The Playhouse Theatre was a

Broadway theater Broadway theatre,Although ''theater'' is generally the spelling for this common noun in the United States (see American and British English spelling differences), 130 of the 144 extant and extinct Broadway venues use (used) the spelling ''Th ...

at 137 West 48th Street in

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 ...

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 ...

. Charles A. Rich was the architect. It was built in 1911 for producer William A. Brady who also owned the nearby 48th Street Theatre. After Brady died in 1944, it was sold to the Shubert Organization. From 1949 to 1952, it was an ABC Radio studio. ''Sauce for the Goose'' was the opening production on April 15, 1911, closing after 2 performances that day. The Playhouse Theatre was also used for interiors and exteriors in the

Mel Brooks Mel Brooks (born Melvin James Kaminsky; June 28, 1926) is an American actor, comedian and filmmaker. With a career spanning over seven decades, he is known as a writer and director of a variety of successful broad farces and parodies. He began ...

film, '' The Producers'' (1967) for staging their musical, ''Springtime for Hitler.'' In 1969, the Playhouse Theatre was razed to accommodate the

Rockefeller Center Rockefeller Center is a large complex consisting of 19 commercial buildings covering between 48th Street and 51st Street in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. The 14 original Art Deco buildings, commissioned by the Rockefeller family, span th ...

expansion and the construction of 1221 Avenue of the Americas.

Notable productions

* ''The Family Cupboard'' (1913) * '' Major Barbara'' (1915) * ''The Man Who Came Back'' (1916) * ''The Little Teacher'' (1918) * ''Forever After'' (1918) * ''The Wonderful Thing'' (1920) * ''Romance'' (1921) * ''On the Stairs'' (1922) * ''Up She Goes'' (1922) * ''Chains'' (1923) * ''The Show Off'' (1924) * ''Twelve Miles Out'' (1925) * ''Kitty's Kisses'' (1926) * ''The Road to Rome'' (1927) and revival (1928) * ''The Queen's Husband'' (1928) * '' Street Scene'' (1929) * ''The First Mrs. Fraser'' (1929) * ''The Vinegar Tree'' (1930) * ''A Church Mouse'' (1931) * ''Mademoiselle'' (1932) * '' Three Men on a Horse'' (1935) * ''Yes, My Darling Daughter'' (1937) * ''

Outward Bound Outward Bound (OB) is an international network of outdoor education organizations that was founded in the United Kingdom by Lawrence Holt and Kurt Hahn in 1941. Today there are organizations, called schools, in over 35 countries which are att ...

'' (1938) * ''Spring Again'' (1942) * ''The Damask Cheek'' (1942) * ''

The Duke in Darkness ''The Duke in Darkness'' is a 1942 play by Patrick Hamilton. A psychological drama set during the French Wars of Religion, it was first staged on 7 September 1942 at the Royal Lyceum Theatre in Edinburgh. It ran for 72 performances (8 October ...

'' (1944) * ''

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 ...

'' (1945) * '' Edith Piaf'' (1947) * '' The Innocents'' (1950) * '' Bernardine'' (1952) * '' Fallen Angels'' (1956) * ''

Night of the Auk ''Night of the Auk'' is a 1956 Broadway drama in three acts written by Arch Oboler. It is a science fiction drama in blank verse about space travelers returning to Earth after the first Moon landing. The play was based on Oboler's radio play ''Rock ...

'' (1956) * '' Blue Denim'' (1958) * ''Make a Million'' (1958) * '' The Miracle Worker'' (1959) * '' Never Too Late'' (1962) * '' The Impossible Years'' (1965)

References

External links

performingartsarchive Playhouse Theatre

Museum of the City of New York - Playhouse Theatre
* {{Broadway theatres

Playhouse Theatre The Playhouse Theatre is a West End theatre in the City of Westminster, located in Northumberland Avenue, near Trafalgar Square, central London. The Theatre was built by F. H. Fowler and Hill with a seating capacity of 1,200. It was rebuilt i ...

Theatres completed in 1911 Former theatres in Manhattan Demolished theatres in New York City Demolished buildings and structures in Manhattan 1911 establishments in New York City 1969 disestablishments in New York (state) Buildings and structures demolished in 1969