Britain's Howard Panter May Become Fourth Major Broadway Theater Owner

According to The New York Post, a fourth theater owner may be joining Broadway's Shuberts, Nederlanders and Jujamcyn theaters.

Britain's Howard Panter, owner of the London-based Ambassador Theatre Group, which controls the Lyricon 42nd Street, is currently in negotiations to take ownership of the Hudson Theatre in the Hudson Hotel on West 44th Street. The venue, which currently serves as a conference center, will have to undergo renovations. Among the plays which once graced its stage are Lillian Hellman's Toys in the Attic, Detective Story, the Pulitzer Prize winning State of the Union and Arsenic and Old Lace.

The paper also reports that Panter has plans to take over the Times Square Theater, the only 42nd Street theater which has not been redone. The theater was scheduled to become the location of the failed "Broadway 4D," a planned film project about the history of Broadway that was to feature Hugh Jackman, Christina Aguilera and Matthew Morrison, among others. The project was abandoned due to financial issues.

Panter's company currently controls 40 theaters in England and Asia and he has a financial interest in several West End and Broadway shows, including "The Book of Mormon."

"Howard wants to be a player in New York," shares a veteran Broadway producer. "The best way to become a player is to own theaters."

Read the article in full here.

Photo: Photo Credit: Paul Clapp