TOP 10 TUESDAY (MARCH 2025) - Broadway Theatres
- James Tradgett
- Mar 19
- 8 min read
I just landed in New York City, so when else is going to be appropriate to share with you my top 10 favourite theatres in one of the theatre capitals of the world. In total I have visited around half of the theatres on broadway, these being the major commercial venues of more than 500 seats in New York's theatre district, so here are the theatres I most like for a variety of reasons.
10. Broadway
current show: The Great Gatsby
We start with the second largest venue in terms of auditorium size, with a total seating capacity of roughly 1750 across two levels, and a mezzanine split into front and rear sections; also worth noting it is one of only two theatres to actually be situated on the Broadway street itself, the other being the "Winter Garden". The Broadway Theatre is a venue that just celebrated its 100th anniversary, first opening as the "Colony Theatre" on Christmas Day 1924, and primarily screened movies, with the first of these being the Raoul Walsh picture The Thief of Bagdad.
The theatre was renamed several times, going through "B.S. Moss's Broadway Theatre", "Earl Carroll's Broadway Theatre", and "Ciné Roma" before settling on its current name in December 1939. Major pieces of theatre hosted by the Broadway have included Evita, Les Misérables, both the original and revived productions of Miss Saigon, and more recently the 2015 revival of Fiddler on the Roof, King Kong, and its current residents The Great Gatsby. The scale and grandeur of the venue is always a big draw, both its exterior and then once you get inside; it is also one of the few theatres to have a proper front of house foyer area, as most broadway theatres open straight into the auditorium once you enter the venue.
9. Golden
current show: Operation Mincemeat
From one of the largest to one of the smallest theatres on broadway, the John Golden Theatre, opening as "The Theatre Masque" in 1927, initially gained a reputation for hosting theatrical flops, with its first production under the Chanin Brothers, a play by Rosso di San Secondo called Puppets of Passion, closing after only 12 performances. This was followed by a whole host of productions that barely got out of the starting blocks, with most not even making it to 20 performances, and only one lasting more than 100.
Though things picked up after the renaming to the John Golden in January 1937, the theatre experienced better, more sustained success following its acquisition by the Shubert Brothers eight years later. For the most part the theatre has been a playhouse, with plays such as Waiting For Godot, Glengarry Glen Ross and, more recently, the two most Tony nominated plays of all time, Slave Play and Stereophonic, receiving their broadway premieres at the Golden.
With a total capacity of just over 800 seats, the Golden is a comparatively small theatre when compared with the majority of broadway venues, however the size of the stage and width of the auditorium gives it an open, expansive feel. The current tenants, Operation Mincemeat, are one of only a handful of musicals to have been staged at this theatre, the previous musical production being Tony winners Avenue Q. Who knows, this could perhaps be indicative of future success, so watch this space.
8. Lunt-Fontanne
current show: Death Becomes Her
Though not the largest in terms of its overall auditorium capacity, the scale of the Lunt-Fontanne is simply enormous, with a staggering 29 rows in the orchestra stalls and a further 18 up in the mezzanine, not to mention the stage is absolutely huge. It opened in 1910 as the "Globe Theatre", named for the famous Shakespearean theatre in England, and staged largely musicals and revues in its early days, as well as being the 1921 venue for the Ziegfeld Follies.
Like with a considerable number of broadway theatres, the Globe ended up as a movie house in the 1930s after declaring bankruptcy and being bought out. It eventually returned to functioning as a theatre, and was renamed after stage couple Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne, whom retired from acting not long after performing in the inaugural production of the Lunt-Fontanne, a play by Friedrich Dürrenmatt called The Visit.
More recently, the theatre has played host to a plethora of major musical productions, including the 1984 revival of The Wiz, the original staging of Disney's Beauty and the Beast, and the latest revival of Stephen Sondheim's masterpiece Sweeney Todd starring John Groban and Annaleigh Ashford. At present, the Lunt-Fontanne is the home of Death Becomes Her, a new musical by Julia Mattison and Noel Carey.
7. Bernard B Jacobs
current show: The Outsiders
The Jacobs has the distinction of being the theatre at which I have seen the most different productions, and it is no surprise that I keep coming back to it. The Bernards B Jacobs is a beautiful theatre, opening almost 100 years ago, in January 1927, as the Royale Theatre, and was another Chanin Brothers property initially before being purchased by the Shuberts. The theatre was also briefly named after John Golden, returning to its original name before being named after former Shubert president Bernard B Jacobs in 2004.
Like many broadway theatres, the Royale was a playhouse for much of its early history, however the first year it opened, it staged three different Gilbert & Sullivan operettas. In recent years it has become far better known for its musical productions, with three of its most recent productions having won Tony awards for either best musical or best musical revival, these being Company, Parade, and its current occupants The Outsiders.
