Liberty Theatre
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The Liberty Theatre is a former Broadway theater at 234 West 42nd Street in the Theater District of
Midtown Manhattan Midtown Manhattan is the central portion of the New York City borough of Manhattan and serves as the city's primary central business district. Midtown is home to some of the city's most prominent buildings, including the Empire State Buildi ...
in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
. Opened in 1904, the theater was designed by Herts & Tallant and built for
Klaw and Erlanger Klaw and Erlanger was an entertainment management and production partnership of Marc Klaw and Abraham Lincoln Erlanger based in New York City from 1888 through 1919. While running their own considerable and multi-faceted theatrical businesses ...
, the partnership of theatrical producers
Marc Klaw Marc Klaw, (born Marcus Alonzo Klaw, May 29, 1858 – June 14, 1936) was an American lawyer, theatrical producer, theater owner, and a leading figure of the Theatrical Syndicate. Life and work Referred to as both Mark and Marc, he was born in P ...
and
A. L. Erlanger Abraham Lincoln Erlanger (May 4, 1859 – March 7, 1930) was an American theatrical producer, director, designer, theater owner, and a leading figure of the Theatrical Syndicate. Biography Erlanger was born to a Jewish family
. The theater has been used as an event venue since 2011 and is part of an entertainment and retail complex developed by
Forest City Ratner Forest City Realty Trust, Inc. was a real estate investment trust that invested in office buildings, shopping centers and apartments in Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and the greater metropolitan areas of Ne ...
. The theater is owned by the
city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
and
state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...
governments of New York and leased to
New 42nd Street The New 42nd Street is a not-for-profit organization based in Manhattan, New York City. In 1990, the New 42nd Street was formed to oversee the redevelopment of seven neglected and historic theatres on 42nd Street between Seventh and Eighth Ave ...
, which subleases the venue to Forest City Ratner. The Liberty consisted of an auditorium facing 41st Street and a lobby facing 42nd Street. The facade on 42nd Street is largely hidden but was designed in the neoclassical style, similar to the neighboring New Amsterdam Theatre, which was designed by the same architect. The lobby from 42nd Street led to the auditorium in the rear, as well as men's and women's lounges in the basement. The auditorium, designed in the
Art Nouveau Art Nouveau (; ) is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. The style is known by different names in different languages: in German, in Italian, in Catalan, and also known as the Modern ...
style, contains two balconies cantilevered above a ground-level orchestra. The theater has a steel frame and was designed with advanced mechanical systems for its time. The original design included depictions of the
Liberty Bell The Liberty Bell, previously called the State House Bell or Old State House Bell, is an iconic symbol of American independence, located in Philadelphia. Originally placed in the steeple of the Pennsylvania State House (now renamed Independen ...
and
bald eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche as ...
s, which have since been removed. The Liberty opened on October 10, 1904, and hosted several hit productions in its early years, which largely consisted of comedies, dramas, or musicals.
D. W. Griffith David Wark Griffith (January 22, 1875 – July 23, 1948) was an American film director. Considered one of the most influential figures in the history of the motion picture, he pioneered many aspects of film editing and expanded the art of the n ...
briefly screened movies at the theater in the 1910s. After Klaw and Erlanger ended their partnership in 1919, Erlanger continued to operate the theater until 1932, when it was leased to Max Rudnick, who presented movies and
vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...
. The Liberty hosted its last legitimate show in 1933, and the Brandt family took over the venue, operating it as a
movie theater A movie theater (American English), cinema (British English), or cinema hall ( Indian English), also known as a movie house, picture house, the movies, the pictures, picture theater, the silver screen, the big screen, or simply theater is a ...
until the 1980s. The city and state governments of New York acquired the theater as part of the 42nd Street Redevelopment Project in 1990. Forest City Ratner developed an entertainment and retail complex on the site in the 1990s, but the Liberty Theatre remained largely abandoned until the early 21st century, when it became a restaurant space and event venue.


