Broadway theatre

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For the theatre on Broadway of the same name, see The Broadway Theatre.

Note on spelling: While most Americans use "er" (as per American spelling conventions), the majority of venues, performers and trade groups for live theatre use "re."

Broadway theatre is often considered the highest professional form of theatre in the United States. Broadway theatre, or a Broadway show, refers to a performance (usually a play or musical) staged in one of the thirty-nine larger professional theatres located in New York City, with 500 seats or more, that appeal to the mass audience. Along with London's West End theatre, Broadway theatre is usually considered of the highest level of English language theatre. Image:New York New Amsterdam Theatre 2003.jpg While the term "Broadway" comes from the street, Broadway, it is best described as a theatre district as not all Broadway theatres are located on this street. With roots in 1826, and expansions and new construction, by the turn of the century Broadway was the center of American theater and fast becoming the most important commercially in the world, enticing European stars such as Sarah Bernhardt. Some of the important early investors and developers of the Broadway theater district include Henry Abbey, A.L. Erlanger, Marcus Klaw, Florenz Ziegfeld, Rudolf Aronson, David Belasco, Charles Frohman, Daniel Frohman, Oscar Hammerstein, and the Shubert family. Broadway theatre played an important role in 20th century American cultural history, as it featured the work of some of the most influential American composers of classical music, such as George Gershwin, Kurt Weill, Marc Blitzstein and Leonard Bernstein, as well as many of the famous American playwrights like Edward Albee, George S. Kaufman, Eugene O'Neill and Neil Simon.

Today, the majority of Broadway theatres are located in the area called Midtown, in and around Times Square. Broadway theatres are usually run by a producing organization (e.g., Nederlander Organization, The Walt Disney Company, The Shubert Organization, etc.), or another theatre group (e.g., Manhattan Theatre Club, Lincoln Center Theater, et cetera).

All Broadway shows are professionally produced and adhere to strict contracts for all artists involved (e.g., performers, directors, musicians, playwrights, stage managers, et cetera). Artistic trade unions such as Actors' Equity, commonly known simply as "Equity," and the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers bargain for contracts guaranteeing minimum wages and other rights involved with the rehearsal and production process. On rare occasions, disputes over contracts can result in a group of artists' going on strike. In March 2003, musicians in the orchestra pit of Broadway musicals went on strike because producers wanted to reduce the minimum number of orchestra members required. More than a dozen Broadway musicals went dark for four days after the musicians' union walked out, and theaters lost millions of dollars in revenue.

Broadway shows may run for a varying number of weeks, depending on ticket sales. Musicals tend to have longer runs than do stage plays. On Jan 9, 2006, The Phantom of the Opera at the Majestic Theatre became the longest running musical with 7,486 performances when it overtook Cats [1].

In addition to long runs in Broadway theatres, producers often copy the production with a new cast and crew for the Broadway national tour, which travels to theatres across the country. Both musicals and stage plays on Broadway and in their respective tours often rely on casting well-known performers in leading roles to draw larger audiences or bring in new audience members to the theatre. Actors from movies and television are frequently cast for the premieres of Broadway shows or are used to replace actors leaving a cast. Many performers, however, are still primarily "stage" actors, who spend more time on the stages of New York and will appear in television and screen roles as a secondary venue.

Broadway shows and artists are honored every June when the Antoinette Perry Awards (Tony Awards) are given by the American Theatre Wing. The Tony is Broadway's highest theatre award. The importance of these awards has increased since their annual broadcast on television began. Celebrities are often chosen to host the show, like Hugh Jackman and Rosie O'Donnell, in addition to celebrity presenters. While some critics have felt that the show should focus on celebrating the stage, many others recognize the positive impact that famous faces lend to selling more tickets and bringing more people to the theatre. The performances from Broadway musicals on the telecast have also been cited as vital to the survival of many Broadway shows. Many theatre people, notably critic Frank Rich, dismiss the Tony awards as little more than a commercial for the limited world of Broadway, which after all can only support a maximum of two dozen shows a season, and constantly call for the awards to embrace off-Broadway theatre as well.

Seeing a Broadway show is a common tourist activity in New York and a business that generates billions of dollars annually. The Tkts booth in Duffy Square, at Broadway and 47th Street, sells same-day tickets for many Broadway and Off-Broadway shows at half price. This service helps sell empty seats and makes seeing a show in New York more affordable. Many Broadway theatres also offer special student rates, same-day "rush" tickets, or standing-room tickets to help ensure that more people have the opportunity to see Broadway shows.

