Longacre Theater
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The Longacre 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 Stre ...
theater at 220 West 48th Street in the
Theater District A theater district (also spelled theatre district) is a common name for a neighborhood containing a city's theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences ...
of
Midtown Manhattan Midtown Manhattan is the central portion of the New York City borough of Manhattan, serving as the city's primary central business district. Midtown is home to some of the city's most prominent buildings, including the Empire State Building, the ...
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 ...
, New York, U.S. Opened in 1913, it was designed by Henry B. Herts and is named for Longacre Square, the former name of
Times Square Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and Neighborhoods in New York City, neighborhood in the Midtown Manhattan section of New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway (Manhattan), ...
. The Longacre has 1,077 seats across three 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 — Lee, Sam, and Jacob J. Shubert — in the late 19th century. T ...
. Both the facade and the auditorium's interior are
New York City designated landmark 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 c ...
s. The ground-floor facade is made of rusticated blocks of
terracotta Terracotta, also known as terra cotta or terra-cotta (; ; ), is a clay-based non-vitreous ceramic OED, "Terracotta""Terracotta" MFA Boston, "Cameo" database fired at relatively low temperatures. It is therefore a term used for earthenware obj ...
. The theater's main entrance is shielded by a
marquee Marquee may refer to: * Marquee (overhang), a secondary covering attached to the exterior wall of a building * Marquee (structure), a structure placed over the entrance to a hotel, theater, casino, train station, or similar building. * Pole marquee ...
. The upper stories are divided vertically 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, ci ...
, which contain niches on either side of three large windows. The auditorium contains ornamental plasterwork, a sloped orchestra level, two balconies, and a
coved ceiling A coved ceiling is a ceiling that has had the visual appearance of the point where the ceiling meets the walls improved by the addition of coving. It can also refer to a ceiling, like in a Mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a ...
. The balcony level contains
box A box (plural: boxes) is a container with rigid sides used for the storage or transportation of its contents. Most boxes have flat, parallel, rectangular sides (typically rectangular prisms). Boxes can be very small (like a matchbox) or v ...
seats topped by flat arches, and the
proscenium A proscenium (, ) is the virtual vertical plane of space in a theatre, usually surrounded on the top and sides by a physical proscenium arch (whether or not truly "arched") and on the bottom by the stage floor itself, which serves as the frame ...
opening is also a flat arch. In addition, the Longacre contains two lounges, and the top story formerly had offices. Theatrical personality
Harry Frazee Harry Herbert Frazee (June 29, 1880 – June 4, 1929) was an American theatrical agent, producer, and director, and owner of Major League Baseball's Boston Red Sox from 1916 to 1923. He is well known for selling Babe Ruth to the New York Yanke ...
acquired the site in 1911 and developed the Longacre Theatre to accommodate musicals. The Longacre opened on May 1, 1913, with the play ''Are You a Crook?'', but the theater housed several
flops Floating point operations per second (FLOPS, flops or flop/s) is a measure of computer performance in computing, useful in fields of scientific computations that require floating-point calculations. For such cases, it is a more accurate measu ...
in its early years. Frazee, who co-owned the theater with G. M. Anderson, sold his ownership stake in 1917 to focus on baseball. The
Shubert brothers The Shubert family was responsible for the establishment of Broadway theaters in New York City's Theater District, as the hub of the theatre industry in the United States. Through the Shubert Organization, founded by brothers Lee, Sam, and Jac ...
acquired the Longacre in 1924 and operated it for two decades before leasing it as a radio and television studio in 1944. The Shuberts returned the Longacre to legitimate theatrical use in 1953. The theater gained a reputation for hosting few successful productions in the late 20th century and was nearly converted to a court in the early 1990s. The Longacre was renovated in 2008.


Site

The Longacre Theatre is on 220 West 48th Street, on the south sidewalk 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 Stre ...
, near
Times Square Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and Neighborhoods in New York City, neighborhood in the Midtown Manhattan section of New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway (Manhattan), ...
in the
Theater District A theater district (also spelled theatre district) is a common name for a neighborhood containing a city's theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences ...
of
Midtown Manhattan Midtown Manhattan is the central portion of the New York City borough of Manhattan, serving as the city's primary central business district. Midtown is home to some of the city's most prominent buildings, including the Empire State Building, the ...
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 ...
, New York, U.S. The square
land lot In real estate, a land lot or plot of land 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 sam ...
covers , with a
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 ...
of about on 48th Street and a depth of 100 feet. The Longacre shares the block with the
Samuel J. Friedman Theatre The Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, formerly the Biltmore Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 261 West 47th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. Opened in 1925, it was designed by Herbert J. Krapp i ...
to the west, the
Ethel Barrymore Theatre The Ethel Barrymore Theatre is a Broadway theatre, Broadway theater at 243 West 47th Street (Manhattan), 47th Street in the Theater District, Manhattan, Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. Opened in 1928, it ...
to the south, and the
Morgan Stanley Building 1585 Broadway, also called the Morgan Stanley Building, is a 42-story office building on Times Square in the Theater District neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. The building was designed by Gwathmey Siegel & Associates ...
to the east. Other nearby buildings include the
Eugene O'Neill Theatre The Eugene O'Neill Theatre, previously the Forrest Theatre and the Coronet Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 230 West 49th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. The theater was designed by Her ...
and
Walter Kerr Theatre The Walter Kerr Theatre, previously the Ritz Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 219 West 48th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. The theater was designed by Herbert J. Krapp and was constructe ...
to the north;
Crowne Plaza Times Square Manhattan The Hyatt Regency Times Square (formerly the Crowne Plaza Times Square Manhattan) is a hotel at 1605 Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway, between 48th and 49th Streets, in the Theater District, Manhattan, Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New ...
to the northeast;
20 Times Square 20 Times Square is a 42-story mixed-use development at 701 Seventh Avenue, on the northeast corner with West 47th Street at the northern end of Times Square, Manhattan, New York City. (May 21, 2014) The development includes one of Ian Schrager ...
to the east; the
Hotel Edison Hotel Edison is at 228 West 47th Street in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Opened in 1931, it is part of the Triumph Hotels brand, owned by Shimmie Horn and Gerald Barad. Thomas Edison turned on the lights when it opened. It accommodated 1,0 ...
and
Lunt-Fontanne Theatre The Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, originally the Globe Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 205 West 46th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. Opened in 1910, the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre was designed by C ...
to the south; and the
Lena Horne Theatre The Lena Horne Theatre (previously the Mansfield Theatre and the Brooks Atkinson Theatre) is a Broadway theatre, Broadway theater at 256 West 47th Street (Manhattan), 47th Street in the Theater District, Manhattan, Theater District of Midtown M ...
and
Paramount Hotel The Paramount Hotel (formerly the Century-Paramount Hotel) is a hotel in the Theater District, Manhattan, Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States. Designed by architect Thomas W. Lamb, the hotel is at 235 West 46t ...
to the southwest. Before the Longacre Theatre was developed, the surrounding area generally had a mixture of low-rise residences and industrial buildings. The site of the Longacre Theatre was previously occupied by a row of four residences, each of which was three stories high. At the time of the theater's construction, the site to the east contained a carriage factory, while the Union Methodist Church was across 48th Street.