Site

The Liberty Theatre is at 234 West 42nd Street, on the south side between Seventh Avenue and Eighth Avenue near the southern end of
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 of
Midtown Manhattan Midtown Manhattan is the central portion of the New York City borough of Manhattan and serves as the city's primary central business district. Midtown is home to some of the city's most prominent buildings, including the Empire State Buildi ...
in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
. The theater is part of an entertainment and retail complex at 234 West 42nd Street, which includes the Madame Tussauds New York museum and the AMC Empire 25 movie theater. The complex's
land lot In real estate, a lot or plot is a tract or parcel of land owned or meant to be owned by some owner(s). A plot is essentially considered a parcel of real property in some countries or immovable property (meaning practically the same thing) in o ...
covers and extends between its two
frontage Frontage is the boundary between a plot of land or a building and the road onto which the plot or building fronts. Frontage may also refer to the full length of this boundary. This length is considered especially important for certain types of ...
s on 41st and 42nd Streets, with a frontage of on 41st Street and on 42nd Street. Originally, the theater occupied its own land lot; the main frontage on 42nd Street measured only wide, while the 41st Street frontage measured wide. This is because the developers, Abraham L. Erlanger and
Marcus Klaw Marc Klaw, (born Marcus Alonzo Klaw, May 29, 1858 – June 14, 1936) was an American lawyer, theatrical producer, theater owner, and a leading figure of the Theatrical Syndicate. Life and work Referred to as both Mark and Marc, he was born in ...
, wanted the more prominent 42nd Street frontage as the main entrance. The
city block A city block, residential block, urban block, or simply block is a central element of urban planning and urban design. A city block is the smallest group of buildings that is surrounded by streets, not counting any type of thoroughfare within t ...
includes the Candler Building, New Amsterdam Theatre, and
5 Times Square 5 Times Square is a 38-story office skyscraper at the southern end of Times Square in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Located on the western sidewalk of Seventh Avenue between 41st and 42nd Street, the building measure ...
to the east, as well as
Eleven Times Square Eleven Times Square is an office and retail tower located at 640 Eighth Avenue, at the intersection with West 42nd Street, in the Times Square and West Midtown neighborhoods of Manhattan, New York City. The 40-story, tower rises , making i ...
to the west. The E-Walk entertainment complex is directly across 42nd Street to the northwest. The
American Airlines Theatre The American Airlines Theatre, originally the Selwyn Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 227 West 42nd Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Built in 1918, it was designed by George Keister and developed by br ...
and
Times Square Theater The Times Square Theater is a former Broadway and movie theater at 217 West 42nd Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, near Times Square. Built in 1920, it was designed by Eugene De Rosa and developed by brother ...
are to the north, while the Lyric Theatre, New Victory Theater, and
3 Times Square 3 Times Square, also known as the Thomson Reuters Building, is a 30-story skyscraper at Times Square in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Located on Seventh Avenue between 42nd and 43rd Street, the building measures ...
are to the northeast. In addition, the
Port Authority Bus Terminal The Port Authority Bus Terminal (colloquially known as the Port Authority and by its acronym PABT) is a bus terminal located in Manhattan in New York City. It is the busiest bus terminal in the world by volume of traffic, serving about 8,000 bus ...
is to the west, the New York Times Building is to the southwest, and the Nederlander Theatre is to the south. The surrounding area is part of
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 ...
's Theater District and contains many Broadway theaters. In the first two decades of the 20th century, eleven legitimate theaters were built within one block of West 42nd Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues. The New Amsterdam, Harris, Liberty, Eltinge (now Empire), and
Lew Fields Lew Fields (born Moses Schoenfeld, January 1867 – July 20, 1941) was an American actor, comedian, vaudeville star, theatre manager, and producer. He was part of a comedy duo with Joe Weber. He also produced shows on his own and starred in ...
theaters occupied the south side of the street. The original Lyric and
Apollo Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label=Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label= ...
theaters (combined into the current Lyric Theatre), as well as the Times Square, Victory, Selwyn (now American Airlines), and Victoria theaters, occupied the north side. These venues were mostly converted to movie theaters by the 1930s, and many of them were showing pornography by the 1970s.


Design

The Liberty Theatre was designed by architects Herts & Tallant and developed for
Klaw and Erlanger Klaw and Erlanger was an entertainment management and production partnership of Marc Klaw and Abraham Lincoln Erlanger based in New York City from 1888 through 1919. While running their own considerable and multi-faceted theatrical businesses ...
in 1904. It was built by the Murphy Construction Company. Herts and Tallant designed the theater in the
Art Nouveau Art Nouveau (; ) is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. The style is known by different names in different languages: in German, in Italian, in Catalan, and also known as the Modern ...
style, similar to their earlier projects in New York City (namely the New Amsterdam, Lyceum, and German theaters), although the Liberty's architectural detail was smaller in scale than in the other theaters.


Exterior

The Liberty Theatre originally had a three-story-tall neoclassical facade on 42nd Street, similar to the neighboring New Amsterdam Theatre (also designed by Herts and Tallant). The entrance was through an arch, which was flanked by sign boards and topped by an electric sign. There were caryatids on either side of the main entrance, which represented the concepts of comedy and song. The second and third floors, which contained the theater's offices, were spanned by a large archway. Above the arch was a stone shield, with a relief of the
Liberty Bell The Liberty Bell, previously called the State House Bell or Old State House Bell, is an iconic symbol of American independence, located in Philadelphia. Originally placed in the steeple of the Pennsylvania State House (now renamed Independen ...
carved into it. The facade was capped by a statue of a
bald eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche as ...
with spread wings. There was an ornamental cornice above the top story. By the 1990s, most of the facade had been obscured or heavily modified, and the third story had been completely stripped of ornamentation. The 42nd Street facade is no longer visible above the first floor. The rear facade on 41st Street remains intact, and ''The New York Times'' described it in 1996 as being in "good condition". Images indicate that the 41st Street facade is made of plain brick and has no windows. Projecting brick
piers Piers may refer to: * Pier, a raised structure over a body of water * Pier (architecture), an architectural support * Piers (name), a given name and surname (including lists of people with the name) * Piers baronets, two titles, in the baronetages ...
divide the facade into five
bays A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a gulf, sea, sound, or bight. A cove is a small, circular bay with a na ...
. There are loading docks within three of the bays, as well as globe-shaped lanterns affixed to the piers. Otherwise, the facade does not have any other decoration.


Interior

The theater was mechanically advanced for its time, with heating, cooling, ventilation, and fire-suppression systems. The structural frame was made of skeletal steel, while the floors were made of concrete and tile. The theater's sprinkler system was supplied by a water tank on the roof. All of the air in the theater could be completely changed within five minutes. In addition, there were 21 emergency exits within the theater building, excluding the fire escapes outside the dressing rooms, which allegedly allowed the theater to be cleared within two minutes. These emergency exits led to courtyards on either side of the theater, running between 41st and 42nd Streets. The structural frame and emergency exits may have been added in response to the
Iroquois Theatre fire The Iroquois Theatre fire occurred on December 30, 1903, at the Iroquois Theatre in Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is the deadliest theater fire and the deadliest single-building fire in U.S. history, resulting in at least 602 deaths. The ...
in 1903, where hundreds of people died in a Chicago theater that was allegedly fireproof.


