Biltmore Theatre (New York). This problem‐plagued theatre on West 47th Street was nearly lost after years of flops and neglect but in 2003 became the latest restored Broadway house. It was built in 1925 by the speculating Chanin Brothers, but because the Herbert J. Krapp–designed house had fewer than a thousand seats, it was difficult to book and the brothers lost it during the Great Depression. The Federal Theatre Project used the theatre for some of its famous “Living Newspaper” productions in the 1930s, and in the 1940s it housed several shows by George Abbott. The Biltmore became a television studio in 1951, returned to legit status in 1961, then floundered until 1987 when it closed. Years of neglect and vandalism made restoring the small theatre uneconomical, but in 2003 it was restored as part of a new apartment complex and, the auditorium reduced to 650 seats, it reopened as the Broadway home for the nonprofit Manhattan Theatre Club.
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Samuel J. Friedman Theatre
Oxford Companion to American Theatre:
Biltmore Theatre |
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Wikipedia on Answers.com:
Samuel J. Friedman Theatre |
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Samuel J. Friedman Theatre
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| Location: | 261 West 47th Street, Manhattan, New York City, New York |
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| Coordinates: | 40°45′37.73″N 73°59′12.17″W / 40.7604806°N 73.9867139°WCoordinates: 40°45′37.73″N 73°59′12.17″W / 40.7604806°N 73.9867139°W |
| Built: | December 7, 1925 |
| Architect: | Herbert J. Krapp |
| NRHP Reference#: | 04001203[1] |
| Added to NRHP: | 2004 |
The Samuel J. Friedman Theatre (formerly the Biltmore Theatre) is a Broadway theatre located at 261 West 47th Street in midtown-Manhattan.
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Contents
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History
Designed by architect Herbert J. Krapp for impresario Irwin Chanin, it opened on December 7, 1925 with the play Easy Come Easy Go. With a seating capacity of 903, it was one of Broadway's smaller venues.
The theatre was used by Federal Theatre's Living Newspaper project in the 1930s. CBS leased it for use as a radio and television studio from 1952 until 1961. In 1968, the groundbreaking rock musical Hair opened at the theatre.
In 1987, a fire struck the Biltmore. The blaze, which was later determined to be an act of arson, destroyed the interior. After the fire, the building sat vacant for fourteen years, suffering more structural damage from water and vandals. The theatre's ownership changed hands several times between 1987 and 2001, but most plans proposed for its future use - such as a showcase for "Best of Broadway" revues - were rejected since its New York City landmark designation required it to operate only as a legitimate Broadway house if renovated.
In 2001, the property was purchased by the Manhattan Theatre Club as a permanent home for its productions. Surviving sections of the original theatre were restored by Polshek Partnership Architects (plasterwork restored by EverGreene Architectural Arts), and missing parts were reconstructed. With 622 seats the new Biltmore has about two-thirds of the capacity of the old, although it now boasts modern conveniences such as elevators and meeting rooms. The Biltmore's landmarked features, such as the proscenium arch, dome, staircases and a vaulted second-floor gallery, were restored or replicated.[2]
The theatre was renamed the "Samuel J. Friedman Theatre" in a dedication ceremony held on September 4, 2008. The new name honors Broadway publicist Samuel J. Friedman.[3]
Biltmore Theatre in media
In 1983, the Biltmore Theatre can be seen in The Muppets Take Manhattan.
Notable productions
- 1928 Pleasure Man [4]
- 1940: My Sister Eileen
- 1946: No Exit
- 1947: The Heiress
- 1951: Billy Budd (with Lee Marvin's stage-debut)
- 1961: Take Her, She's Mine
- 1963: Barefoot in the Park
- 1968: Loot; Hair; Staircase
- 1976: The Robber Bridegroom
- 1977: Hair (musical-revival)
- 1978: The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds
- 1980: Nuts
- 1982: Deathtrap
- 1983: Doonesbury
- 2003: The Violet Hour
- 2005: After the Night and the Music
- 2006: Rabbit Hole
- 2007: LoveMusik, Mauritius
- 2008: Come Back, Little Sheba; Top Girls, To Be or Not To Be
- 2009: The American Plan; Accent On Youth; The Royal Family
- 2010: Time Stands Still; Collected Stories; The Pitmen Painters
- 2011: Good People; Master Class; Venus in Fur
References
- Bibliography
- Lost Broadway Theatres by Nicholas Van Hoogstraten, Princeton Architectural Press (1997) ISBN 1-56898-116-3
- Notes
- ^ New+York County listings at the National Register of Historic Places
- ^ DAvid Dunlap (September 23, 2003). "For Venerable Theater, It's a Body Transplant". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/23/theater/for-venerable-theater-it-s-a-body-transplant.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm. Retrieved 2011-05-02. "Time was when the Biltmore reminded people of Hair, Barefoot in the Park, My Sister Eileen and Deathtrap; of George Abbott, a co-owner who used it as a showcase; Jean-Paul Sartre, whose No Exit was staged there; and Mae West, whose Pleasure Man brought in the police."
- ^ Jones, Kenneth."Broadway's Biltmore Becomes the Friedman on Sept. 4", playbill.com, September 4, 2008
- ^ "Raid Mae West Play, Seize 56 At Opening. Police Arrest Entire Cast of "Pleasure Man" After Last Act at Biltmore Theatre. Indecency Is Charged. Law Hits Actress-Author a Second Time. Playhouse Is Surrounded After Show. No Theatre Attaches Held. Police Guard Exits. Arrest Order Treated Lightly. Author Freed on Bail. 21 Seized in Raid on "Sex"". New York Times. October 2, 1928. http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F10F12F73A5E14728FDDAB0894D8415B888EF1D3. Retrieved 2011-05-02. "The entire cast of "Pleasure Man," fifty-five actors, actresses and musicians, was arrested on the stage of the Biltmore Theatre, Forty-seventh Street, between Broadway and Eighth Avenue, last night immediately after the curtain fell on the first performance."
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Biltmore Theatre |
- Samuel J. Friedman Theatre at the Internet Broadway Database
- Friedman Theatre Broadway Theatre Guide listing
- "At This Theatre" at Playbill.com
- "A Midsummer Night's Renovation" by Iris Dorbian in Stage Directions, July 2004
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This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
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Copyrights:
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 | Oxford Companion to American Theatre. The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. Copyright © 2004 by Oxford University Press, Inc. All rights reserved. Read more |
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