryan
"Colonial Theatre"
Cinema Treasures. Web. Retrieved October 25, 2014. Designed by

George Keister George W. Keister (January 10, 1859 - December 27, 1945)"Keister, George," ''Leslie's History of the Greater New York'', vol. 3 (New York: Arkell Publishing Company, 1898): 640. was an American architect. His work includes the Hotel Gerard (189 ...

, the theater had a seating capacity of 1,293. Thompson and Dundy operated the theater for only a few weeks before selling it to Percy G. Williams, who changed the name to Colonial Theatre. It functioned exclusively as a vaudeville house during Williams' stewardship. In 1912, under the management of

B.F. Keith Benjamin Franklin Keith (January 26, 1846 – March 26, 1914) was an American vaudeville theater owner, highly influential in the evolution of variety theater into vaudeville. Biography Early years Keith was born in Hillsborough, New Hamp ...

, the name was changed to Keith's Colonial Theatre. Five years later the theater was under the management of E.F. Albee, who renamed it the New Colonial Theatre. During the early 1920s, the New Colonial Theatre was a venue for many African-American musical revues such as

Eubie Blake James Hubert "Eubie" Blake (February 7, 1887 – February 12, 1983) was an American pianist and composer of ragtime, jazz, and popular music. In 1921, he and his long-time collaborator Noble Sissle wrote '' Shuffle Along'', one of the first B ...

and Noble Sissle's show ''

Chocolate Dandies ''The Chocolate Dandies'' is a Broadway musical in two acts that opened September 1, 1924, at the New Colonial Theatre and ran for 96 performances – finishing November 22, 1924. Initial production The 1924 debut of ''The Chocolate Dandies' ...

'' and James P. Johnson's ''Runnin' Wild''. The latter show premiered at the theater on October 29, 1923, and was instrumental in making an international dance craze of the Charleston. From 1925 to 1932, the theater was named Hampden's Theatre, and under the management of actor

Walter Hampden Walter Hampden Dougherty (June 30, 1879 in Brooklyn – June 11, 1955 in Los Angeles), known professionally as Walter Hampden, was an American actor and theatre manager. He was a major stage star on Broadway in New York who also made numerou ...

it presented

Shakespearian William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

fare and classic drama. In 1932, as the RKO Colonial Theatre, it became a movie house. After 1951 the theater was owned by NBC who used it to develop color television equipment (the TK-40 color television camera) and studio techniques, and functioned as a television studio until 1971. Rebekah Harkness subsequently purchased the theater, renovated it, and reopened it in 1974 as the Harkness Theatre. After presenting a sporadic schedule of ballet and legitimate theater, it closed in 1977, and the building was razed later that year."Demolished Broadway: Theatres", Musicals101.com
Retrieved October 25, 2014.

References

External links

* {{Broadway theatres, state=autocollapse Theatres in Manhattan 1905 establishments in New York City Upper West Side Demolished buildings and structures in Manhattan Buildings and structures demolished in 1977