Auditorium

The auditorium is at the south end of the building and originally measured wide, with a depth of between the stage and the rear wall. The auditorium's seats were spread across the orchestra level and two balconies. The theater had 1,055 seats. Unusually for theaters of the time, the balconies are cantilevered from the structural framework, which eliminated the need for columns that blocked sightlines. The orchestra level had 546 seats, arranged in 15 rows. The balcony levels were smaller; the upper balcony only had 264 seats. At the rear of the auditorium, a wide staircase led from the lobby to the two balcony levels, while promenades ran behind the seating areas on all three levels. The promenades were decorated in amber, white, and gold, a color scheme that was also used on the auditorium's seats, carpets, and other fabrics. The original design included eight boxes, four on either side of the stage. The boxes were painted in ivory and gold. Above each set of boxes was a motif of a bald eagle, which in turn flanked a depiction of the Liberty Bell. The proscenium opening is wide and high. Unlike in other theaters, the proscenium arch was not topped by a
sounding board A sounding board, also known as a tester and abat-voix is a structure placed above and sometimes also behind a pulpit or other speaking platform that helps to project the sound of the speaker. It is usually made of wood. The structure may be spe ...
; as a result, audiences at the rear of the auditorium did not receive amplified sound from the stage. By the 21st century, the rear walls of both balcony levels had been shifted forward significantly. The stage was designed to accommodate comedies and large musicals, measuring about deep and wide. The top of the
fly loft A fly system, or theatrical rigging system, is a system of rope lines, blocks (pulleys), counterweights and related devices within a theater (structure), theater that enables a stage crew to fly (hoist) quickly, quietly and safely components suc ...
was above the stage. The Liberty's stage curtain was made of
asbestos Asbestos () is a naturally occurring fibrous silicate mineral. There are six types, all of which are composed of long and thin fibrous crystals, each fibre being composed of many microscopic "fibrils" that can be released into the atmosphere b ...
, as at many other theaters at the time, and contained a mural of '' Half Moon'', the ship belonging to Dutch explorer
Henry Hudson Henry Hudson ( 1565 – disappeared 23 June 1611) was an English sea explorer and navigator during the early 17th century, best known for his explorations of present-day Canada and parts of the northeastern United States. In 1607 and 16 ...
. The curtain, measuring , was probably designed by F. Richards Anderson and was decorated in blue, green, and brown hues. With the deterioration of the theater in the late 20th century, parts of the asbestos curtain had begun to flake off.


Other spaces

The theater's lobby led from 42nd Street. It consisted of a vestibule with aluminum and gold decorations, as well as an ivory-and-white hallway that acted as a foyer. The vestibule had a domed ceiling measuring across, and the foyer was long. The two spaces were separated by doors covered in leather. The original lobby has been heavily modified. At the rear of the orchestra-level promenade were stairs, which led to men's and women's lounges in the basement. The men's lounging and smoking room was decorated in the English style, with weathered-oak paneling as well as furniture covered with Spanish leather. The women's lounge was painted green, gold, and ivory.


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 ...
. Manhattan's theater district had begun to shift from Union Square and
Madison Square Madison Square is a public square formed by the intersection of Fifth Avenue and Broadway at 23rd Street in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The square was named for Founding Father James Madison, fourth President of the United S ...
during the first decade of the 20th century. At the beginning of that century, Klaw and Erlanger operated the predominant theatrical booking agency in the United States. They decided to relocate to 42nd Street after observing that the Metropolitan Opera House, the Victoria Theatre, and the Theatre Republic (now New Victory Theater) had been developed around that area. Klaw and Erlanger hired Herts and Tallant to design the New Amsterdam Theatre at 214 West 42nd Street, which opened on October 26, 1903. Klaw and Erlanger then decided to build a second theater on the block, also designed by Herts and Tallant, which would host musicals by the Rogers Brothers. By early 1904, the Murphy Construction Company was constructing the theater's steel frame.


