The Knickerbocker Theatre, previously known as Abbey's Theatre and Henry Abbey's Theatre, was a
Broadway theatre
Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a Stage (theatre), stage. The performe ...
located at 1396 Broadway (West 38th Street) in
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
. It operated from 1893 to 1930. In 1906, the theatre introduced the first moving electrical sign on Broadway to advertise its productions.
History
The 1500-seat theatre was designed by the architectural firm of J. B. McElfatrick & Co. It opened as Abbey's Theatre, named after Broadway theatre manager and producer
Henry Eugene Abbey, on November 8, 1893, with a production of the melodrama ''The Countess Valeska''. In the mid-1890s,
Lillian Russell starred at the theatre, including in ''
The Queen of Brilliants'', a flop.
Following Abbey's death in 1896,
Al Hayman and the
Theatrical Syndicate group took control of the theatre and rechristened it the Knickerbocker. In its early years, the theatre hosted productions of
Shakespeare's plays and
Edwardian musical comedy. Several of
Victor Herbert
Victor August Herbert (February 1, 1859 – May 26, 1924) was an American composer, Cello, cellist and conducting, conductor of English and Irish ancestry and German training. Although Herbert enjoyed important careers as a cello soloist and co ...
's operettas premièred there. In 1906, the theatre introduced the first moving electrical sign on Broadway with an advertisement for its production of Herbert's ''
The Red Mill''. Operettas by European composers, such as ''
The Dollar Princess'' and ''
The Merry Widow
''The Merry Widow'' ( ) is an operetta by the Austria-Hungary, Austro-Hungarian composer Franz Lehár. The Libretto, librettists, Viktor Léon and Leo Stein (writer), Leo Stein, based the story – concerning a rich widow, and her countrymen's ...
'' also played there.
In 1905,
Variety opened its first office at the theatre.
After
World War I
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, the theatre continued to present a mixture of musicals, new plays and classics. Following the
Wall Street crash of 1929, the theatre closed. It was
demolished in 1930, along with the nearby
Casino Theatre, to make way for the expanding
Garment District.
Notable productions
*1895: ''
An Enemy of the People''
*1896: ''
The Sign of the Cross'' (play by Wilson Barrett) (November)
*1897: ''
The Serenade''
*1901: ''
Quality Street''
*1901: ''
The Strollers'' (70 perf.)
*1901 ''
The Casino Girl'' (40 perf.)
*1902: ''
The Toreador'' (121 perf.)
*1902: ''The Wild Rose'' (136 perf.)
*1903: ''Mr. Bluebeard'' (135 perf.)
*1905: ''
Mlle. Modiste'' (202 perf.)
*1906: ''
The Red Mill'' (274 perf.)
*1907: ''The Talk of New York'' (173 perf.)
*1908: ''
The Girls of Gottenberg'' (103 perf.)
*1909: ''The Fair Co-ed'' (136 perf.)
*1909: ''
The Dollar Princess'' (250 perf.)
*1910: ''
The Arcadians'' (201 perf. across multiple theatres)
*1910: ''
The Scarlet Pimpernel
''The Scarlet Pimpernel'' is the first novel in a series of historical fiction by Baroness Orczy, published in 1905. It was written after her stage play of the same title (co-authored with her husband Montague Barstow) enjoyed a long run in Lo ...
''
*1911: ''The Siren'' (116 perf.)
*1911: ''
Kismet'' (the play by
Edward Knoblauch) (184 perf.)
*1912: ''
Oh! Oh! Delphine'' (258 perf.)
*1913: ''
The Sunshine Girl''
*1913: ''
The Marriage Market''
*1914: ''
The Girl from Utah'' (120 perf.)
*1916: ''
The Music Master'' (159 perf., revival)
*1917: ''
Hamilton
Hamilton may refer to:
* Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States
* ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda
** ''Hamilton'' (al ...
''
*1918: ''
Listen Lester'' (272 perf.)
[Parker, John (ed), ''Who's Who in the Theatre'', 10th revised edition, London, 1947: 1430]
*1920: ''
Mary'' (220 perf.)
*1922: ''The Clinging Vine'' (188 perf.)
*1924: ''
Peter Pan
Peter Pan is a fictional character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie. A free-spirited and mischievous young boy who can fly and never grows up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood having adventures on the mythical ...
'' (96 perf., revival)
*1925: ''
Dearest Enemy'' (286 perf.)
*1926: ''Honeymoon Lane'' (353 perf.)
*1927: ''Sidewalks of New York'' (112 perf.)
References
External links
Internet Broadway Database listing
{{Coord, 40, 45, 9.5, N, 73, 59, 13.5, W, type:landmark_region:US-NY, display=title
Former Broadway theatres
Broadway (Manhattan)
Demolished theatres in New York City
Buildings and structures demolished in 1930
Demolished buildings and structures in Manhattan