Broadway – Winter 2008
In my lecture on The
Audience I spoke briefly about Broadway. Here I want to add a little more in-depth information. There are around 38 theatres that are
generally referred to as Broadway theatres. Most of these theatres are located within one block of
Broadway Avenue. The smallest, the
Helen Hayes Theatre, seats 598 people; while the largest, the Gershwin Theatre,
seats 1,935 people. The average
number of seats in a Broadway theatre is 1,240.
Exactly what is playing on
Broadway changes almost monthly, but as you can see by the chart below,
musicals are the most common type on show playing on Broadway. I have sorted this list by number of
seats, because I felt that this arrangement clearly shows you that musicals
dominate the larger theatres.
|
Theatre |
Show |
|
Type |
Approx. # of Seats |
|
Helen
Hayes Theatre |
Xanadu |
|
Musical |
598 |
|
Biltmore
Theatre |
Top Girls/Come
Back, Little Sheba |
|
Musical/Drama |
650 |
|
Circle in
the Square Theatre |
25th Annual
Putnam County Spelling Bee, The |
|
Musical
|
725 |
|
American
Airlines Theatre |
39 Steps/Les
Liaisons Dangereuse |
|
Comedy/Drama |
740 |
|
Booth
Theatre |
The Seafarer/Thurgood |
|
Drama/Biography |
785 |
|
John
Golden Theatre |
Avenue Q |
|
Musical |
805 |
|
Studio 54 |
Sunday in
the Park with George |
|
Musical |
920 |
|
Lyceum
Theatre |
Is He
Dead? |
|
Comedy |
925 |
|
Walter
Kerr Theatre |
A Bronx
Tale/A Catered Affair |
|
Solo/Musical
|
945 |
|
Music Box |
The
Farnsworth Invention |
|
Drama |
1,010 |
|
Belasko
Theatre |
Journeys
End |
|
Drama |
1,020 |
|
Brooks
Atkinson Theatre |
Grease |
|
Musical |
1,045 |
|
Bernard
B. Jacobs Theatre (formerly Royale) |
Rock n
Roll |
|
Drama |
1,080 |
|
Vivian
Beaumont Theater |
South
Pacific |
|
Drama |
1,080 |
|
Cort
Theatre |
The
Homecoming |
|
Drama |
1,085 |
|
Ethel
Barrymore Theatre |
November |
|
Comedy |
1,095 |
|
Longacre
Theatre |
Talk
Radio |
|
Drama |
1,095 |
|
Gerald
Schoenfeld Theatre (formerly Plymouth) |
A Chorus
Line |
|
Musical
|
1,100 |
|
Eugene O'Neill
Theatre |
Spring
Awakening |
|
Musical
|
1,110 |
|
Ambassador
Theatre |
Chicago |
|
Musical
|
1,125 |
|
Al
Hirschfeld Theatre |
Curtains |
|
Musical
|
1,135 |
|
Broadhurst
Theater |
Les
Miserables/Cat on a Hot Tin Roof |
|
Musical /Drama |
1,185 |
|
Nederlander
Theatre |
Rent |
|
Musical
|
1,203 |
|
August
Wilson Theatre (formerly Virginia) |
Jersey
Boys |
|
Musical
|
1,275 |
|
Neil
Simon Theatre |
Hairspray
|
|
Musical
|
1,295 |
|
Richard
Rodgers Theatre |
Cyrano de
Bergerac/In the Heights |
|
Drama/Musical |
1,370 |
|
Imperial
Theatre |
Billy
Elliot/August: Osage County |
|
Musical/Drama
|
1,420 |
|
Lunt-Fontanne
Theatre |
Beauty
and the Beast |
|
Musical
|
1,475 |
|
Cadillac
Winter Garden Theatre |
Mamma
Mia! |
|
Musical
|
1,482 |
|
Sam S.