Design

The Longacre Theatre was designed by Henry B. Herts and constructed for baseball personality
Harry Frazee Harry Herbert Frazee (June 29, 1880 – June 4, 1929) was an American theatrical agent, producer, and director, and owner of Major League Baseball's Boston Red Sox from 1916 to 1923. He is well known for selling Babe Ruth to the New York Yanke ...
. Herts had designed several Broadway theaters with his partner Hugh Tallant, including the
New Amsterdam Theatre The New Amsterdam Theatre is a Broadway theatre, Broadway theater at 214 West 42nd Street (Manhattan), 42nd Street, at the southern end of Times Square, in the Theater District, Manhattan, Theater District of Manhattan in New York City, New Yor ...
and Lyceum Theatre, but the partnership dissolved in the early 1910s. The Longacre was one of the first Broadway theaters that Herts designed alone.


Facade

The main
elevation The elevation of a geographic location (geography), ''location'' is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational equipotenti ...
of the facade faces north on 48th Street and is arranged symmetrically with classical French details. Early news articles about the theater described it as having a facade of gray limestone and terracotta, with the terracotta pieces being painted in several colors. A contemporary ''
New-York Tribune The ''New-York Tribune'' (from 1914: ''New York Tribune'') was an American newspaper founded in 1841 by editor Horace Greeley. It bore the moniker ''New-York Daily Tribune'' from 1842 to 1866 before returning to its original name. From the 1840s ...
'' article compared the theater to the
Whitehall Palace The Palace of Whitehall – also spelled White Hall – at Westminster was the main residence of the English monarchs from 1530 until 1698, when most of its structures, with the notable exception of Inigo Jones's Banqueting House of 1622, ...
, while a ''New York Times'' article said the theater's exterior "gives a cheerful touch of snap and cheer to the old-time structures formerly characteristic of this block". The west and east elevations contain brick walls with window openings and fire escapes. At ground level along 48th Street, there is a
water table The water table is the upper surface of the phreatic zone or zone of saturation. The zone of saturation is where the pores and fractures of the ground are saturated with groundwater, which may be fresh, saline, or brackish, depending on the loc ...
made of granite, above which are rusticated blocks of terracotta. The ground level contains five doorways, separated by sign boards. The three center openings are each approached by a single step; each opening contains a metal-and-glass double door topped by a transom. On either side of the central doors is a recessed doorway containing metal double doors. A
frieze In classical architecture, the frieze is the wide central section of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic order, Ionic or Corinthian order, Corinthian orders, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Patera (architecture), Paterae are also ...
decorated with foliate moldings, as well as a horizontal band with facets, runs above the first floor. Above all of these openings is a metal
marquee Marquee may refer to: * Marquee (overhang), a secondary covering attached to the exterior wall of a building * Marquee (structure), a structure placed over the entrance to a hotel, theater, casino, train station, or similar building. * Pole marquee ...
. The stage door is to the left of the main entrance doors. According to early photographs, the ground-floor facade was originally composed of colored terracotta tiles, the color of which complemented the upper stories. The upper stories are divided 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, ci ...
, separated by fluted
pilaster In architecture, a pilaster is both a load-bearing section of thickened wall or column integrated into a wall, and a purely decorative element in classical architecture which gives the appearance of a supporting column and articulates an ext ...
s. The lower section of each pilaster contains a floral decoration, an
urn An urn is a vase, often with a cover, with a typically narrowed neck above a rounded body and a footed pedestal. Describing a vessel as an "urn", as opposed to a vase or other terms, generally reflects its use rather than any particular shape ...
, and a
niche Niche may refer to: Science *Developmental niche, a concept for understanding the cultural context of child development and growth *Ecological niche, a term describing the relational position of an organism's species *Niche differentiation, in ec ...
with a female statue personifying Drama; the statues hold masks and scrolls. The pilasters are topped by Corinthian-style
capitals Capital and its variations may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** Capital region, a metropolitan region containing the capital ** List of national capitals * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Econom ...
. The three inner bays (directly above the marquee) contain double-height openings, each with a window and a transom bar that is divided horizontally into three sections. The bottoms of each window contain sills with
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. They come in four main pairs of shapes, as given in the box to the right, which also gives their n ...
and reeded panels, while the spaces above contain curved
pediment Pediments are a form of gable in classical architecture, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the cornice (an elaborated lintel), or entablature if supported by columns.Summerson, 130 In an ...
s. A triangular sign is placed over the center window. The outermost two bays contain paneling, as well as
corbel In architecture, a corbel is a structural piece of stone, wood or metal keyed into and projecting from a wall to carry a wikt:superincumbent, bearing weight, a type of bracket (architecture), bracket. A corbel is a solid piece of material in t ...
s that support empty niches. Large billboards were originally hung over the outermost bays. Near the top of each bay, between the pilasters' capitals, is a frieze panel in each bay. Each panel consists of an oval plaque, which is flanked by circular medallions with scallop and mask motifs. Above this, an entablature wraps across the width of the facade; it contains fluted tiles on either side of an inscription with the words "The Longacre Theatre". The entablature is topped by a cornice with
modillion A modillion is an ornate bracket, more horizontal in shape and less imposing than a corbel. They are often seen underneath a Cornice (architecture), cornice which helps to support them. Modillions are more elaborate than dentils (literally transl ...
s and lions' heads. Above the
cornice In architecture, a cornice (from the Italian ''cornice'' meaning "ledge") is generally any horizontal decorative Moulding (decorative), moulding that crowns a building or furniture element—for example, the cornice over a door or window, ar ...
is an attic story with two recessed sash windows in each bay. The interiors of the recessed window openings are decorated with medallions and foliate motifs. The attic story's bays are separated by projecting pilasters with urns and foliate decoration. There is an
architrave In classical architecture, an architrave (; , also called an epistyle; ) is the lintel or beam, typically made of wood or stone, that rests on the capitals of columns. The term can also apply to all sides, including the vertical members, ...
and a
parapet A parapet is a barrier that is an upward extension of a 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/brea ...
just below the roof.


