Longacre Theatre (Broadway)

This theatre, now owned by the Shubert Organization, was built in 1913 as a musical comedy house but has had more success as a playhouse for comedies and dramas. Its most recent productions have been "Well;" "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?;" "Prymate;" "Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All;" "Russell Simmons Def Poetry Jam;" "One Mo’ Time;" "Thousand Clowns;" "Judgment at Nuremberg;" "Taller Than A Dwarf;" "Voices in the Dark;" "The Gersh wins’ Fascinating Rhythm;" "Medea," starring Diana Rigg (Tony Award); "Any Given Day;" the dance musical "Tango Passion;" "Truly Blessed," a musical celebration of Mahalia Jackson; George Furth's "Precious Sons" with Ed Harris and Judith Ivey; Peter Nichols's British play "Passion" starring Frank Langella; Lanford Wilson's fascinatng "Angels Fall;" Jim Dale and Stockard Channing (awarded a Tony for her performance) in a new production of "Joe Egg;" and this theatre's longest-running play, "Children of a Lesser God" by Mark Medoff, which won a Tony Award as Best Play of the season and two more for its stars, John Rubinstein and Phyllis Frelich. It ran for 887 performances.

Hits of the 1970's included Terrence McNally's uproarious farce "The Ritz," with Rita Moreno (Tony Award) and Jack Weston; Julie Harris winning a Tony Award for her memorable performance in her one-woman show, "The Belle of Amherst;" John Gielgud and Ralph Richardson in Pinter's "No Man's Land;" Al Pacino in a revival of David Rabe's "The Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel."

On May 9, 1978, "Ain't Misbehavin" opened here and proved to be one of this theatre's most jubilant hits. This revue of Fats Waller's songs won a Tony Award, a New York Drama Critics Circle Award, a Drama Desk Award and Outer Critics Circle Award as the season's Best Musical. The show, starring Ken Page, Nell Carter, Charlaine Woodard, Andre DeShields, Armelia McQueen and pianist Luther Henderson, won a Tony Award for its brilliant director Richard Maltby.

In the 1960's this theatre housed such interesting productions as "A Case of Libel," starring Van Heflin, Sidney Blackmer and Larry Gates; Zero Mostel in his powerhouse, Tony Award-winning performance in Ionesco's bizarre "Rhinocerous with Eli Wallach, Anne Jackson, Morris Carnovsky and Jean Stapleton; Lorraine Hansberry's ^The Sign in Sidney Brustein's Window;": Margaret Leighton, Zoe Caldwell and Kate Reid in Tennessee Williams's totally insane "Slapstick Tragedy;" Hal Holbrook in his Tony-winning performance in "Mark Twain Tonight" and in Robert Anderson's "I Never Sang for My Father", starring Teresa Wright and Lillian Gish.

The theatre's best plays in the 1950's were Lillian Hellman's adaptation of Anouilh's "The Lark," starring Julie Harris, Boris Karloff and Christopher Plummer; a silken comedy of manners, "The Pleasure of His Company" by Samuel Taylor, starring Cornelia Otis Skinner, Walter Abel, Cyril Ritchard, George Peppard, Charles Ruggles and Dolores Hart; and a comedy called "Fair Game" about New York's garment district, starring Sam Levene and an actress named Ellen McRae, who later changed her name to Ellen Burstyn.

From 1944 until 1953 this theatre was a radio and TV playhouse. It returned to legitimacy with "Ladies of the Corridor," a play by Dorothy Parker and Arnaud d'Usseau. Julie Harris then appeared here in "Mademoiselle Colombe" and "Little Moon of Alban."

Some highlights of the past: three Clifford Odets plays--"Waiting for Lefty," "Till the Day I Die" and "Paradise Lost" (1935); the memorable fantasy "On Borrowed Time" (1938); Miriam Hopkins in two hits--a delightful musical, "Little Jessie James," and "An American Tragedy," adapted from Theodore Dreiser's classic novel; and George S. Kaufman's hit comedy, "The Butter and Egg Man."

Theatre Information:
220 West 48th Street
New York, NY 10036
US

Box Office: Tele-charge: (212) 239-6200
Outside New York: (800) 432-7250

Public Transportation:
SUBWAY: Take the N,R,W to 49th Street or the 1,9 to 50th Street, walk South to 48th Street and West to the theatre; Take the C,E to 50th Street, walk South to 48th Street and East to the theatre.

Handicap Access:
ACCESS INTO THEATRE: Theatre is not completely wheelchair accessible (there are steps to the restrooms and Mezzanine level). There are steps into the theatre (a ramp ia available). Please be advised that where there are steps either into or within the theatre, we are unable to provide assistance. ORCHESTRA LOCATION: Seating is accessible to all parts of the Orchestra without steps. Wheelchair seating is available in the Orchestra only. MEZZANINE LOCATION: Located up 2 flights of stairs. Once on the Mezzanine level there are approximately 2 steps per row. Entrance to the Mezzanine is behind row J. BALCONY LOCATION: Located up 4 flights of stairs. Once on the Balcony level there are approximately 2 steps per row. Entrance to the Balcony is behind row G. RESTROOM: Not wheelchair accessible. Located down one flight of stairs (20 steps in Lower Lounge). Wheelchair accessible restrooms are located at the Holiday Inn Crowne Plaza, on Broadway between West 48th and West 49th Streets.

Contact Us | Advertise | Privacy Policy

Send questions and comments to the Webmaster
Copyright © 2008 Playbill, Inc. All Rights Reserved.