Shubert Theatre |
Monty
Python's Spamalot |
|
Musical
|
1,520 |
|
Marquis
Theatre |
The
Drowsy Chaperone |
|
Musical
|
1,605 |
|
St. James
Theatre |
Dr. Seuss
How the Grinch Stole Christmas |
|
Musical
|
1,625 |
|
Majestic
Theatre |
The
Phantom of the Opera |
|
Musical
|
1,655 |
|
Minskoff
Theatre |
The Lion
King |
|
Musical
|
1,710 |
|
New
Amsterdam Theatre |
Mary
Poppins |
|
Musical
|
1,745 |
|
Broadway
Theatre |
Color
Purple, The |
|
Musical
|
1,750 |
|
Palace
Theatre |
Legally
Blond |
|
Musical |
1,785 |
|
Hilton
Theatre |
Young
Frankenstein |
|
Musical
|
1,815 |
|
Gershwin
Theatre |
Wicked |
|
Musical
|
1,935 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Average
seats:
|
1,240 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Below is information on a
number of Broadway theatres that you may find interesting.
John Golden Theatre is
currently the smallest of the Shubert Organization Theatres, with 805 seats but
a very small stage. It is known for intimate revues, plays and one- and two-man
shows. Now showing the puppet musical Avenue Q. An architectural treasure with
a variegated brick facade showcasing three blind arches, the building was
designed in the Spanish Renaissance style and the interior had a strong Spanish
flavor. It was designed in the Mission Revival style, with rough plaster walls,
wrought iron fixtures, and a beamed ceiling. 804 seats.
Lunt Fontaine Theater:
Seating capacity in this renowned Broadway theatre is 1,475. Opened in 1910,
recent long-running hits have included Titanic
and Hello Dolly.
Currently the Tony Award winning Disney's Beauty and the Beast is playing at
the Lunt Fontaine Theatre.
Imperial Theatre is a
proscenium stage with 1,421-seat house. Talk about the "Great White
Way", this theatre is an historic landmark. This house is in the heart of
Manhattans theatre district and is host to leading plays each season.
Currently showing Dirty Rotten Scoundrels.
Booth Theatre: Opened in
1913- named in honor of the renowned 19th Century Actor, Edwin Booth
(unfortunate relation to John Wilkes Booth). Proscenium stage overlooks
781-seat house. The Booth has hosted such plays as You Can't Take It With You
(1936), Playboy of the Western World (1946); Come Back Little Sheba (1950); Luv
(1964), That Championship Season (1972); Sunday in the Park With George (1984);
Elephant Man 1979; I'm Not Rappaport (1985). Currently the home of Faith Healer.
Belasco Theatre: Named for
the family of tyrannical and highly successful impresarios in the 1920's,
inspired a theatrical joke of the day: "That bastard!" Response:
"So's his brother!" The Belasco Theatre has long been a landmark in
the heart of Manhattans Theatre District at 111 West 44th St. Between Broadway
& 6th Ave. The house has a seating capacity of 1,018 with a proscenium
stage. Balcony seats available.
Shubert Theater: 225 West
44th St., Btwn 7th & 8th Aves. This world famous, 1,521 seat house opened
in 1913. It was here that A Chorus
Line ran for nearly 12 years. Spamalot
New Amsterdam Theatre: 214
West 42nd St., Btwn 7th & 8th Aves. This 1,771 seat house opened in 1903 in
the heart of Manhattans theatre district. The Tony-Award winning The Lion King opened in 1997 and is still
running. Mary Poppins opens in
October 2006
Minskoff Theater: 200 West
45th St., Btwn 7th & 8th Aves. The theatre is located on the third floor of
the Viacom office building, in the heart of Midtown, Manhattan. Seating
capacity is 1,710. Primarily a musical theatre venue. Lion King
Richard Rodgers Theater: 226
West 46th St., Btwn Broadway & 8th Ave. Traditional Broadway theatre with a
1,368 seat seating capacity. Located near the heart of Manhattans theatre
district. Primarily a venue for musical theatre as it is named for one half of
the unstoppable team of Broadway hitmakers from the 1940-1970s, Richard Rodgers
and Oscar Hammerstein. Tarzan
Cadillac
Winter Garden Theatre: 1634
Broadway, Btwn 50th & 51st. 1,482 seats. Housed in a former cattle barn,
the Winter Garden became a cinema in 1911, and a theatre two years later.