Interior

The theater was intended to be fireproof, with stone, brick, steel, terracotta, and reinforced concrete being used in its construction. The auditorium has an orchestra level, two balconies, boxes, and a
stage Stage, stages, or staging may refer to: Arts and media 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 Brit ...
behind the
proscenium A proscenium (, ) is the virtual vertical plane of space in a theatre, usually surrounded on the top and sides by a physical proscenium arch (whether or not truly "arched") and on the bottom by the stage floor itself, which serves as the frame ...
arch. The auditorium's width is slightly greater than its depth, and the space is designed with plaster decorations in
relief Relief is a sculpture, sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces remain attached to a solid background of the same material. The term ''wikt:relief, relief'' is from the Latin verb , to raise (). To create a sculpture in relief is to give ...
. The Longacre's operator
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 — Lee, Sam, and Jacob J. Shubert — in the late 19th century. T ...
cites the auditorium as having 1,077 seats; meanwhile, ''
Playbill ''Playbill'' is an American monthly magazine for Audience, theatergoers. Although there is a subscription issue available for home delivery, most copies of ''Playbill'' are printed for particular productions and distributed at the door as the ...
'' cites 1,045 seats and
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 City. Its members include theatre ow ...
cites 1,091 seats. These are divided into 508 in the orchestra, 304 in the first balcony, 249 in the second balcony, and 16 in the boxes. The 1,077-seat capacity dates to a 2008 renovation, when 18 seats were removed to improve wheelchair accessibility and sight lines. The orchestra level is wheelchair-accessible via the main doors; the balcony levels are primarily accessed by steps, but there is a small
wheelchair lift A wheelchair lift, also known as a platform lift, or vertical platform lift, is a fully powered device designed to raise a wheelchair and its occupant in order to overcome a step or similar vertical barrier. Wheelchair lifts can be installed in ...
. The original color scheme consisted of hues of Roman gold, with topaz carpets, wisteria seats, and gold draperies. Though the decorative scheme was described in one source as "extremely simple", the decorative motifs that did exist were highly elaborate, and some motifs were repeated multiple times. The auditorium's current color scheme, which consists of gold and green hues, dates to 2008. The theater's lobby was originally decorated in gray-green colors, with highlights of gold and serpentine marble. The dressing rooms behind the stage are completely insulated from the auditorium by a heavy steel wall. In addition, Frazee's offices were placed above the auditorium. In a 2008 renovation, a basement lounge was excavated, and the attic was turned into an upper lounge with a bar and bathrooms.


Seating areas

The rear of the orchestra contains a promenade. The rear wall of the promenade and the side walls of the orchestra contain plasterwork paneling, as well as doorways with eared frames. The promenade ceiling has molded ribs. Staircases with wrought-iron railings lead from the promenade to the balcony levels. The orchestra is raked, sloping down toward an
orchestra pit An orchestra pit is an area in a theatre (usually located in a lowered area in front of the stage) in which musicians perform. The orchestra plays mostly out of sight in the pit, rather than on the stage as for a concert, when providing music fo ...
in front of the stage. The front walls of the auditorium curve inward toward the proscenium opening. The ground floor formerly had three boxes near the proscenium. Promenades also exist behind both balcony levels. The balcony walls have similar plasterwork paneling and eared doorway frames to the orchestra level. An entablature runs atop the front portion of the second balcony's walls; it wraps above the boxes on both sides of the auditorium, as well as above the proscenium arch. There are light fixtures and air conditioning vents underneath both balcony levels, as well as a technical booth behind the second balcony's rear wall. The balcony fronts were originally decorated with plasterwork swags and fleurettes. The ornamentation on the undersides and front railings of both balconies was removed at some point after the theater's opening, then restored in 2008. The balconies are shallow and placed at a low height, a deliberate design choice that brought these seats closer to the stage. On either side of the proscenium is one curved box at the first balcony level. The boxes are housed within flat-arched openings. As with the balconies, the boxes' fronts were originally decorated with plasterwork swags and fleurettes, but the original ornamentation on the boxes' undersides and front railings was removed after the theater's opening. The boxes' ornamentation was also restored in 2008. Above each box is an entablature with foliate motifs and a cornice with dentils. An Adam-style band surrounds each box's arch. In addition, there is an oval medallion depicting a helmet and shield, which interrupts the Adam-style band.


Other design features

Next to the boxes is a flat proscenium arch. The inner edge of the archway contains a molded band of shells. A wider band with foliate and
latticework __NOTOC__ Latticework is an openwork framework consisting of a criss-crossed pattern of strips of building material, typically wood or metal. The design is created by crossing the strips to form a grid or weave. Latticework may be functional &nd ...
motifs also surrounds the archway. News sources from 1913 describe the band being made of gold and "breccia violet marble". Above the center of the arch is a cartouche, which is decorated with foliate motifs; the cartouche overlaps both the wide band and the entablature above it. The entablature is decorated with helmets and symbols of laurel bands, spears, and shields. The proscenium measures high and wide. The depth of the auditorium to the proscenium is , while the depth to the front of the stage is . The stage measures wide and either or deep. The ceiling is slightly coved at its edges, though the rest of the ceiling is flat. A coved, molded band separates the ceiling into front and rear sections. A wide panel containing cartouches, foliate decoration, and latticework is placed at the front of the ceiling. Two chandeliers hang from either side of this panel. The rear section of the ceiling is semicircular and is surrounded by a band with foliate decorations.


History

Times Square became the epicenter for large-scale theater productions between 1900 and the
Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
. 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, the fourth president of the United St ...
during the first decade of the 20th century. From 1901 to 1920, forty-three theaters were built around Broadway in Midtown Manhattan, including the Longacre Theatre.
Harry Frazee Harry Herbert Frazee (June 29, 1880 – June 4, 1929) was an American theatrical agent, producer, and director, and owner of Major League Baseball's Boston Red Sox from 1916 to 1923. He is well known for selling Babe Ruth to the New York Yanke ...
was a theatrical personality (and later a baseball executive) from
Peoria, Illinois Peoria ( ) is a city in Peoria County, Illinois, United States, and its county seat. Located on the Illinois River, the city had a population of 113,150 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Ill ...
, who entered the industry as a 16-year-old theater usher in 1896. Frazee subsequently moved to
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
, operating theaters and producing several shows.