Legitimate use


1900s and 1910s

The Liberty Theatre opened on October 10, 1904, with the revue ''The Rogers Brothers in Paris''. This was followed the next month by '' Little Johnny Jones'', the first large musical written by George M. Cohan. In general, the Liberty hosted several hit productions in its early years, largely consisting of comedies, dramas, or musicals. The Liberty's second season included ''The Rogers Brothers in Ireland'' in late 1905, as well as the comedy-drama ''
The Clansman ''The Clansman: A Historical Romance of the Ku Klux Klan'' is a novel published in 1905, the second work in the Ku Klux Klan trilogy by Thomas Dixon Jr. (the others are ''The Leopard's Spots'' and ''The Traitor (Dixon novel), The Traitor''). Chro ...
'' and the musical '' Lincoln'' in early 1906. During the 1906–1907 season,
Eleanor Robson Eleanor Robson, (born 1969) is a British Assyriologist and academic. She is Professor of Ancient Middle Eastern History at University College London. She is a former chair of the British Institute for the Study of Iraq and a Quondam fellow of A ...
produced several plays at the Liberty, and the theater also hosted '' The Follies of 1907'', the first edition of the annual ''
Ziegfeld Follies The ''Ziegfeld Follies'' was a series of elaborate theatrical revue productions on Broadway in New York City from 1907 to 1931, with renewals in 1934 and 1936. They became a radio program in 1932 and 1936 as ''The Ziegfeld Follies of the Ai ...
'' revue. The Rogers Brothers presented ''The Rogers Brothers in Panama'' in 1907, but, amid decreasing popularity, the brothers never performed at the Liberty again. Margaret Mayo's play ''
Polly of the Circus ''Polly of the Circus'' may refer to: * ''Polly of the Circus'' (1907 play), written by Margaret Mayo, or its two screen adaptations: ** ''Polly of the Circus'' (1917 film), featuring Mae Marsh and Vernon Steele ** ''Polly of the Circus'' (1932 ...
'' opened in December 1907 and was a hit, running for 160 performances. Other shows in the Liberty Theatre's early years included ''The Redskins'' in 1906 with
Tyrone Power Sr. Frederick Tyrone Edmond Power Sr. (2 May 1869 – 23 December 1931) was an English-born American stage and screen actor, known professionally as Tyrone Power. He is now usually referred to as Tyrone Power Sr. to differentiate him from his son ...
, as well as ''Wildfire'' in 1908 with Lillian Russell. The musical '' The Arcadians'' opened at the Liberty in 1910, followed at the end of the same year by the operetta ''The Spring Maid'', which stayed for six months.
The theater's other productions in the early 1910s included the play ''
The Fascinating Widow ''The Fascinating Widow'' is a 1910 musical comedy written by Otto Hauerbach as a vehicle for the female impersonator Julian Eltinge. The play premiered in Atlantic City, New Jersey, then toured the United States for 10 months before appearin ...
'' in 1911; the play '' Milestones'' in 1912; and the operetta '' Rob Roy'' and the musical '' Sweethearts'' in 1913. Around the same time, Klaw and Erlanger had become involved in the film industry; they signed an agreement with the Biograph Company in 1913, which allowed Biograph to produce two features weekly at the syndicate's theaters. Klaw and Erlanger leased the Liberty to movie-theater operator
D. W. Griffith David Wark Griffith (January 22, 1875 – July 23, 1948) was an American film director. Considered one of the most influential figures in the history of the motion picture, he pioneered many aspects of film editing and expanded the art of the n ...
in February 1915, on the condition that movie tickets be sold at $2, the same price as tickets for plays. The next month, Griffith presented ''
The Birth of a Nation ''The Birth of a Nation'', originally called ''The Clansman'', is a 1915 American silent epic drama film directed by D. W. Griffith and starring Lillian Gish. The screenplay is adapted from Thomas Dixon Jr.'s 1905 novel and play ''The Clan ...
'', the first film to be screened at the theater. Griffith screened ''The Birth of a Nation'' over 750 times during the next nine months. The Liberty again hosted live shows in early 1916, when it presented a week of variety performances by The Blue Pierrots troupe, as well as the musical ''Sybil''.
In August of that year, Griffith leased the Liberty Theatre again, this time for his film ''Intolerance''. The
Jerome Kern Jerome David Kern (January 27, 1885 – November 11, 1945) was an American composer of musical theatre and popular music. One of the most important American theatre composers of the early 20th century, he wrote more than 700 songs, used in ove ...
musical '' Have A Heart'' opened at the Liberty in January 1917, followed the same year by the revue '' Hitchy-Koo of 1917'' and the play ''The Wooing of Eve'' with
Laurette Taylor Laurette Taylor (born Loretta Helen Cooney; April 1, 1883Source Citation: Year: 1900; Census Place: Manhattan, New York, New York; Roll: 1119; Page: 3A; Enumeration District: 859; FHL microfilm: 1241119. Source Information: Ancestry.com. 1900 Un ...
and
Lynn Fontanne Lynn Fontanne (; 6 December 1887 – 30 July 1983) was an English actress. After early success in supporting roles in the West End theatre, West End, she met the American actor Alfred Lunt, whom she married in 1922 and with whom she co-starred i ...
. At the end of the year, George M. Cohan and
Sam H. Harris Sam Henry Harris (February 3, 1872 – July 3, 1941) was a Broadway producer and theater owner. Career Sam Harris was born on Manhattan's Lower East Side to poor Jewish parents. After a stint as a cough drop salesman and boxing manager, Harris' ...
's musical ''Going Up'' opened at the Liberty, running for 351 performances. Following the success of the ''Ziegfeld Follies'' at the nearby New Amsterdam, Klaw and Erlanger presented two revues at the Liberty in 1919: '' George White's Scandals of 1919'' and ''Hitchy-Koo of 1919''. By then, Klaw and Erlanger's
Theatrical Syndicate Starting in 1896, the Theatrical Syndicate was an organisation that in the United States that controlled the majority of bookings in the country's leading theatrical attractions. The six-man group was in charge of theatres and bookings. Beginnin ...
no longer had a monopoly on theatrical shows, and they had dissolved their partnership. A. L. Erlanger continued to produce shows at the Liberty Theatre, while Marcus Klaw developed his own venue on 45th Street, the Klaw Theatre.


