Hudson Theatre
Encyclopedia
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
theater located at 141 West 44th Street, in midtown Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. Today the Hudson functions as a conference center and television studio. It is owned by Millennium & Copthorne Hotels
Millennium & Copthorne Hotels
Millennium & Copthorne Hotels plc is a leading British-based hotel business. Including the pipeline, the company owns or operates over 120 hotels in 19 countries around the world...
.
History
The theater was designed by architects J.B. McElfatrick, Israels & Harder in 1903. It was built by theatrical producer Henry B. HarrisHenry B. Harris
Henry B. Harris ; Henry Birkhardt Harris, born in St. Louis, was a Broadway producer and theatre owner who died in the sinking of the...
and was managed by his wife after his death on the RMS Titanic. From the 1930s through the 1950s the theater was used as a radio and television studio. The theater was owned by NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
in the 1950s, and in 1954 was home to the original version of The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. It is the longest currently running regularly scheduled entertainment program in the United States, and the third longest-running show on NBC, after Meet the Press and Today.The Tonight Show has been hosted by...
with host Steve Allen
Steve Allen
Steve Allen may refer to:*Steve Allen , American musician, comedian, and writer*Steve Allen , presenter on the London-based talk radio station LBC 97.3...
. Bought by developer Abraham Hirschfeld
Abraham Hirschfeld
Abraham Jacob "Abe" Hirschfeld , was a Polish-born New York real estate developer known for his eccentric endeavors, love for publicity, $2 neckties, strong Yiddish accent, and murder-for-hire plot against a former business partner.Hirschfeld was born in Tarnów, Poland and immigrated to the British...
in 1956, and after returning to use as a legitimate theater in the 1960s, in 1974 it was converted into a movie house. Finally, in 1980 it became the Savoy rock club.
In 1987, the building received landmark status. When owner Henry Macklowe developed the surrounding lots into a new luxury hotel, he incorporated the landmarked theater, using it as a conference center and auditorium. Millennium & Copthorne Hotels
Millennium & Copthorne Hotels
Millennium & Copthorne Hotels plc is a leading British-based hotel business. Including the pipeline, the company owns or operates over 120 hotels in 19 countries around the world...
bought the hotel and the Hudson in 1995.
Currently, the Hudson Theatre is used as a conference and party space for the Millennium Broadway Hotel. It is also the site of stand-up comedy shows taped for broadcast on the Comedy Central
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American cable television and satellite television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated....
cable network.
Notable productions
- 1903: Cousin KateCousin KateCousin Kate is a Regency romance novel by Georgette Heyer. The story is set in 1817 and 1818.-Plot summary:Kate Malvern is a beautiful orphan who is forced to become a governess when her father dies. However due to her youth and beauty she loses the job and has to go to her old governess' house...
- 1907: The Lion and the Mouse
- 1908: Love's ComedyLove's ComedyLove's Comedy is a comedy by Henrik Ibsen. It was first published on 31 December 1862. As a result of being branded an "immoral" work in the press, the Christiania Theatre would not dare to stage it at first...
- 1914: The Taming of the ShrewThe Taming of the ShrewThe Taming of the Shrew is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1590 and 1591.The play begins with a framing device, often referred to as the Induction, in which a mischievous nobleman tricks a drunken tinker named Sly into believing he is actually a nobleman himself...
- 1922: So This is London
- 1926: The NooseThe Noose (play)The Noose is a play written by Willard Mack. It was later adapted as the film The Noose.The play opened on Broadway the night of October 20, 1926 at the Hudson Theatre. It is perhaps best known today for introducing the previously unknown Barbara Stanwyck. It also featured actors Rex Cherryman and...
- 1929: Hot Chocolate
- 1938: Who's Who
- 1941: Arsenic and Old LaceArsenic and Old Lace (play)Arsenic and Old Lace is a play by American playwright Joseph Kesselring, written in 1939. It has become best known through the film adaptation starring Cary Grant and directed by Frank Capra. The play was directed by Bretaigne Windust, and opened on January 10, 1941. On September 25, 1943, the...
- 1960: Toys in the AtticToys in the Attic (play)-Plot:Set in New Orleans following the Great Depression, it focuses on the Berniers sisters, two middle-aged spinsters who have sacrificed their own ambitions to look after their ne'er-do-well younger brother Julian, whose grandiose dreams repeatedly lead to financial disasters...