Development and early years

In late 1911, the lots at 220 to 228 West 48th Street were sold to Frazee and George W. Lederer. The site would be redeveloped with a theater known as the Longacre, after Times Square's former name. Several architects had already proposed designs for the theater. By January 1912, Henry B. Herts had been selected as the architect, and he filed plans for the theater that month 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 ...
. Frazee planned to house his own musicals at the Longacre. Construction started in May 1912 at an estimated cost of $150,000. By August 1912, the theater was reportedly near completion and scheduled to open that October. The opening was then delayed to November, and the scaffolding in front of the theater was disassembled by October. The theater's completion stalled due to "strikes and contractors' difficulties", including the bankruptcy of a contractor.
Philip Bartholomae Philip Bartholomae (July 3, 1880 - January 5, 1947) was an American playwright, lyricist, screenwriter, and theatre director. He wrote many plays and musicals which were staged on Broadway in the 1910s and 1920s, several of which were adapted int ...
made an unsuccessful offer of $400,000 for the theater in December 1912, and work resumed shortly afterward. The delays nearly doubled the cost to $275,000. The Longacre opened on May 1, 1913, with ''Are You a Crook?'', a
farce Farce is a comedy that seeks to entertain an audience through situations that are highly exaggerated, extravagant, ridiculous, absurd, and improbable. Farce is also characterized by heavy use of physical comedy, physical humor; the use of delibe ...
about criminals that closed after 12 performances.; ;
It was one of nine theaters to open in Times Square during the 1912–1913 theatrical season. The musical ''Adele'', which opened in August 1913, was much more successful. The Longacre hosted several
flops Floating point operations per second (FLOPS, flops or flop/s) is a measure of computer performance in computing, useful in fields of scientific computations that require floating-point calculations. For such cases, it is a more accurate measu ...
afterward. In April 1914, the theater went into foreclosure to satisfy an outstanding mortgage of $70,000, though the foreclosure proceeding was subsequently withdrawn. The same year, the Longacre hosted the melodrama ''
A Pair of Sixes ''A Pair of Sixes'', originally titled ''The Party of the Second Part'', is a farce in three acts by Edward Peple that made its Broadway debut at the Longacre Theatre on March 17, 1914. The piece was produced by Harry Frazee and achieved a run ...
'', which lasted 188 performances,; and the farce ''Kick In'' with
John Barrymore John Barrymore (born John Sidney Blyth; February 14 or 15, 1882 – May 29, 1942) was an American actor on stage, screen, and radio. A member of the Drew and Barrymore theatrical families, he initially tried to avoid the stage, and briefly a ...
, which had 207 total performances.
During 1915, the Longacre's productions included ''Inside the Lines'' with
Lewis Stone Lewis Shepard Stone (November 15, 1879 – September 12, 1953) was an American film actor. He spent 29 years as a contract player at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and was best known for his portrayal of Judge James Hardy in the studio's popular '' Andy ...
,;
''A Full House'' with
May Vokes May Vokes ( – September 13, 1957) was an American actress and comedienne. She appeared primarily in comedic roles in stage plays. Her Broadway appearances included '' When Dreams Come True'', ''A Fool and His Money'', '' The Quaker Girl'', and '' ...
,
and ''The Great Lover'' with
Leo Ditrichstein Leo Ditrichstein (January 6, 1865 – June 28, 1928) was an Austrian-American actor and playwright. Early life He was born on January 6, 1865, in Temesvár, Austrian Empire. He was educated in Vienna and was naturalized as an American citizen ...
.
In April 1916, Frazee and G. M. Anderson bought the Longacre Theatre; previously, they had leased it from Pincus and Goldstone. The Longacre's next hit was ''Nothing but the Truth'', which opened in 1916 and starred William Collier Sr. for 332 performances.
In November 1916, during the run of ''Nothing but the Truth'', Frazee sold his interest in the Longacre to Anderson,
L. Lawrence Weber L. Lawrence Weber (c. 1872 – 22 February 1940) was an American sports promoter, stage show producer and theater manager. He was active in arranging Vaudville, vaudeville shows, legitimate theater and films. He once tried to bypass laws against i ...
, and F. Ray Comstock. Frazee wished to focus on managing the
Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...
, which he had just acquired. The Longacre then hosted two popular shows in the late 1910s.
Guy Bolton Guy Reginald Bolton (23 November 1884 – 4 September 1979) was an Anglo-American playwright and writer of musical theatre, musical comedies. Born in England and educated in France and the US, he trained as an architect but turned to writing. B ...
,
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 over ...
, and
P. G. Wodehouse Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse ( ; 15 October 1881 – 14 February 1975) was an English writer and one of the most widely read humorists of the 20th century. His creations include the feather-brained Bertie Wooster and his sagacious valet, Je ...
provided music for the intimate musical ''
Leave It to Jane ''Leave It to Jane'' is a musical in two acts, with music by Jerome Kern and book and lyrics by Guy Bolton and P. G. Wodehouse, based on the 1904 play '' The College Widow'', by George Ade. The story concerns the football rivalry between Atwater ...
'' in 1917, while Bolton and George Middleton collaborated on ''
Adam and Eva ''Adam and Eva'' is a 1923 American comedy silent film directed by Robert G. Vignola and adapted by Luther Reed from the play by Guy Bolton and George Middleton. The film stars Marion Davies, T. Roy Barnes, Tom Lewis, William Norris, Percy Ame ...
'' in 1919.