1920s and early 1930s

The Kern musical '' The Night Boat'' opened at the Liberty in February 1920 and ran for several months. It was followed by ''George White's Scandals of 1921'' and the
Otto Harbach Otto Abels Harbach, born Otto Abels Hauerbach (August 18, 1873 – January 24, 1963) was an American lyricist and librettist of nearly 50 musical comedies and operettas. Harbach collaborated as lyricist or librettist with many of the leading B ...
musical ''The O'Brien Girl''. During 1922, the Liberty Theatre hosted the comedy ''To The Ladies'' with
Helen Hayes Helen Hayes MacArthur ( Brown; October 10, 1900 – March 17, 1993) was an American actress whose career spanned 80 years. She eventually received the nickname "First Lady of American Theatre" and was the second person and first woman to have w ...
, as well as Cohan's musical ''
Little Nellie Kelly ''Little Nellie Kelly'' is a 1940 American musical-comedy film based on the stage musical of the same title by George M. Cohan which was a hit on Broadway in 1922 and 1923. The film was written by Jack McGowan and directed by Norman Taurog. ...
''. The theater's shows the next year included the play ''Magnolia'' with Leo Carrillo and ''The Magic Ring'' with
Jeanette MacDonald Jeanette Anna MacDonald (June 18, 1903 – January 14, 1965) was an American singer and actress best remembered for her musical films of the 1930s with Maurice Chevalier (''The Love Parade'', '' Love Me Tonight'', ''The Merry Widow'' and '' On ...
. The firm of Mandelbaum & Lewine, along with Max N. Natanson, bought the Liberty and Eltinge theaters in November 1923 and immediately resold the theaters to Maximilian Zipkes. The Liberty hosted another Cohan musical at the end of that year, ''The Rise of Rosie O'Reilly'',
although Cohan's musicals had begun to decline in popularity by then. George and
Ira Gershwin Ira Gershwin (born Israel Gershovitz; December 6, 1896 – August 17, 1983) was an American lyricist who collaborated with his younger brother, composer George Gershwin, to create some of the most memorable songs in the English language of the 2 ...
's musical '' Lady, Be Good!'' opened at the theater in December 1924 and lasted 330 performances. This was followed in December 1925 by another Gershwin musical, '' Tip-Toes'', which lasted for 194 performances. Erlanger announced in April 1926 that the Liberty Theatre would be completely renovated after ''Tip Toes'' ended, and the theater reopened that September. The Liberty Theatre presented several revues with Black casts in the late 1920s and early 1930s. The most successful of these Black revues was ''
Blackbirds of 1928 ''Blackbirds of 1928'' was a hit Broadway musical revue that starred Adelaide Hall, Bill Bojangles Robinson, Tim Moore and Aida Ward, with music by Jimmy McHugh and lyrics by Dorothy Fields. It contained the hit songs "Diga Diga Do", the duo's f ...
'', produced by
Lew Fields Lew Fields (born Moses Schoenfeld, January 1867 – July 20, 1941) was an American actor, comedian, vaudeville star, theatre manager, and producer. He was part of a comedy duo with Joe Weber. He also produced shows on his own and starred in ...
, which premiered in May 1928 and had 518 total performances over two theaters. ''Blackbirds'' relocated to the Eltinge Theatre in October 1928 to make way for the comedy ''Mr. Moneypenny'',
which lasted 61 performances. The Liberty then hosted ''Subway Express'', which premiered in October 1929 and ran for 270 performances. By then, increasing competition between producers had resulted in many
flops 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 me ...
. Furthermore, with the onset of 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 ...
, many Broadway theaters were impacted by declining attendance. The theater hosted a series of short-lived plays and musicals in early 1930, including 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 ...
's revival of the play '' Volpone''. The musical comedy '' Brown Buddies'' opened at the Liberty that October, running for 113 performances. Although Erlanger had died in March 1930, the executors of his estate continued to operate the theater. The executors were unable to manage the theater, and most of the estate was ultimately given away to various creditors. Klaw and Erlanger's firm 234 West 42nd Street Inc. was evicted from the theater in 1931 after failing to pay rent. The theater hosted another all-Black revue in 1931, ''Singin' the Blues'', which was unsuccessful. Max Rudnick leased the theater in February 1932 for three years and presented the Black revue ''Blackberries of 1932'' that April. Rudnick also presented movies in the theater, and he began showing
vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...
as well in mid-1932, when he presented a 20-act revue entitled ''Folies Bergere''. The theater presented only two legitimate shows during the 1932–1933 season. ''
Masks and Faces ''Masks and Faces'' is a 1917 British silent biographical film directed by Fred Paul and starring Johnston Forbes-Robertson, Irene Vanbrugh and Henry S. Irving. The film depicts episodes from the life of the eighteenth-century Irish actress ...
'', which closed on its opening night in March 1933, was the last legitimate show staged at the Liberty until the 1990s.


Movie theater and decline

After ''Masks and Faces'' closed, the Liberty continued to operate as a movie theater. This was part of a decline in the Broadway theater industry in the mid-20th century; from 1931 to 1950, the number of legitimate theaters decreased from 68 to 30. The Liberty's owner, the Daniel Holding Corporation, agreed to lease the theater to William Brandt in 1933. That lease was not officially recorded until 1938, when Brandt leased the Liberty to 229 West 42nd Street Inc. The Liberty Theatre's operators screened
second run A rerun or repeat is a rebroadcast of an episode of a radio or television program. There are two types of reruns – those that occur during a hiatus, and those that occur when a program is syndicated. Variations In the United Kingdom, the wor ...
s of Warner Bros. films that had premiered at the Times Theatre, on Eighth Avenue and 42nd Street. The Brandt family acquired the Liberty Theatre, along with the neighboring Eltinge (now Empire) Theatre, in December 1944. By the mid-1940s, the ten theaters along 42nd Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues were all showing movies; this led ''Variety'' to call the block the "biggest movie center of the world". The Brandt family operated seven of these theaters, while the Cinema circuit operated the other three. The Brandt theaters included the Selwyn,
Apollo Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label=Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label= ...
,
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 ...
, Lyric, and
Victory The term victory (from Latin ''victoria'') originally applied to warfare, and denotes success achieved in personal combat, after military operations in general or, by extension, in any competition. Success in a military campaign constitutes ...
theaters on the north side of 42nd Street, as well as the Eltinge and Liberty theaters on the south side. The Liberty Theatre screened films that had previously been shown at the Selwyn. Several producers offered to stage legitimate productions in the Brandt theaters, but none of the offers were successful. William Brandt said in 1953 that any of his 42nd Street theaters could be converted to legitimate houses within 24 hours' notice, but producers did not take his offer. By the late 1950s, the Liberty was classified as a "reissue house", displaying reruns of films and changing its offerings twice a week. Tickets cost 25 to 65 cents apiece, the cheapest admission scale for any theater on 42nd Street. The Liberty and the other 42nd Street theaters operated from 8 a.m. to 3 a.m., with three shifts of workers. The ten theaters on the block attracted about five million visitors a year between them. The 42nd Street Company was established in 1961 to operate the Brandts' seven theaters on 42nd Street. By the early 1960s, the surrounding block had decayed, but many of the old theater buildings from the block's heyday remained, including the Liberty. Martin Levine and Richard Brandt took over the 42nd Street Company in 1972. At the time, the Liberty was presenting "subrun action fare". The other six theaters showed a variety of genres, though Levine said none of the company's 42nd Street theaters showed
hardcore porn Hardcore pornography, or hardcore porn, is pornography that features detailed depictions of sexual organs or sexual acts such as vaginal, anal or oral intercourse, fingering, anilingus, ejaculation, and fetish play. The term is in contrast wit ...
. The Brandts' theaters had a combined annual gross of about $2 million and operated nearly the entire day. However, the area was in decline; the Brandts' theaters only had three million visitors by 1977, about half of the number in 1963. The Brandts' movie theaters on 42nd Street continued to operate through the mid-1980s, at which point the Liberty was showing horror films.


