Rename a theatre for Hal Prince- Page 2

[SouthernCakes]

Posted: 7/31/19 at 11:13pm

Is there some significance to the Broadway being named the Broadway? I’ve always thought it was a very lackluster name and a terrible marquee layout.

[George in DC]

Posted: 7/31/19 at 11:53pm

Rename the "Schoenfeld "

[A Director]

Posted: 8/1/19 at 2:27am

SouthernCakes said: "Is there some significance to the Broadway being named the Broadway? I’ve always thought it was a very lackluster name and a terrible marquee layout."

This theatre opened in 1924 as B.S. Moss's Colony Theatre.  It was renamed the Broadway in 1930. Here a short video about the theatre.

http://spotlightonbroadway.com/theater/broadway

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 8/1/19 at 3:30am

"Rename the "Schoenfeld ".

Not gonna happen, and why would you want to? Schoenfeld spent decades of his life as chairman in the Shubert organization. He and Bernie Jacobs (who the Jacobs was named after) arguably pulled Broadway out of its tailspin in the '70s. We need the moneymen, and they deserve their due. Without them, there is no Broadway.

Besides, the Jacobs and Schoenfeld are modest houses, not really big enough to suit Prince's legacy. I think, for many reasons, the Majestic is the obvious choice. 

 

 

[dramamama611]

Posted: 8/1/19 at 8:46am

The man died 2 days ago.....I think we can let that settle in before y'all start storming the castle with your demands. Can we give "them" a chance to put those wheels in motion before stamping our feet?

[George in DC]

Posted: 8/1/19 at 9:56am

ghostlight2 said: ""Rename the "Schoenfeld ".

Not gonna happen, and why would you want to? Schoenfeld spent decades of his life as chairman in the Shubert organization. He and Bernie Jacobs (who the Jacobs was named after) arguably pulled Broadway out of its tailspin in the '70s. We need the moneymen, and they deserve their due. Without them, there is no Broadway.

Besides, the Jacobs and Schoenfeld are modest houses, not really big enough to suit Prince's legacy. I think, for many reasons, the Majestic is the obvious choice."

 

He also advocated and strongly supported the destruction of the Morosco, The Helen Hayes and two other theatres to build the Marriott. Without his and the Shubert Organazations cooperation, it would not have happened. Anyone who does that, should not have a theatre named for them

 

[Jarethan]

Posted: 8/1/19 at 10:07am

CATSNYrevival said: "I like the Majestic. Rename the Broadway Theatre. Evita played there and it is probably confusing for some people."

Not just Evita.  His groundbreaking production of Candide ran there for almost two years, and off the top of my head, the original productions of Cabaret and Fiddler on the Roof closed at the Broadway after long successful runs.  So, Evita was not the only production.

 

[Jarethan]

Posted: 8/1/19 at 10:24am

George in DC said: "ghostlight2 said: ""Rename the "Schoenfeld ".

Not gonna happen, and why would you want to? Schoenfeld spent decades of his life as chairman in the Shubert organization. He and Bernie Jacobs (who the Jacobs was named after) arguably pulled Broadway out of its tailspin in the '70s. We need the moneymen, and they deserve their due. Without them, there is no Broadway.

Besides, the Jacobs and Schoenfeld are modest houses, not really big enough to suit Prince's legacy. I think, for many reasons, the Majestic is the obvious choice."



He also advocated and strongly supported the destruction of the Morosco, The Helen Hayes and two other theatres to build the Marriott. Without his and the Shubert Organazations cooperation, it would not have happened. Anyone who does that, should not have a theatre named for them

They supported it because they believed that opening a huge Marriott was going to be good for  roadway, and they were right.  I don’t know how old you are,  but Broadway 40 years ago was a disaster; overall business was down becausE it got seedier and seedier every year.  I used to prefer shows at the BroadwY and (then Alvin and ANTA theaters because those streets were pretty good.

the loss of the Helen Hayes was a damn shame...it’s exterior and auditorium were beautiful.  The Morosconwas an ugly theatre (that had a rich history, admittedly, but IMO it was no loss.  There was also an off-Broadway theatre — I think it was the  Bijou — which was no loss.  