1920s to early 1940s

The Longacre hosted ''Pitter Patter'' with
William T. Kent William Thomas Kent (April 29, 1886 - October 5, 1945) was an American stage actor who later appeared in sound films. He was born in St. Paul, Minnesota and died in New York City. Kent's career traversed many forms of entertainment (i.e. Broadwa ...
in 1920; ;
and ''The Champion'' with Grant Mitchell the next year.
Ethel Barrymore Ethel Barrymore (born Ethel Mae Blythe; August 15, 1879 – June 18, 1959) was an American actress and a member of the Barrymore family of actors. Barrymore was a stage, screen and radio actress whose career spanned six decades, and was regarde ...
then leased the theater in June 1922, appearing in three plays there: '' Rose Bernd'', ''
Romeo and Juliet ''The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet'', often shortened to ''Romeo and Juliet'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare about the romance between two young Italians from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's ...
'', and ''The Laughing Lady''. Another hit in 1923 was ''
Little Jessie James ''Little Jessie James'' was a musical farce that was the biggest hit of the 1923-24 Broadway season. Production ''Little Jessie James'' was written by Harlan Thompson, the author of the book and the lyrics. The music was by Harry Archer. It w ...
'', with music by Harry Archer and
Harlan Thompson Harlan Thompson (24 September 1890 – 29 October 1966) was an American theatre director, screenwriter, lyricist, film director, and film and television producer. He wrote the Broadway hit ''Little Jessie James'' (1923–24), and several other B ...
, which ran for 385 performances.; The
Shubert brothers The Shubert family was responsible for the establishment of Broadway theaters in New York City's Theater District, as the hub of the theatre industry in the United States. Through the Shubert Organization, founded by brothers Lee, Sam, and Jac ...
acquired the Longacre in May 1924 for $600,000. William B. Friedlander and
Con Conrad Con Conrad (born Conrad K. Dober; June 18, 1891 – September 28, 1938) was an American songwriter and producer. Biography Conrad was born in Manhattan, New York, and published his first song, "Down in Dear Old New Orleans", in 1912. Conrad p ...
wrote the music for two of the Longacre's next works: ''Moonlight''; ;
and ''Mercenary Mary''.
Also in 1925, George S. Kaufman produced ''
The Butter and Egg Man ''The Butter and Egg Man'' is a 1925 play by George S. Kaufman, the only play he wrote without collaborating. It was a Broadway theatre, Broadway hit during the 1925–26 season at the Longacre Theatre. Adapted to film six times, it is still perf ...
'',; ; the only play Kaufman wrote without collaborating. The Longacre then staged ''An American Tragedy'' in 1926, featuring
Morgan Farley Francis Morgan Farley (October 3, 1898 – October 11, 1988) was an American actor on the stage and in films and television. Career His theatrical career began in 1917 in the stage adaptation of Booth Tarkington's '' Seventeen''. He recr ...
and
Miriam Hopkins Ellen Miriam Hopkins (October 18, 1902 – October 9, 1972) was an American actress known for her versatility. She signed with Paramount Pictures in 1930. She portrayed a pickpocket in Ernst Lubitsch's romantic comedy '' Trouble in Paradise'', ...
for 216 performances,;
and the comedy ''The Command to Love'' the next year, which ran for 236 performances.
The Longacre's offerings in the late 1920s included ''Jarnegan'' with
Richard Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic language">Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' and ''*hardu-'' 'strong, brave, hardy', and it therefore means 'st ...
and
Joan Bennett Joan Geraldine Bennett (February 27, 1910 – December 7, 1990) was an American stage, film, and television actress, one of three acting sisters from a show-business family. Beginning her career on the stage, Bennett appeared in more than 70 fil ...
,; ''Hawk Island'' with
Clark Gable William Clark Gable (February 1, 1901November 16, 1960) was an American actor often referred to as the "King of Cinema of the United States, Hollywood". He appeared in more than 60 Film, motion pictures across a variety of Film genre, genres dur ...
, and ''A Primer for Lovers'' with
Alison Skipworth Alison Skipworth (born Alison Mary Elliott Margaret Groom; 25 July 18635 July 1952) was an English stage and screen actress. Early years Skipworth was born in London. She was the daughter of Dr. Richard Ebenezer Groom and Elizabeth Rodgers, an ...
.; In general, the Longacre did not hold any long runs in 1930 or 1931. The shows during this time included ''The Matriarch'' in 1930 with
Constance Collier Constance Collier (born Laura Constance Hardie; 22 January 1878 – 25 April 1955) was an English stage and film actress and acting coach. She wrote plays and films with Ivor Novello and she was the first person to be treated with insulin i ...
and
Jessica Tandy Jessie Alice Tandy (7 June 1909 – 11 September 1994) was a British actress. An icon in the film industry, she appeared in over 100 stage productions and had more than 60 roles in film and TV, receiving an Academy Award, four Tony Awards, a BAF ...
, as well as ''Nikki'' in 1931 with
Fay Wray Vina Fay Wray (September 15, 1907 – August 8, 2004) was a Canadian-American actress best known for starring as Ann Darrow in the 1933 film ''King Kong''. Through an acting career that spanned nearly six decades, Wray attained international r ...
. The next hit came in 1932, when ''Blessed Event'' opened with
Roger Pryor Roger Atkinson Pryor (July 19, 1828 – March 14, 1919) was an American newspaper editor, lawyer, politician and judge. A journalist and U.S. Congressman from Virginia known as a Southern "fire eater" for his fiery oratory in favor of slaver ...
.; ; The Longacre then staged ''Nine Pine Street'',; and ''Wednesday's Child''. The Longacre hosted many flops during the Great Depression, sometimes with a several-month gap between productions.; In March 1935, the Group Theatre premiered
Clifford Odets Clifford Odets (July 18, 1906 – August 14, 1963) was an American playwright, screenwriter, and actor. In the mid-1930s, he was widely seen as the potential successor to Nobel Prize–winning playwright Eugene O'Neill, as O'Neill began to withd ...
's ''
Till the Day I Die image:Geschiebemergel.JPG, Closeup of glacial till. Note that the larger grains (pebbles and gravel) in the till are completely surrounded by the matrix of finer material (silt and sand), and this characteristic, known as ''matrix support'', is d ...
'' and ''
Waiting for Lefty ''Waiting for Lefty'' is a 1935 play by the American playwright Clifford Odets; it was his first play to be produced. Consisting of a series of related vignettes, the entire play is framed by a meeting of cab drivers who are planning a lab ...
'', which starred Odets,
Elia Kazan Elias Kazantzoglou (, ; September 7, 1909 – September 28, 2003), known as Elia Kazan ( ), was a Greek-American film and theatre director, producer, screenwriter and actor, described by ''The New York Times'' as "one of the most honored and inf ...
, and
Lee J. Cobb Lee J. Cobb (born Leo Jacoby; December 8, 1911February 11, 1976) was an American actor, known both for film roles and his work on the Broadway stage, as well as for his starring role on the television series '' The Virginian''. He often played a ...
for 135 performances. That December, the Group Theatre staged ''
Paradise Lost ''Paradise Lost'' is an Epic poetry, epic poem in blank verse by the English poet John Milton (1608–1674). The poem concerns the Bible, biblical story of the fall of man: the temptation of Adam and Eve by the fallen angel Satan and their ex ...
'', another Odets play, at the Longacre. The
Works Progress Administration The Works Progress Administration (WPA; from 1935 to 1939, then known as the Work Projects Administration from 1939 to 1943) was an American New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers (mostly men who were not formally educated) to car ...
(WPA)'s
Federal Theatre Project The Federal Theatre Project (FTP; 1935–1939) was a theatre program established during the Great Depression as part of the New Deal to fund live artistic performances and entertainment programs in the United States. It was one of five Federal ...
had planned to rent the Longacre in 1936, but the WPA rescinded its plan due to protests from stagehand unions. Artef, a
Yiddish theatre Yiddish theatre consists of plays written and performed primarily by Jews in Yiddish, the language of the Ashkenazi Jewish community. The range of Yiddish theatre is broad: operetta, musical comedy, and satire, satiric or nostalgic revues; melodr ...
group, was also negotiating for the Longacre. The Longacre's productions during this time included a ''
Hedda Gabler ''Hedda Gabler'' () is a play written by Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. The world premiere was staged on 31 January 1891 at the Residenztheater in Munich. Ibsen himself was in attendance, although he remained back-stage.Meyer, Michael Lever ...
'' revival with
Alla Nazimova Alla Aleksandrovna Nazimova (, born Marem-Ides Leventon; June 3 Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Old Style and New Style dates">O.S. May 22 1879 – July 13, 1945) was a Russian-American actress, director, producer and scre ...
,;
followed by ''The Lady Has a Heart'' with
Elissa Landi Elissa Landi (born Elisabeth Marie Christine von Kühnelt; December 6, 1904 – October 21, 1948) was an Austrian-American actress born in Venice, who was popular as a performer in Hollywood, California, Hollywood films of the 1920s and 19 ...
.; The Longacre hosted
Paul Osborn Paul Osborn (September 4, 1901 – May 12, 1988) was an American playwright and screenwriter. Osborn's original plays are '' The Vinegar Tree'', ''Oliver Oliver'', and '' Morning's at Seven'' and among his several successful adaptations, '' On Bo ...
's ''
On Borrowed Time ''On Borrowed Time'' is a 1939 drama film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer starring Lionel Barrymore, with Cedric Hardwicke and Beulah Bondi in support. Produced by Sidney Franklin and directed by Harold S. Bucquet, it is adapted from Paul ...
'' in 1938,; ; which ran for 321 performances.
Another Osborn play, ''
Morning's at Seven ''Morning's at Seven'' is a play by Paul Osborn. Its plot focuses on four aging sisters living in a small Midwestern United States, Midwestern town in 1928, and it deals with ramifications within the family when two of them begin to question the ...
'' in 1939, had a 44-performance run at the Longacre (though its 1980 Broadway revival was far more successful). In the early 1940s, the Longacre was generally filled by productions with less than 100 performances. The major exception to this was ''Three's a Family'', which opened in 1943; ; and ran for 497 performances.