Redevelopment


Preservation attempts

The 42nd Street Development Corporation had been formed in 1976 to discuss plans for redeveloping Times Square. The same year, the
City University of New York The City University of New York ( CUNY; , ) is the public university system of New York City. It is the largest urban university system in the United States, comprising 25 campuses: eleven senior colleges, seven community colleges and seven pro ...
's
Graduate Center The Graduate School and University Center of the City University of New York (CUNY Graduate Center) is a public research institution and post-graduate university in New York City. Serving as the principal doctorate-granting institution of the ...
hosted an exhibition with photographs of the Liberty and other theaters to advocate for the area's restoration. One plan for the site, in 1978, called for razing several buildings in the area to create a park, including the Liberty. The City at 42nd Street plan was announced in December 1979 as part of a proposal to restore West 42nd Street around Times Square. Under the plan, five theaters would have been converted back to legitimate use, and the facades of three other theaters, including the Liberty, would be restored. The Liberty's large stage made it suitable for dance companies. Mayor Ed Koch wavered in his support of the plan, referring to it as a "Disneyland on 42nd Street". Subsequently,
Hugh Hardy Hugh Hardy (July 26, 1932 – March 17, 2017) was an American architect, known for designing and revitalizing theaters, performing arts venues, public spaces, and cultural facilities across the United States. ''The New Yorker'' writer Brendan ...
conducted a report on 42nd Street's theaters in 1980. His report helped motivate 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) to survey fifty of Midtown Manhattan's extant theaters in the early 1980s. Hardy's firm Hardy Holzman Pfeiffer Associates (HHPA) determined that the theater's superstructure and the decorative plasterwork were still intact. However, the stage facilities were extremely rundown, and HHPA estimated that the theater required at least $2 million worth of restoration. In addition, the facade was also deteriorating; the Liberty Bell and bald-eagle decorations had been removed from the facade, and a plain marquee had been placed in front of the theater's facade. The LPC had started to consider protecting theaters as landmarks in 1982, including the Liberty Theatre, with discussions continuing over the next several years. While the LPC granted landmark status to many Broadway theaters starting in 1987, it deferred decisions on the exterior and interior of the Liberty Theatre. Further discussion of the landmark designations was delayed for several decades. In late 2015, the LPC hosted public hearings on whether to designate the Liberty and six other theaters as landmarks. The LPC rejected the designations in February 2016 because the theaters were already subject to historic-preservation regulations set by the state government.


Early redevelopment proposals

The Urban Development Corporation (UDC), an agency of the New York state government, proposed redeveloping the area around a portion of West 42nd Street in 1981. The plan centered around four towers that were to be built at 42nd Street's intersections with Broadway and Seventh Avenue, developed by
Park Tower Realty A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are green spaces set aside for recreation inside towns and cities. ...
and the
Prudential Insurance Company of America Prudential Financial, Inc. is an American Fortune Global 500 and Fortune 500 company whose subsidiaries provide insurance, retirement planning, investment management, and other products and services to both retail and institutional customers ...
. The Brandt Organization planned to submit a bid to redevelop some of the theaters they owned on 42nd Street. In June 1982, the Brandts' five theaters on the north side of 42nd Street were added to the redevelopment plan. Despite the Brandts' insistence that the Empire and Liberty theaters also be included in the redevelopment, the two theaters were leased to New York Mart Inc. as part of a separate plan. Ultimately, the 42nd Street Redevelopment Project was delayed for several years due to lawsuits and disputes concerning the towers. The New York Mart plan consisted of a garment merchandise mart on Eighth Avenue between 40th and 42nd Streets, opposite Port Authority Bus Terminal. The project was to be completed by the Times Square Redevelopment Corporation, comprising members of the New York state and city governments. Under this plan, the Empire and Liberty theaters would have been renovated, with the Liberty Theatre likely becoming a nonprofit theater, although the extent of the renovations is unclear. David Morse and Richard Reinis were selected in April 1982 to develop the mart, but they were removed from the project that November due to funding issues. Subsequently, the state and city disputed over the replacement development team, leading the city to withdraw from the partnership in August 1983. The state and city reached a compromise on the development team that October, wherein the mart would be developed by Tishman Speyer, operated by Trammell Crow, and funded by Equitable Life Assurance. The Brandts leased all their movie theaters on 42nd Street, including the Liberty, to the Cine 42nd Street Corporation in 1986. The Liberty Theatre was still part of the mart project by 1987. Though the theater was tentatively slated to be used as a nonprofit performing-arts theater, the city and state governments had not reached an agreement with private developers regarding the mart. The merchandise mart was ultimately never built; the northern part of the site became 11 Times Square, while the southern part became the New York Times Building. A committee of theatrical experts recommended in 1987 that the Victory and Liberty theaters be restored for nonprofit use; they estimated that it would cost between $7 million and $7.8 million to renovate the Liberty. City and state officials announced plans for the Liberty Theatre, along with five theaters on the north side of 42nd Street, in September 1988. The UDC opened a request for proposals for the six theaters that October. The Liberty and Victory were to be converted into performing-arts venues for nonprofit organizations, while the Selwyn, Apollo, Lyric, and Times Square were to be converted to commercial use. By the end of the year, the plans were in danger due to a lack of money. In early 1989, several dozen nonprofit theater companies submitted plans to the UDC for the takeover of six theaters. Most of the bids were for the Liberty and Victory, but the Selwyn, Apollo, Lyric, and Times Square theaters received 13 bids between them. That year, The Durst Organization acquired the leases to eight theaters in Times Square, including the Victory. It subsequently announced plans to renovate the eight theaters in February 1990. The New York state government acquired the theater sites that April via
eminent domain Eminent domain (United States, Philippines), land acquisition (India, Malaysia, Singapore), compulsory purchase/acquisition (Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, United Kingdom), resumption (Hong Kong, Uganda), resumption/compulsory acquisition (Austr ...
. The city had planned to buy out the theaters' leases but withdrew after the 42nd Street Company indicated it would lease the theaters to another developer. Although Durst protested the move, a
New York Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the trial-level court of general jurisdiction in the New York State Unified Court System. (Its Appellate Division is also the highest intermediate appellate court.) It is vested with unlimited civ ...
judge ruled that the condemnation was allowed to occur.


