Cort Theatre

Cort Theatre
Address	138 West 48th Street
City	New York City
Country	USA
Designation	Broadway theatre
Architect	Thomas W. Lamb
Owned by	The Shubert Organization
Capacity	1,082
Opened	December 20, 1912
shubertorganization.com/theatres/cort.asp

The Cort Theatre is a legitimate Broadway theatre located at 138 West 48th Street in midtown-Manhattan. The Shubert Organization purchased the theatre in 1927, two years before Cort's death.^[1]

John Cort, founder of the Northwestern Theatrical Association,^[2] commissioned architect Thomas W. Lamb to design the theater. Its whose façade was modeled on the Petit Trianon in Versailles. The resulting 1082-seat Cort Theater is one of the few Lamb theaters still extant and functioning as a legitimate theater. The interior was designed in the style of the era of Louis XVI, with a Pavanozza marble lobby with plasterwork panels. The arch of the proscenium stage consists of perforated plaster treated with art glass, and was designed to be lit during performances. The arch still exists as of 2007, although the lighting feature is no longer in operation. The Shubert Organization acquired the theater in 1927.^[1]

It opened on December 20, 1912 with Laurette Taylor starring in the play Peg o' My Heart, which ran for 603 performances, an auspicious start for the new venue.^[1] Numerous famous British actors have appeared at the Cort: Basil Rathbone played Dr. Nicholas Agi in The Swan in October 1923, and in April 1927 appeared as Vladimir Dubriski in Love is Like That. In October 1924 Henry Daniell appeared as Aubrey Tanqueray in The Second Mrs Tanqueray, was there again in August 1943 in Murder Without Crime, and in January 1946 appeared as Leontes in The Winter's Tale.

The theatre was used as a television studio housing The Merv Griffin Show from 1969-72.

In the 1968 version of the comedy film The Producers, directed by Mel Brooks, the Cort Theatre was seen in the movie across the street from the Playhouse Theater (torn down in 1969), whose marquee can be glimpsed momentarily and exterior was used only. However, in the scene where the theater blows up, we see the marquee of the Cort Theater.

Notable productions

• 1932: The Blue Bird
• 1937: Room Service
• 1954: The Rainmaker
• 1955: The Diary of Anne Frank
• 1958: Sunrise at Campobello
• 1960: Once Upon a Mattress
• 1961: Purlie Victorious
• 1963: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
• 1974: The Magic Show
• 1985: Ma Rainey's Black Bottom
• 1988: Sarafina!
• 1999: Kat and the Kings
• 2002: Hollywood Arms
• 2003: A Year with Frog and Toad
• 2005: On Golden Pond
• 2006: Barefoot in the Park
• 2007: The Little Dog Laughed Radio Golf
• 2007–2008: The Homecoming
• 2008: The 39 Steps
• 2009: You're Welcome America

References

• Who's Who in the Theatre, edited by John Parker, tenth edition, revised, London, 1947, pps: 477-478 and 1184.

External links

• Official website
• Broadway Theatre Guide
• Cort Theatre at the Internet Broadway Database