Mid-1940s to 1960s

By April 1944, the Shuberts were planning to relocate ''Three Is a Family'' so the Longacre could be leased to the
Mutual Broadcasting System The Mutual Broadcasting System (commonly referred to simply as Mutual; sometimes referred to as MBS, Mutual Radio or the Mutual Radio Network) was an American commercial radio network in operation from 1934 to 1999. In the Golden Age of Radio, ...
(MBS) for use as a broadcast studio. The next month, MBS signed a five-year lease. A year after moving into the theater, MBS added some offices on the Longacre's top story to alleviate crowding at its other buildings. The Longacre also served as the home of AM radio station WOR, which used the theater for shows like '' Broadway Talks Back'', as well as ''
The American Forum of the Air ''The American Forum of the Air'', hosted by Theodore "Ted" Granik (1907–1970), is a public affairs (broadcasting), public affairs panel discussion program, the first series of its kind on radio. It aired on the Mutual Broadcasting System ...
'' starting in 1947. The Longacre was the only MBS studio that allowed audiences, but WOR (which was operated by MBS) did not allow audiences at its broadcasts. Because the theater was being used as a studio, the Shuberts refused to comply with a 1948 ordinance that would have required any theater showing legitimate plays to give 2 percent of profits to the city government. By 1949, as a result of a shortage of studios in New York City, MBS rival
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...
had started broadcasting ''This is Broadway'' from the Longacre. Ultimately, the Longacre was used as a radio and television studio for nine and a half years. The Broadway theatre industry had improved by mid-1953, when a shortage of available theaters prompted the Shuberts to return the Longacre to legitimate productions. The first production at the newly reopened Longacre was
Dorothy Parker Dorothy Parker (née Rothschild; August 22, 1893 – June 7, 1967) was an American poet and writer of fiction, plays and screenplays based in New York; she was known for her caustic wisecracks, and eye for 20th-century urban foibles. Parker ros ...
and
Arnaud d'Usseau Arnaud d'Usseau (April 18, 1916 – January 29, 1990) was a playwright and B-movie screenwriter who is perhaps best remembered today for his collaboration with Dorothy Parker on the play '' The Ladies of the Corridor''. Career D'Usseau was bor ...
's ''Ladies of the Corridor'', which opened in October 1953. ''Ladies of the Corridor'' was not a success,; and neither was
Jean Anouilh Jean Marie Lucien Pierre Anouilh (; ; 23 June 1910 – 3 October 1987) was a French dramatist and screenwriter whose career spanned five decades. Though his work ranged from high drama to absurdist farce, Anouilh is best known for his 1944 play ...
's '' Mademoiselle Colombe'' in 1954.;
More successful was
Lillian Hellman Lillian Florence Hellman (June 20, 1905 – June 30, 1984) was an American playwright, Prose, prose writer, Memoir, memoirist, and screenwriter known for her success on Broadway as well as her communist views and political activism. She was black ...
's version of Anouilh's '' The Lark'', which opened in 1955 and featured
Julie Harris Julia Ann Harris (December 2, 1925August 24, 2013) was an American actress. Renowned for her classical and contemporary roles, she earned numerous accolades including five Tony Awards for Best Actress in a Play, three Emmy Awards, and a Grammy ...
,
Boris Karloff William Henry Pratt (23 November 1887 – 2 February 1969), known professionally as Boris Karloff () and occasionally billed as Karloff the Uncanny, was a British actor. His portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in the horror film ''Frankenstei ...
, and
Christopher Plummer Arthur Christopher Orme Plummer (December 13, 1929 – February 5, 2021) was a Canadian actor. His career spanned seven decades, gaining him recognition for his performances in film, stage and television. His accolades included an Academy Aw ...
. This was followed in 1957 by ''Fair Game'', which featured
Sam Levene Sam Levene (born Scholem Lewin; August 28, 1905 – December 28, 1980) was an American Broadway theatre, Broadway, films, radio, and television actor and Television director, director. In a career spanning over five decades, he appeared in over ...
and
Ellen Burstyn Ellen Burstyn (born Edna Rae Gillooly; December 7, 1932) is an American actress. Known for her portrayals of complex women in dramas, she is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a Tony Award, and two Primetime Emmy A ...
.; Another hit at the Longacre was Samuel Taylor's 1958 comedy ''The Pleasure of His Company'', which featured
Cornelia Otis Skinner Cornelia Otis Skinner (May 30, 1899 – July 9, 1979) was an American writer and actress. Biography Skinner was born on 30 May 1899 in Chicago, Illinois as the only child of actor Otis Skinner and actress Maud Durbin. After attending the all-gi ...
,
Walter Abel Walter Abel (June 6, 1898 – March 26, 1987) was an American stage, film, and radio actor whose career spanned nearly seven decades. Life Abel was born in St. Paul, Minnesota, the son of Christine (née Becker) and Richard Michael Abel. Abel ...
,
Dolores Hart Dolores Hart, O.S.B. (born Dolores Hicks; October 20, 1938) is an American Roman Catholic Benedictine nun and former actress. Following her movie debut with Elvis Presley in '' Loving You'' (1957), she made 10 films in five years, including '' ...
,
George Peppard George Peppard (October 1, 1928 – May 8, 1994) was an American actor. He secured a major role as struggling writer Paul Varjak when he starred alongside Audrey Hepburn in '' Breakfast at Tiffany's'' (1961), and later portrayed a character ...
,
Cyril Ritchard Cyril Joseph Trimnell-Ritchard (1 December 1898 – 18 December 1977), known professionally as Cyril Ritchard, was an Australian stage, screen and television actor, and director. He is best remembered today for his performance as Captain Hook i ...
, and
Charlie Ruggles Charles Sherman Ruggles (February 8, 1886 – December 23, 1970) was an American comic character actor. In a career spanning six decades, Ruggles appeared in close to 100 feature films, often in mild-mannered and comic roles. He was also the e ...
.
Eugène Ionesco Eugène Ionesco (; ; born Eugen Ionescu, ; 26 November 1909 – 28 March 1994) was a Romanian-French playwright who wrote mostly in French, and was one of the foremost figures of the French avant-garde theatre#Avant-garde, French avant-garde th ...
's ''
Rhinoceros A rhinoceros ( ; ; ; : rhinoceros or rhinoceroses), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant taxon, extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates (perissodactyls) in the family (biology), famil ...
'' opened at the Longacre in 1961 and featured
Zero Mostel Samuel Joel "Zero" Mostel (February 28, 1915 – September 8, 1977) was an American actor, comedian, and singer. He is best known for his portrayal of comic characters including Tevye on stage in ''Fiddler on the Roof'', Pseudolus on stage and o ...
. A transfer of
Ossie Davis Ossie Davis (born Raiford Chatman Davis; December 18, 1917 – February 4, 2005) was an American actor, Film director, director, writer, and activist. He was married to Ruby Dee, with whom he frequently performed, until his death. He received num ...
's ''
Purlie Victorious ''Purlie Victorious (A Non-Confederate Romp through the Cotton Patch)'' is a three-act comedic stage play written by American actor Ossie Davis. It tells the fictional story of Reverend Purlie Victorious Judson, a dynamic traveling preacher return ...
'' followed at the end of the same year.
The Longacre also hosted
Henry Denker Henry Denker (November 25, 1912 – May 15, 2012) was an American novelist and playwright. Biography Denker was born in New York, the son of a fur trader. After initially studying to be a rabbi, he change to the study of law and graduated fro ...
's ''A Case of Libel'' in 1963, with
Sidney Blackmer Sidney Alderman Blackmer (July 13, 1895 – October 6, 1973) was an American Broadway theatre, Broadway and film actor active between 1914 and 1971, usually in major supporting roles. Biography Blackmer was born and raised in Salisbury, ...
,
Larry Gates Lawrence Wheaton Gates (September 24, 1915December 12, 1996) was an American actor. His notable roles include H.B. Lewis on daytime's ''Guiding Light'' and Doc Baugh in the film version of ''Cat on a Hot Tin Roof'' (1958). He played the role of ...
, and
Van Heflin Emmett Evan "Van" Heflin Jr. (December 13, 1908 – July 23, 1971) was an American theatre, radio, and film actor. He played mostly character parts over the course of his film career, but during the 1940s had a string of roles as a leading man. ...
, followed in 1964 by
Lorraine Hansberry Lorraine Vivian Hansberry (May 19, 1930 – January 12, 1965) was an American playwright and writer. She was the first African-American female author to have a play performed on Broadway theatre, Broadway. Her best-known work, the play ''A Raisin ...
's ''
The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window ''The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window'' is the second and last staged play by playwright Lorraine Hansberry, author of ''A Raisin in the Sun''. The play focuses on events that occur after Sidney hangs a political sign urging an end to Political ...
'' with
Gabriel Dell Gabriel Dell (born Gabriel Marcel Dell Vecchio; October 8, 1919 – July 3, 1988) was an American actor and one of the members of what came to be known as the Dead End Kids, then later the East Side Kids and finally The Bowery Boys. Acting c ...
and
Rita Moreno Rita Moreno (born Rosa Dolores Alverío Marcano; December 11, 1931) is an American actress, dancer, and singer. With a career spanning eight decades she is known for her roles on stage and screen, and is one of the last remaining stars from t ...
. In 1966, the theater hosted a short run of
Tennessee Williams Thomas Lanier Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983), known by his pen name Tennessee Williams, was an American playwright and screenwriter. Along with contemporaries Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller, he is considered among the three ...
's ''Slapstick Tragedy''; (composed of '' The Mutilated'' and '' The Gnadiges Fraulein''),
Hal Holbrook Harold Rowe Holbrook Jr. (February 17, 1925 – January 23, 2021) was an American actor. He first received critical acclaim in 1954 for a one-man stage show that he developed called ''Mark Twain Tonight!'' while studying at Denison University. H ...
's solo show ''
Mark Twain Tonight! ''Mark Twain Tonight!'' is a one-man play devised by Hal Holbrook, in which he depicted Mark Twain giving a dramatic recitation selected from several of Twain's writings, with an emphasis on the comic ones. Background The recitation's genesis wa ...
'', and a solo appearance by
Gilbert Bécaud François Gilbert Léopold Silly (24 October 1927 – 18 December 2001), known professionally as Gilbert Bécaud (), was a French singer, composer, pianist and actor, known as "Monsieur 100,000 Volts" for his energetic performances. His best-know ...
. Holbrook,
Teresa Wright Muriel Teresa Wright (October 27, 1918 – March 6, 2005) was an American actress. She won the 1942 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Carol Beldon in ''Mrs. Miniver''. She was nominated for the same award in 1941 for her ...
, and
Lillian Gish Lillian Diana Gish (October 14, 1893 – February 27, 1993) was an American actress best known for her work in movies of the silent era. Her film-acting career spanned 75 years, from 1912, in silent film shorts, to 1987. Gish was dubbed the "F ...
starred in Robert Anderson's play ''Never Sang for My Father'' at the Longacre in 1968. The
National Theatre of the Deaf The National Theatre of the Deaf (NTD) is an American theatre company founded in 1967, based in Connecticut. It is the oldest theatre company in the United States that has maintained a continuous history of domestic and international touring, as ...
also performed at the Longacre for a limited engagement in 1969.