Renowned for its longest running hits, including Cats and 42nd Street. Currently playing the
long-running hit, Mama Mia,
a musical based on the songs of the 1980s pop group, Abba.
Marquis Theatre: This
unusual Manhattan venue is located on the third floor of the Marriott Marquis
Hotel. It has a traditional, proscenium stage with good sight lines and a 1,604
seat house. The space is currently home to The Drowsy Chaperone.
Nederlander Theater: 208
West 41st St., btwn 7th & 8th Aves. A traditional Broadway proscenium stage
theatre with 1,203 seats. Most recently playing the long-running hit, Rent. In additional to showcasing
some of the most profitable Broadway productions each season, the Nederlander
Organization owns some of the most architecturally important theatres in
Manhattan.
August Wilson Theatre
(formerly the Virginia Theater): 245 West 52nd St., between Broadway & 8th
Ave. Located in the heart of Manhattans Theatre District. The house seats
1,275, and is home to the Manhattan Theatre Guild. Built in 1925, the theatre
presents American dramatic plays starring world renowned performers. Many Tony
award winning plays have been performed here, memorably Bubblin' Brown Sugar
and Smokey Joe's Cafe in the 80s & 90s. Recently the house has been renamed
in honor of the late American playwright (Pulitzer, 1990 for "The Piano
Lesson"). and Smokey Joe's
Cafe in the 80s & 90s. Recently the house has been renamed in honor of the
late American playwright (Pulitzer, 1990 for "The Piano Lesson").
Home of Jersey Boys
Broadway Theatre:
Traditional proscenium stage in the heart of Manhattans theatre district. Live
theatre seasonally. Currently home to the Tony Award winning play, "The Color
Purple". 1,721 seats.
St. James Theatre: 246 West
44th Street, New York, NY 10036. Grand old house with traditional faade and
1,623 seats. Opened in 1927 as a musical theatre venue; house lights currently
going up on the long-running hit, The
Producers.
Martin Beck Theatre*:
Renamed the Al Hirschfield Theatre in 2003. With respect to Mr. Hirschfield, it
seems like shabby treatment of the impresario who discovered Houdini! 1,302
seats. Primarily a venue for hit musicals. The new musical, The Wedding Singer,
will be starting previews March 30, 2006 and will open on April 27, 2006.
Broadhurst: Opened just
prior to WWI, proscenium stage with 1,186 house seats. Wonderful acoustics and
site lines despite its age. One of the Grand Old Dames of the Great White Way.
The History Boys
Majestic Theater: Formerly
the Shubert, opened 1927, proscenium stage, 1,655 seats - Considered Broadway's
best theatre with a history of highly successful hit musicals currently –
Phantom of the Opera.
Ethel Barrymore Theatre: Not
just named after, but built for the legendary actress in 1928 during the last
of the halcyon days before the Great Depression. A true, grand Broadway
theatre, the house has 1,096 seats, a proscenium stage and is close to fine
dining destinations. The current show, which starts February 8 is "Ring of
Fire" a musical based on the music of Johnny Cash
Music Box Theater: 239 West
45th St., Btwn Broadway & 8th Ave. Opened in 1921 to showcase the American
Musical, now the traditional 1,010-seat house features major plays and
revivals. The Music Box has offered many Tony Award winning plays including, in
recent years, Barrymore, Agnes of God, Sleuth, and The Homecoming.
Gershwin Theatre: When it opened
in 1972 it was the first large Broadway theatre to be built since the Earl
Carroll in 1931. The flexible stage floor can be taken apart like a
Tinker Toy or be extended as a thrust stage. And for the first time in theatre
history, there is a water curtain instead of an asbestos curtain in the event
of an onstage fire."1,940 seats.
Wicked
Eugene ONeil Theatre:
Opened in 1925, in recent years this 1,108 seat midtown venue has hosted Neil
Simons work. Currently playing - the Stephen Sondheim musical Sweeny Todd.