Times Square Theater

The Times Square Theater is a former Broadway theater, located at 217 West 42nd Street, Manhattan, in New York City. It featured live theatre from 1920 to 1933, and then converted into a cinema which operated until the early 1990s.

Times Square Theater
Times Square Theater, with entrance to Apollo Theater (left), 1922
Address217 West 42nd Street
New York City
United States
Coordinates40.756569°N 73.987783°W / 40.756569; -73.987783
OwnerCity and State of New York
TypeBroadway
Capacity1,032
Construction
OpenedSeptember 30, 1920
Years active1920–1934
ArchitectEugene De Rosa
Tenants
New 42nd Street

History

The Times Square Theater was built in 1920 by the Selwyn brothers from a design by Eugene De Rosa.[1][2] It was one of three theaters they built and controlled on 42nd Street, including the Apollo and the Selwyn. It opened on September 30, 1920, with Florence Reed starring in The Mirage.[3][4][5][6]

G.K. Chesterton spoke on the topic "Shall We Abolish the Inevitable?" at the theater in 1921.[7]

Battling Butler, the basis for the Buster Keaton film of the same name, transferred from the Selwyn to the Times Square in 1924. Notable shows presented at the Times Square included the original New York productions of The Front Page by Hecht and MacArthur in 1928, George and Ira Gershwin's Strike Up the Band in 1930 and Noël Coward's Private Lives starring Coward and Gertrude Lawrence in 1931.[8]

Only three years after Private Lives, the Times Square was converted to a cinema. It would remain in operation as a movie theater until the early 1990s, when it closed. The final scene of the 1980 motion picture Times Square was filmed at the Times Square Theater, with Robin Johnson's character performing a "midnight concert" atop the theater's marquee.

The City and State of New York took possession of the Times Square Theater in 1990. In 1992, it was one of six 42nd Street theaters to come under the protection of the New 42nd Street organization. It was not immediately restored or renovated, as the theater lacks any entrances not directly on 42nd Street, rendering it more difficult to use for loading of scenery and props.[9]

Development proposals

Since 1992, the theater has been the focus of a number of development proposals that were later abandoned. Canadian production company Live Entertainment Corporation of Canada briefly considered a redevelopment project in 1998.[10][11] MTV and Marvel Mania also considered redeveloping the property.[12][13]

In 2005, the Times Square Theater was leased to Eckō Unltd., which planned to make it a store for clothing and other urban youth market items.[14] In 2009, the company walked away from its lease.[15]

In 2012, a group called Broadway 4D Theaters, LLC signed a long term lease to make the theater home to a "4D" film presentation called Broadway Sensation, dedicated to the history of Broadway. The presentation was to be produced by lawyer Robert Kory and producer/director Gary Goddard and the theater renovated to house it. The attraction was expected to open in spring 2015, however on May 28, 2014 it was reported that the project had been canceled due to financial troubles.[16][17] In August 2015, Elie Samaha and Donald Kushner announced they purchased the assets of Broadway 4D Theaters and would continue the project.[18]

In March 2015, the New York Post reported that the British-based Ambassador Theatre Group, which controls the adjacent Lyric Theatre, was in negotiations to take over management of the building, converting it back into a Broadway theater after completing renovations.[19] Later, in 2016, the Post reported speculation that Oracle Projects International of Singapore was interested in the theater as a space for special events.[20] In fall 2018, developers announced the venue would be converted to retail space that would retain the proscenium, boxes, and many elements from the original structure. The work would take approximately two years at a cost of $100 million.[21]

Notable productions

Sources
  1. Building Age and National Builder Vol. 47, Nos. 7—12 (1925), p. 82.
  2. "Times Square and Apollo Theatres". Architecture and Building Vol. 52, No. 12 (December 1920), pp. 104-5. Online at Google Books.
  3. Woollcott, Alexander (October 1, 1920). "The Play". The New York Times.
  4. "The Week's New Plays". The New York Times (September 26, 1920) (photo of Florence Reed).
  5. Bloom, Ken (2004). Broadway: Its History, People, and Places: An Encyclopedia. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 9780203644355. Retrieved March 6, 2013.
  6. Trager, James (2010). The New York Chronology: The Ultimate Compendium of Events, People, and Anecdotes from the Dutch to the Present. HarperCollins. ISBN 9780062018601. Retrieved March 6, 2013.
  7. "Shows Fallacy of Fatalism". Los Angeles Times. January 24, 1921. Retrieved March 6, 2013.
  8. McNamara, Robert P. (1995). Sex, Scams, and Street Life: The Sociology of New York City's Times Square. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 9780275953591. Retrieved September 20, 2018.
  9. Buck, Andy. "The New 42nd Street". New York Theatre Wire. Retrieved September 20, 2018.
  10. Newman, Andy (November 5, 1998). "Livent Drops Times Square Theater Plans". The New York Times. Retrieved March 6, 2013.
  11. Halbfinger, David M. (June 26, 1997). "Concerts Considered for Times Sq. Theater". The New York Times. Retrieved March 6, 2013.
  12. Bagli, Charles V. (February 8, 1999). "As Rents Soar, Boom Is Slowed in Times Square". The New York Times. Retrieved March 6, 2013.
  13. Rosen, Daniel Edward (June 19, 2012). "All the Twists and Turns Behind Times Square Theater, Last Week's Most Creative Deal of the Year Winner". The Commercial Observer. Retrieved March 6, 2013.
  14. Rothstein, Mervyn (January 23, 2005). "Square Feet/Times Square – A Crossroads for Restaurants". The New York Times. Retrieved March 6, 2013.
  15. Cuozzo, Steve (February 17, 2009). "This 'Ecko' Sounds Like A Lawsuit". New York Post. Retrieved March 6, 2013.
  16. Jones, Kenneth (March 21, 2012). "Broadway's Times Square Theater Will Be Renovated for Broadway Sensation Film Show". Playbill. Archived from the original on March 24, 2012. Retrieved March 25, 2012.
  17. McPhee, Ryan (May 28, 2014). "Broadway 4D Cancels Planned Times Square Attraction Featuring Filmed Broadway Performances". Broadway.com. Retrieved May 28, 2014.
  18. Viagas, Robert; Gioia, Michael (August 18, 2015). "Broadway 4D Project Back on Track; Times Square Theatre To Be Rescued!". Playbill.
  19. Riedel, Michael (March 11, 2015). "Broadway's newest landlord is a colorful, 'Mormon'-loving Brit". New York Post.
  20. Cuozzo, Steve (March 2, 2016). "New deal to revive long-vacant Times Square Theater". New York Post.
  21. Hershberg, Marc (September 18, 2018). "Jinxed Times Square Theater to Reopen as Retail Space". Forbes. Retrieved September 20, 2018.
  • Broadway Theatres: History and Architecture, William Morrison, 1999, Dover Publications, ISBN 0-486-40244-4
  • Lost Broadway Theatres, Nicholas Van Hoogstraten, Princeton Architectural Press, 1997, ISBN 1-56898-116-3
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