1970s and 1980s

William Goldman William Goldman (August 12, 1931 – November 16, 2018) was an American novelist, playwright, and screenwriter. He first came to prominence in the 1950s as a novelist before turning to screenwriting. Among other accolades, Goldman won two Aca ...
's 1969 book '' The Season: A Candid Look at Broadway'' had specifically cited the Longacre as a flop theater. Goldman wrote that the Longacre was not near many other theaters, especially as compared with venues on 45th Street, and claimed that the Longacre hosted weak shows because its owners "could only get dreck to play there". According to theatrical historian Louis Botto, this reinforced "the notion that no hits open there", creating a cycle of flops in the early 1970s. Some productions during this time, such as ''Keep Off the Grass'' (1972), limited the audience to 499 because a 500-seat house would require negotiations with Broadway theatrical unions. The Longacre finally saw a hit in 1975 with the opening of '' The Ritz'',; ; which featured Moreno,
Jerry Stiller Gerald Isaac Stiller (June 8, 1927 – May 11, 2020) was an American comedian and actor. He spent many years as part of the comedy duo Stiller and Meara with his wife, Anne Meara, to whom he was married for over 60 years until her death in 20 ...
, and
Jack Weston Jack Weston (born Morris Weinstein; August 21, 1924 – May 3, 1996) was an American actor. He was nominated for a Golden Globe Award in 1976 and a Tony Award in 1981. Career Weston, a native of Cleveland, Ohio, usually played comic roles in fi ...
for 400 performances.
Julie Harris Julia Ann Harris (December 2, 1925August 24, 2013) was an American actress. Renowned for her classical and contemporary roles, she earned numerous accolades including five Tony Awards for Best Actress in a Play, three Emmy Awards, and a Grammy ...
starred in the solo ''
The Belle of Amherst ''The Belle of Amherst'' is a one-woman play by William Luce. Based on the life of poet Emily Dickinson from 1830 to 1886, and set in her Amherst, Massachusetts, home, the 1976 play makes use of her work, diaries, and letters to recollect h ...
'' in 1976.; This was followed by revivals of '' No Man's Land'',; ''
The Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel ''The Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel'' is a play by David Rabe. Rabe's first play in his Vietnam War trilogy that continued with '' Sticks and Bones'' and '' Streamers'', its story is bracketed by scenes depicting the death of the everyman-like ...
'', and ''
Jesus Christ Superstar ''Jesus Christ Superstar'' is a sung-through rock opera with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice. Loosely based on the Life of Jesus in the New Testament, Gospels' accounts of Passion of Jesus, the Passion, the work interprets ...
''. At some point during the 1970s, the interior was painted over in a cream color. In 1978, the
Fats Waller Thomas Wright "Fats" Waller (May 21, 1904 – December 15, 1943) was an American jazz pianist, organist, composer, and singer. His innovations in the Harlem stride style laid much of the basis for modern jazz piano. A widely popular star ...
revue ''Ain't Misbehavin opened at the Longacre, ultimately seeing 1,604 performances over three theaters.; The Longacre's next hit was ''Children of a Lesser God'' with
Phyllis Frelich Phyllis Annetta Frelich (February 29, 1944 – April 10, 2014) was a deaf American actress. She was the first deaf actor to win a Tony Award. Early life Frelich was born to deaf parents Esther (née Dockter) and Philip Frelich. She was one of n ...
and
John Rubinstein John Rubinstein (born December 8, 1946) is an American actor, composer and director. Early life Rubinstein is the son of Polish parents. His mother, Aniela (née Młynarska), a dancer and writer, was a Roman Catholic native of Warsaw, the da ...
, which opened in 1980; ; and had 887 performances. The Longacre often remained dark for several consecutive months during the 1980s, and a 1987 ''New York Times'' article reported that the theater had been empty for 201 of the past 208 weeks. Shows during the decade included ''Passion'', ''Play Memory'', '' Harrigan 'N Hart'', ''
A Day in the Death of Joe Egg ''A Day in the Death of Joe Egg'' is a 1967 play by the English playwright Peter Nichols, first staged at the Citizens Theatre in Glasgow, Scotland, before transferring to the Comedy Theatre in London's West End. Synopsis The play centres o ...
'', ''Precious Sons'', ''
The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940 ''The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940'' is a comedy by John Bishop. The play was first performed at the Circle Repertory Company in their theatre at 99 Seventh Avenue South in New York City, later moving to Broadway, opening on April 6, 1987, in Th ...
'', ''Don't Get God Started'', and ''Hizzoner!''. A video for the song ''The Rum Tum Tugger'', from the musical ''
Cats The cat (''Felis catus''), also referred to as the domestic cat or house cat, is a small domesticated carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species of the family Felidae. Advances in archaeology and genetics have shown that the ...
'', was also shot at the Longacre during one of its dark periods in 1984. During the late 1980s, the Shuberts renovated the Longacre 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 Government of New York City, New York City agency charged with administering the city's Historic preservation, Landmarks Preservation Law. The LPC is responsible for protecting Ne ...
(LPC) had started considering protecting the Longacre as a landmark in 1982, with discussions continuing over the next several years. The LPC designated the Longacre's facade and interior as a landmark on December 8, 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 eff ...
ratified the designations in March 1988. The Shuberts, the
Nederlanders The Dutch, or Netherlanders (Dutch: ) are an ethnic group native to the Netherlands. They share a common ancestry and culture and speak the Dutch language. Dutch people and their descendants are found in migrant communities worldwide, notably ...
, and Jujamcyn collectively sued the LPC in June 1988 to overturn the landmark designations of 22 theaters, including the Longacre, 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 The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the superior court in the Judiciary of New York. It is vested with unlimited civil and criminal jurisdiction, although in many counties outside New York City it acts primarily as a court of civil ju ...
and the
Supreme Court of the United States The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all Federal tribunals in the United States, U.S. federal court cases, and over Stat ...
, but these designations were ultimately upheld in 1992.