Map, while some (many?) will disagree, I think it was the right thing to do, even if we got the Marquis Theater in the process.  That project was a pivotal starting point in the revitalization of Broadway.  I miss a few of the closed movie places (and the Astor and Victoria theatres are not among the ones I miss) more than the Bijou, Morocco, and unfortunate Helen Hayes.

 

 

[JSquared2]

Posted: 8/1/19 at 1:26pm

Theatrefanboy1 said: "Luminaire2 said: "Okay so who is starting the petition or letter campaign to see this through? "

Is it strange that that I have already formally started to look into it?

How does one "formally look into" writing a letter?  I'm seriously curious...

 

[George in DC]

Posted: 8/1/19 at 2:46pm

Jarethan said: "George in DC said: "ghostlight2 said: ""Rename the "Schoenfeld ".

Not gonna happen, and why would you want to? Schoenfeld spent decades of his life as chairman in the Shubert organization. He and Bernie Jacobs (who the Jacobs was named after) arguably pulled Broadway out of its tailspin in the '70s. We need the moneymen, and they deserve their due. Without them, there is no Broadway.

Besides, the Jacobs and Schoenfeld are modest houses, not really big enough to suit Prince's legacy. I think, for many reasons, the Majestic is the obvious choice."



He also advocated and strongly supported the destruction of the Morosco, The Helen Hayes and two other theatres to build the Marriott. Without his and the Shubert Organazations cooperation, it would not have happened. Anyone who does that, should not have a theatre named for them

They supported it because they believed that opening a huge Marriott was going to be good for roadway, and they were right. I don’t know how old you are, butBroadway 40 years ago was a disaster; overall business was down becausE it gotseedier and seedier every year. I used to prefer shows at the BroadwY and (then Alvin andANTA theaters because those streets were pretty good.

the loss of the Helen Hayes was a damn shame...it’s exterior and auditorium were beautiful. The Morosconwas an ugly theatre (that had a rich history, admittedly, but IMO it was no loss. There was also an off-Broadway theatre — I think it was the Bijou — which was no loss.

Map, while some (many?) will disagree, I think it was the right thing to do, even if we got the Marquis Theater in the process. That project was a pivotal starting point in the revitalization of Broadway. I miss a few of the closedmovie places (and the Astorand Victoria theatres are not among the ones I miss) more than the Bijou, Morocco, and unfortunate Helen Hayes."

 

I'm old enough. I lived in NYC most of my life, until 2003. Quite frankly, I prefer the seediness of the way Times Square used to be to the  ugly Las Vegas Mall that it has become. But then I also prefer Broadway back then too, when there as many plays running as there were musicals.

 

Updated On: 8/1/19 at 02:46 PM

[Jarethan]

Posted: 8/1/19 at 3:52pm

George in DC said: "Jarethan said: "George in DC said: "ghostlight2 said: ""Rename the "Schoenfeld ".

Not gonna happen, and why would you want to? Schoenfeld spent decades of his life as chairman in the Shubert organization. He and Bernie Jacobs (who the Jacobs was named after) arguably pulled Broadway out of its tailspin in the '70s. We need the moneymen, and they deserve their due. Without them, there is no Broadway.

Besides, the Jacobs and Schoenfeld are modest houses, not really big enough to suit Prince's legacy. I think, for many reasons, the Majestic is the obvious choice."



He also advocated and strongly supported the destruction of the Morosco, The Helen Hayes and two other theatres to build the Marriott. Without his and the Shubert Organazations cooperation, it would not have happened. Anyone who does that, should not have a theatre named for them

They supported it because they believed that opening a huge Marriott was going to be good for roadway, and they were right. I don’t know how old you are, butBroadway 40 years ago was a disaster; overall business was down becausE it gotseedier and seedier every year. I used to prefer shows at the BroadwY and (then Alvin andANTA theaters because those streets were pretty good.

the loss of the Helen Hayes was a damn shame...it’s exterior and auditorium were beautiful. The Morosconwas an ugly theatre (that had a rich history, admittedly, but IMO it was no loss. There was also an off-Broadway theatre — I think it was the Bijou — which was no loss.