Some theatregoers prefer the more experimental, challenging, and intimate performances possible in smaller theatres, which are referred to as Off-Broadway and Off-Off-Broadway (though some may be physically located on or near Broadway). The classification of theatres is governed by language in Actors' Equity Association contracts. To be eligible for a Tony, a production must be in a house with 500 seats or more, which pretty much defines the Broadway Theatre. Some theatres (by adding or subtracting seats) can convert from Off-Broadway to Broadway and vice versa.

Total Broadway attendance in 2005 was just under 12 million. [2]. This was approximately the same as London's West End theatre. [3]

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List of Broadway theaters

If no show is currently running, the play listed is the next show planned (marked with a *).
If the next show planned is not announced, the play listed is the last one that closed (marked with a #).

Theatre	Show	Address	Opened
Ambassador Theatre	Chicago	219 West 49th Street	Nov. 14, 1996
American Airlines Theatre	The Pajama Game	227 West 42nd Street	Feb. 23, 2006
Brooks Atkinson Theatre	The Odd Couple	256 West 47th Street	Oct. 27, 2005
Ethel Barrymore Theatre	Ring of Fire	243 West 47th Street	Mar. 12, 2006
Belasco Theatre	Awake and Sing!	111 West 44th Street	Apr. 17, 2006 *
Vivian Beaumont Theatre (at Lincoln Center)	The Light in the Piazza	150 West 65th Street	Apr. 18, 2005
Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre (formerly the Royale Theatre)	Three Days of Rain	242 West 45th Street	Apr. 19, 2006 *
Biltmore Theater	Rabbit Hole	261 West 47th Street	Feb. 2, 2006
Booth Theatre	Faith Healer	222 West 45th Street	May 4, 2006 *
Broadhurst Theatre	The History Boys	235 West 44th Street	Apr. 23, 2006 *
Broadway Theatre	The Color Purple	1681 Broadway	Dec. 1, 2005
Cadillac Winter Garden Theatre	Mamma Mia!	1634 Broadway	Oct. 18, 2001
Circle in the Square Theatre	The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee	1633 Broadway	May 2, 2005
Cort Theatre	Barefoot in the Park	138 West 48th Street	Feb. 16, 2006
Gershwin Theatre	Wicked	222 West 51st Street	Oct. 30, 2003
John Golden Theatre	Avenue Q	252 West 45th Street	Jul. 31, 2003
Helen Hayes Theatre	Bridge & Tunnel	240 West 44th Street	Jan. 26, 2006
Hilton Theatre	Hot Feet	213 West 42nd Street	Apr. 30, 2006 *
Al Hirschfeld Theatre (formerly the Martin Beck Theatre)	The Wedding Singer	302 West 45th Street	Apr. 27, 2006 *
Imperial Theatre	Dirty Rotten Scoundrels	249 West 45th Street	Mar. 3, 2005
Walter Kerr Theatre	Doubt	218 West 48th Street	Mar. 31, 2005
Longacre Theatre	Well	220 West 48th Street	Mar. 30, 2006
Lunt-Fontanne Theatre	Beauty and the Beast	205 West 46th Street	Apr. 18, 1994
Lyceum Theatre	The Lieutenant of Inishmore	149 West 45th Street	Apr. 18, 2006 *
Majestic Theatre	The Phantom of the Opera	247 West 44th Street	Jan. 26, 1988
Marquis Theatre	The Drowsy Chaperone	1535 Broadway	Apr. 3, 2006 *
Minskoff Theatre	The Lion King	1515 Broadway	* transferring from the New Amsterdam Theatre on Jun. 13, 2006
Music Box Theatre	Festen	239 West 45th Street	Apr. 9, 2006 *
Nederlander Theatre	Rent	208 West 41st Street	Apr. 29, 1996
New Amsterdam Theatre	The Lion King	214 West 42nd Street	Nov. 13, 1997
Eugene O'Neill Theatre	Sweeney Todd	230 West 49th Street	Nov. 3, 2005
Palace Theatre	Lestat	1564 Broadway	Apr. 13, 2006 *
Richard Rodgers Theatre	Tarzan	226 West 46th Street	May 10, 2006 *
Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre (formerly the Plymouth Theatre)	A Chorus Line	236 West 45th Street	Oct. 5, 2006*
Sam S. Shubert Theatre	Spamalot	225 West 44th Street	Mar. 17, 2005
Neil Simon Theatre	Hairspray	250 West 52nd Street	Aug. 15, 2002
St. James Theatre	The Producers	246 West 44th Street	Apr. 19, 2001
Studio 54	The Threepenny Opera	254 West 54th Street	Apr. 20, 2006 *
August Wilson Theatre (formerly the Virginia Theatre)	Jersey Boys	245 West 52nd Street	Nov. 6, 2005