1990s to present

The Longacre hosted the musical ''Truly Blessed'', a showcase of
Mahalia Jackson Mahalia Jackson ( ; born Mahala Jackson; October 26, 1911 – January 27, 1972) was an American gospel music, gospel singer, widely considered one of the most influential vocalists of the 20th century. With a career spanning 40 years, Jackson was ...
's music, for a month in 1990. No other shows had been staged when, in November 1991, the city and state government officials proposed setting up a community courtroom in the theater to process
misdemeanor A misdemeanor (American English, spelled misdemeanour elsewhere) is any "lesser" criminal act in some common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished less severely than more serious felonies, but theoretically more so than admi ...
summonses. The Shubert Organization was to donate the space for three years. Theatrical personalities heavily opposed the plan, not only because it would require extensive renovations, but also because another Broadway house (the Mark Hellinger Theatre) had been converted to non-theatrical use. Another site for the court was eventually identified, and the Longacre returned to legitimate use with a short run of ''Tango Pasion'' in April 1993. Frank D. Gilroy's ''Any Given Day'' also had a short run of 32 performances the same year. A revival of ''Medea (play), Medea'' with Diana Rigg was hosted in 1994, followed by a short run of Phillip Hayes Dean's ''Paul Robeson'' with Avery Brooks in 1995. Horton Foote's ''The Young Man from Atlanta'' opened at the Longacre in 1997, followed by David Henry Hwang's Golden Child (play), ''Golden Child'' the next year. The Longacre then hosted ''The Gershwins' Fascinating Rhythm'' in April 1999 and John Pielmeier's ''Voices in the Dark'' that August. In 2001, the Longacre hosted two brief runs: ''Judgment at Nuremberg'' and ''A Thousand Clowns''. The musical One Mo' Time (musical), ''One Mo' Time'' ran for only three weeks in 2002, while Def Poetry Jam, ''Russell Simmons Def Poetry Jam'' opened later that year and ran six months. As part of a settlement with the United States Department of Justice in 2003, the Shuberts agreed to improve disabled access at their 16 landmarked Broadway theaters, including the Longacre. The Longacre then had two major flops: ''The Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All'' (2003), which closed after one performance, and ''Prymate'' (2004), which lasted five performances. A revival of ''Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'' opened in 2005, followed by a transfer of the off-Broadway hit Well (play), ''Well'' in 2006. The Longacre had no productions for about a year until Talk Radio (play), ''Talk Radio'' opened in March 2007. After ''Talk Radio'' ended, the Longacre was closed for a $12 million renovation by Kostow Greenwood Architects. The marquee was replaced and the climate control system was refurbished. The interior spaces were extensively rebuilt with new seats and lounges, as well as restored decorations, including an approximation of the original color scheme. Original decorative elements, removed in previous renovations, were restored to the balcony and boxes. The theater reopened in May 2008 with the farce ''Boeing Boeing (play), Boeing Boeing'', which ran until the following January; ''Boeing Boeing'' 279-performance run was the longest of any production at the Longacre in almost three decades. The next hit was ''Burn the Floor'', which opened in August 2009 and ran for five months. Productions in the early 2010s included ''La Cage aux Folles (musical), La Cage aux Folles'' in 2010, ''Chinglish (play), Chinglish'' in 2011, ''Magic/Bird'' and ''The Performers (play), The Performers'' in 2012, ''First Date the Musical'' in 2013, and ''Of Mice and Men (play), Of Mice and Men'' and ''You Can't Take It with You (play), You Can't Take It with You'' in 2014. This was followed by the musicals ''Allegiance (musical), Allegiance'' in 2015, ''A Bronx Tale (musical), A Bronx Tale'' in 2016, ''The Prom (musical), The Prom'' in 2018, and ''The Lightning Thief (musical), The Lightning Thief'' in 2019. ''A Bronx Tale'' achieved the box office record for the theater, grossing $1,293,125.32 over nine performances for the week ending January 1, 2017. During the run of ''The Prom'', in 2019, Broadway's first known onstage wedding happened at the Longacre between two women. The theater temporarily Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the performing arts#Cancellations and closures, closed on March 12, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It reopened on November 2, 2021, with previews of ''Diana (musical), Diana'', which ran seven weeks. A limited revival of the play ''Macbeth'' opened in April 2022, followed by the play ''Leopoldstadt (play), Leopoldstadt'' in October 2022. The Broadway transfer of the musical Lempicka (musical), ''Lempicka'', based on the life of Tamara de Lempicka, opened at the theater in April 2024. This was followed in November 2024 by the musical ''Swept Away (musical), Swept Away'', which ran for a month.
The musical ''Dead Outlaw'' opened at the Longacre in April 2025.


Notable productions

Productions are listed by the year of their first performance. This list only includes Broadway shows; it does not include programs broadcast from there.


See also

* List of Broadway theaters * List of New York City Designated Landmarks in Manhattan from 14th to 59th Streets


References


Notes


Citations


Sources

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External links

* * {{portal bar, Architecture, New York City, Theatre 1913 establishments in New York City Broadway theatres 1910s architecture in the United States New York City Designated Landmarks in Manhattan New York City interior landmarks Shubert Organization Theater District, Manhattan Theatres completed in 1913