New 42nd Street control

A nonprofit organization,
New 42nd Street The New 42nd Street is a not-for-profit organization based in Manhattan, New York City. In 1990, the New 42nd Street was formed to oversee the redevelopment of seven neglected and historic theatres on 42nd Street between Seventh and Eighth Ave ...
, was formed in September 1990 to restore six theaters, including the Liberty, and find uses for them. Government officials hoped that development of the theaters would finally allow the construction of the four towers around 42nd Street, Broadway, and Seventh Avenue. In 1992, New 42nd Street received $18.2 million for restoring the six theaters as part of an agreement with Prudential and Park Tower. Meanwhile, the Liberty continued to deteriorate, leading theatrical critic
Mel Gussow Melvyn Hayes "Mel" Gussow (; December 19, 1933 – April 29, 2005) was an American theater critic, movie critic, and author who wrote for '' The New York Times'' for 35 years. Biography Gussow was born in New York City and grew up in Rockville ...
to write in 1990 that the orchestra level had been "almost entirely reduced to rubble". The interior of the theater caught fire the same year and was nearly destroyed. The asbestos curtain was still intact but was extremely rundown, as ''The New York Times'' observed: "The bottom part f the curtaintrails on the stage and is damaged by trash and plywood stacked there." Even as the estimated renovation cost increased to $16 million, the ''Times'' still predicted in 1992 that the Liberty and Victory were "most likely to be renovated". After
Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
committed to restoring the New Amsterdam Theatre in 1994, most of the other theaters around 42nd Street were quickly leased. By 1995, real-estate development firm
Forest City Ratner Forest City Realty Trust, Inc. was a real estate investment trust that invested in office buildings, shopping centers and apartments in Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and the greater metropolitan areas of Ne ...
was planning a $150 million entertainment and retail complex on the site of the Empire, Harris, and Liberty theaters. Madame Tussauds and AMC leased space in the complex that July. Madame Tussauds would occupy the eastern section of the site, using the entrance of the former Harris Theatre, while AMC would occupy the western section, with the Empire's facade being relocated westward. Forest City Ratner leased the Liberty from New 42nd Street, although the development company did not use the theater itself. Though the theater was not protected as a city landmark, the city and state governments had required that significant portions of the facade be preserved. The Liberty was used for a staged reading of T. S. Eliot's poem ''
The Waste Land ''The Waste Land'' is a poem by T. S. Eliot, widely regarded as one of the most important poems of the 20th century and a central work of Modernist poetry in English, modernist poetry. Published in 1922, the 434-line poem first appeared in the ...
'', featuring
Fiona Shaw Fiona Shaw (born Fiona Mary Wilson; 10 July 1958) is an Irish film and theatre actress. She is known for her roles as Petunia Dursley in the ''Harry Potter'' film series (2001–2010), Marnie Stonebrook in the fourth season of the HBO ser ...
, in late 1996. The same year, GameWorks negotiated with Forest City Ratner to open a virtual-reality arcade in the theater, although the Liberty remained empty through the late 1990s. Forest City Ratner erected a Hilton hotel above the theater. The Liberty Theatre remained largely abandoned in the 2000s, and its facade and auditorium were hidden behind Madame Tussauds' entrance. The theater was briefly used for
Deborah Warner Deborah Warner (born 12 May 1959) is a British director of theatre and opera, known for her interpretations of the works of Shakespeare, Bertolt Brecht, Benjamin Britten and Henrik Ibsen. Early life Warner was born in Oxfordshire, England, to ...
's site-specific art installation, ''The Angel Project'', in 2003. The Liberty's facade was integrated into the Ripley’s Odditorium museum in the mid-2000s, while the auditorium was used by an adjacent Famous Dave's restaurant. The theater was renovated in 2011. The auditorium was converted to a rental event space, and the restaurant portion along 42nd Street became the Liberty Diner. Parts of the auditorium were still visible from the restaurant. During 2015, Cynthia von Buhler staged the immersive play '' Speakeasy Dollhouse: Ziegfeld's Midnight Frolic'', a story investigating the death of actress Olive Thomas, at the theater. The Liberty Diner and the auditorium closed after the operators lost the lease in 2015. Ripley's closed permanently in 2021 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 ...
, and real-estate agency
Cushman and Wakefield Cushman & Wakefield plc is a global commercial real estate services firm. The company's corporate headquarters is located in Chicago, Illinois. Cushman & Wakefield is among the world's largest commercial real estate services firms, with revenue ...
was marketing the Liberty Theatre for lease. The Terror Haunted House operated within the theater space during late 2022.