6. Belasco
current show: Maybe Happy Ending
The oldest theatre on this list, the Belasco has one of the most uniquely beautiful designs, both inside and out, in the whole of the city; designed by George Keister and opened in 1907 as the "Stuyvesant Theatre", the Belasco for the most part has played host to plays and more modestly performing musicals, with perhaps the most noteworthy being the latter half of A Raisin in the Sun's broadway premiere initially opening at the Ethel Barrymore and transferring to the Belasco after the first seven months.
The Belasco is around average in terms of total seating capacity, with just over 1000 seats across three levels, and currently hosts new Will Aronson and Hue Park musical Maybe Happy Ending, starring Darren Criss and Helen J Shen, which is a major contender for the 2025 Tony awards. Other recent productions of note have included Girl from the North Country, The Glass Menagerie starring Sally Fields, and the 2014 Neil Patrick Harris revival of Hedwig and the Angry Inch.
5. Gershwin
current show: Wicked
From one of the oldest to one of the newest broadway theatres, but also by far the largest venue in New York's theatre district, both in terms of its front of house areas and he size of its auditorium; the Gershwin has been the home of Stephen Schwarz's musical "Wicked" since 2003. This theatre's house has the rare distinction of having both a raked orchestra (stalls) section, and pretty much no overhang from the mezzanine level, meaning you basically have a clear view from whatever seat you are seated in, albeit fairly distant if you're seated at the rear of either level.
The venue opened as the Uris Theatre in November 1972, around 2 weeks after the opening of Circle in the Square which resides next door, making it one of the newest theatres on broadway. It was renamed after George and Ira Gershwin in June 1983, with the final production under its original name being a revival of "Show Boat" starring Donald O'Connor. Other notable productions have included the original production of Sweeney Todd, two further revivals of Show Boat, and a whole host of music legends, including Count Basie, Sammy Davis Jr, Ella Fitzgerald and Barry Manilow.
4. Vivian Beaumont (Lincoln Centre)
next show: Floyd Collins
Unique in having a flexible thrust style stage, the Vivian Beaumont Theatre is the only broadway theatre not to be situated in New York's theatre district, located near central park and opposite the Juilliard School up on West 65th Street. What makes the Beaumont particularly intriguing is that, unlike most broadway theatres, it isn't its own entity, instead being one of a group of theatres, as part of the Lincoln Centre which comprises 9 different entertainment venues. And at only 60 years old, it is also one of the newest theatres on broadway, having opened in 1965.
Due to the layout of the auditorium, the Beaumont has a particularly large stage, giving it huge scope for the variety of shows it can stage there, but has for the most art staged more classic works, with everything from Shakespeare and Dumas to Cole Porter and Lerner & Loewe being performed at the Beaumont. The next show to play at this delightful theatre will be the 2025 production of Adam Guettel's musical Floyd Collins, with previews starting on the 27th of March.
3. Circle in the Square
next show: Just In Time
The only permanent "in the round" theatre on broadway, the Circle in the Square theatre is a unique New York venue, not least because its name describes it perfectly, as it features a circular stage in the middle of a square of seats. It is also one of the few broadway theatres to never have changed its name, or been named after a person or people.
A hugely versatile auditorium, Circle in the Square has hosted a wide variety of productions, most notably the 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Fun Home, and the 2024 revival of Romeo + Juliet starring Rachel Zegler and Kit Connor.
2. Richard Rodgers
current show: Hamilton
The penultimate entry in this list, and certainly one of the most iconic, especially in terms of the association with both the show and its writer with this particular theatre, Lin-Manuel Miranda staged his first show In The Heights at the Richard Rodgers, and as of 2015 his magnum opus Hamilton currently resides within this stunning 1500 seater theatre that first opened in 1925; this means the theatre and its current occupant will both celebrate significant anniversaries this year.
Another exponent of the Chanin Brothers, the theatre first opened as the 46th Street Theatre, with early productions including the first broadway production of Cole Porter’s musical Anything Goes amid a whole host of lesser known plays. More recently though, the productions staged have been a very mixed bag in terms of critical and commercial success, with everything from Noël Coward to Disney being staged there. It has since, however, become synonymous with the first treasury secretary, and I don't see that changing any time soon.
1. Walter Kerr
current show: Hadestown
No other theatre was going to make the top of this list, the Walter Kerr holds a very personal attachment, both because of the show that is currently resident inside it, and how being there makes me feel. It opened in 1921 as the Ritz Theatre, and has as varied. ahistory as you can get, operating as a TV broadcasting studio, a children's theatre, a vaudeville theatre, an adult theatre and, perhaps most bizarrely, a poster storage facility; it was renamed after renowned theatre critic Walter Kerr in 1990.
After recent productions such as Amélie and Falsettos, the Walter Kerr has since been host of Anaïs Mitchell's musical masterpiece Hadestown since 2019.
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