Famous Ankles

I don’t like the title.  I think we ought to use “theater” and not “theatre”.

I recently managed to get a super-cheap ticket to see Mary Poppins at the New Amsterdam Theatre and went. (The picture above is during the day, but I did see the play at night.)

The play was fine and nicely done.  It was definitely a big-bucks production with the stage set carrying a lot of the burden of the storyline.  Well, there’s really no storyline at all.  Just an excuse for a great stageset and lots and lots of singing.

But, I also liked the theater itself.  It’s located on 42nd Street, just off Broadway.

The plaque reads “New Amsterdam Theatre.  Designed by the noted theater architects, Herts & Tallant, for producers Klaw & Erlanger, the New Amersterdam opened on October 26, 1903, with a production of Shakespears “A Midsummer’s Night Dream”.  The theater has one of the fiest art noveau interiors in the United States.  As one of New York City’s best musical comedy houses, the New Amersterdam showcased many talented stars and was home to the Ziegfield Follies from 1913 through 1927.  The theater, converted to a movie house in 1937, closed in 1985.  The New Amsterdam was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.  Following acquisition by the 42nd St. Devlopment Project, Inc. and the New York City Economic Development Corporation, the New Amsterdam was restored to its original splendor by the Walt Disney Company, who jointly funded the project with the Empire State Development Corporation, the New York City Economic Development Corporation, and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.  The theater reopened in 1997.”

I did manage to get an inside shot of the theater.

-H

This entry was posted on May 11, 2008 at 4:47 pm and is filed under Broadway, Wanderings. You can subscribe via RSS 2.0 feed to this post's comments. You can comment below, or link to this permanent URL from your own site.