Notable productions

* 1904: '' Little Johnny Jones''
* 1905: ''
The Taming of the Shrew ''The Taming of the Shrew'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1590 and 1592. The play begins with a framing device, often referred to as the induction, in which a mischievous nobleman tricks a drunk ...
''
* 1905: ''
The School for Scandal ''The School for Scandal'' is a comedy of manners written by Richard Brinsley Sheridan. It was first performed in London at Drury Lane Theatre on 8 May 1777. Plot Act I Scene I: Lady Sneerwell, a wealthy young widow, and her hireling S ...
''
* 1905: '' The Education of Mr. Pipp''
* 1906: ''
The Clansman ''The Clansman: A Historical Romance of the Ku Klux Klan'' is a novel published in 1905, the second work in the Ku Klux Klan trilogy by Thomas Dixon Jr. (the others are ''The Leopard's Spots'' and ''The Traitor (Dixon novel), The Traitor''). Chro ...
''
* 1906: '' Lincoln''
* 1906: ''
Nurse Marjorie ''Nurse Marjorie'' is a 1920 American silent drama film directed by William Desmond Taylor and starring Mary Miles Minter. It is based on a 1906 play, ''Nurse Marjorie'', by Israel Zangwill, with a scenario by Julia Crawford Ivers. It is one of ...
''
* 1907: '' Salomy Jane''
* 1907: ''
Merely Mary Ann ''Merely Mary Ann'' a 1931 American pre-Code romantic comedy drama film starring Janet Gaynor and Charles Farrell. Gaynor and Farrell made almost a dozen films together, including Frank Borzage's classics '' Seventh Heaven'' (1927), '' Street A ...
''
* 1907: '' Ziegfeld Follies of 1907''
* 1907: ''
Polly of the Circus ''Polly of the Circus'' may refer to: * ''Polly of the Circus'' (1907 play), written by Margaret Mayo, or its two screen adaptations: ** ''Polly of the Circus'' (1917 film), featuring Mae Marsh and Vernon Steele ** ''Polly of the Circus'' (1932 ...
''
* 1908: '' The Traveling Salesman''
* 1910: '' The Arcadians''
* 1911: ''
The Fascinating Widow ''The Fascinating Widow'' is a 1910 musical comedy written by Otto Hauerbach as a vehicle for the female impersonator Julian Eltinge. The play premiered in Atlantic City, New Jersey, then toured the United States for 10 months before appearin ...
''
* 1911: '' The Littlest Rebel''
* 1912: '' Milestones''
* 1913: '' Rob Roy''
* 1913: '' Sweethearts''
* 1914: '' General John Regan''
* 1914: ''
Sari A sari (sometimes also saree or shari)The name of the garment in various regional languages include: * as, শাৰী, xārī, translit-std=ISO * bn, শাড়ি, śāṛi, translit-std=ISO * gu, સાડી, sāḍī, translit-std ...
''
* 1914: '' Lady Windermere's Fan''
* 1914: '' He Comes Up Smiling''
* 1914: '' Pygmalion''
* 1914: ''
Twelfth Night ''Twelfth Night'', or ''What You Will'' is a romantic comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written around 1601–1602 as a Twelfth Night's entertainment for the close of the Christmas season. The play centres on the twins Vi ...
''
* 1914: '' The Silent Voice''
* 1917: ''
The Imaginary Invalid ''The Imaginary Invalid'', ''The Hypochondriac'', or ''The Would-Be Invalid'' (French title ''Le Malade imaginaire'', ) is a three- act '' comédie-ballet'' by the French playwright Molière with dance sequences and musical interludes (H.495, H.4 ...
''
* 1917: '' Hitchy-Koo of 1917''
* 1917: '' Going Up''
* 1919: '' George White's Scandals (1919)''
* 1919: '' Hitchy-Koo of 1919''
* 1919: '' Caesar's Wife''
* 1920: '' The Night Boat''
* 1921: '' George White's Scandals (1921)''
* 1922: '' To the Ladies''
* 1922: ''
Little Nellie Kelly ''Little Nellie Kelly'' is a 1940 American musical-comedy film based on the stage musical of the same title by George M. Cohan which was a hit on Broadway in 1922 and 1923. The film was written by Jack McGowan and directed by Norman Taurog. ...
''
* 1924: '' Lady, Be Good!''
* 1925: '' The City Chap''
* 1925: '' Tip-Toes''
* 1928: ''
Blackbirds of 1928 ''Blackbirds of 1928'' was a hit Broadway musical revue that starred Adelaide Hall, Bill Bojangles Robinson, Tim Moore and Aida Ward, with music by Jimmy McHugh and lyrics by Dorothy Fields. It contained the hit songs "Diga Diga Do", the duo's f ...
''
* 1929: '' Subway Express''
* 1930: '' Volpone''
* 1930: '' Brown Buddies''
* 1932: ''
Cradle Snatchers ''Cradle Snatchers'' is a 1927 American silent comedy film directed by Howard Hawks. The picture is based on the 1925 Russell Medcraft and Norma Mitchell stage play of the same name that starred Mary Boland, Edna May Oliver, Raymond Hackett, ...
''
* 1933: ''
Masks and Faces ''Masks and Faces'' is a 1917 British silent biographical film directed by Fred Paul and starring Johnston Forbes-Robertson, Irene Vanbrugh and Henry S. Irving. The film depicts episodes from the life of the eighteenth-century Irish actress ...
''


See also

*
List of Broadway theaters 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 Theatre ...


References


Notes


Citations


Sources

* * * *


External links

* {{Midtown South, Manhattan 1904 establishments in New York City 42nd Street (Manhattan) Former Broadway theatres Former theatres in Manhattan Theater District, Manhattan Theatres completed in 1904