Map, while some (many?) will disagree, I think it was the right thing to do, even if we got the Marquis Theater in the process. That project was a pivotal starting point in the revitalization of Broadway. I miss a few of the closedmovie places (and the Astorand Victoria theatres are not among the ones I miss) more than the Bijou, Morocco, and unfortunate Helen Hayes."



I'm old enough. I lived in NYC most of my life, until 2003. Quite frankly, I prefer the seediness of the way Times Square used to be to the ugly Las Vegas Mall that it has become. But then I also prefer Broadway back then too, when there as many plays running as there were musicals.

 

I actually agree with you that is has become an uninteresting place, but it is a lot safer and theatres / restaurants are booming, despite ridiculous theatre  prices, way more than inflation ohver the past 50 years.  I think that is because of tourism, which has benefitted from the absence of the seediness in those days, as well as an increase time f suburban visitors since then.  I loved the last heyday of the movie palaces, but don’t miss the sleaziness or the feeling of being unsafe, which I did feel on a number of occasions.  And I certainly prefer the bill oards of those days to the high-tech displays of today.  But I do not miss the Morosconor the Bijou theagree.

 

[sparksatmidnight]

Posted: 8/2/19 at 11:04pm

While I do think that Hal Prince deserves every single bit of praise, I don't quite like renaming theatres after people; after all, if this medium keeps on giving and surviving, there are bound to appear more people whose significant work will change Broadway for years to come, and at some point, we will run out of theatres. Then next, we start to decide who deserves it more?


(Although I do love the "Majestic Hal Prince Theatre" someone suggested

[GiantsInTheSky2]

Posted: 8/2/19 at 11:24pm

I don’t think we will run out of theaters, as there aren’t that many people who have such a profound effect on the industry and art form.

Hal Prince, as said in many articles, is synonymous with Broadway. I don’t think anyone is looking to rename a theater after, say, Idina Menzel.

[jagman1062]

Posted: 8/2/19 at 11:50pm

The speculation seems to be that a Shubert house could be renamed for Prince, but the Jujamcyns or Nederlanders could possibly take the lead.  The only Jujamcyn house not already named for someone is the St. James, which is a possibility because it housed the original production of The Pajama Game.  Of course, theaters that were previously named for someone have been renamed for someone else (Henry Miller's becoming the Sondheim and the Martin Back becoming the Hirschfeld are the most recent I believe), so that could be a possibility.  If the Nederlanders take the lead, I believe the two Broadway theaters not named for anyone are the Marquis and the Palace.  The Palace name is iconic and many people may not want to see the theater renamed, but with it being elevated a few floors, transforming the theater into 'something else' might be appropriate.  If Prince supported the destruction of the Morosco, old Hayes, and other theaters to make way for the Mariiott, renaming the Marquis might be appropriate.  Another option is renaming the Minskoff, which I believe was named for the builders of the office building that currently houses that theater.  I do prefer the idea of the Majestic or Broadway being renamed, though.

[A Director]

Posted: 8/3/19 at 3:50am

GiantsInTheSky2 said: "I don’t think we will run out of theaters, as there aren’t that many people who have such a profound effect on the industry and art form.

Hal Prince, as said in many articles, is synonymous with Broadway. I don’t think anyone is looking to rename a theater after, say, Idina Menzel."

And no one is looking to rename a theatre after Liza.

 

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 8/3/19 at 4:51am

"[Schoenfeld] also advocated and strongly supported the destruction of the Morosco, The Helen Hayes and two other theatres to build the Marriott. Without his and the Shubert Organazations cooperation, it would not have happened. Anyone who does that, should not have a theatre named for them"

Early in my career, I worked on the next to last show at the Morosco. I, too, disagreed with the decision to destroy 5 theaters in return for a hotel and the ill-conceived theater that is now the Marquis. I protested alongside Susan Sarandon, Michael Moriarty, Tammy Grimes and others when those those theaters were designated to be torn down, though I didn't get arrested as many did. I agree with Jarethan, though.The '70s and early '80s were a terrible time for New York in general and theater in particular. If you were in show business, you were starting to think about getting into another line of work.

Like you and Jarathen, I miss the old Times Square, but we are viewing through the lens of time. It wasn't just seedy, it was dangerous, the tourists weren't coming here, much less spending money, and whether we like it or not, Broadway is a business. Schoenfeld was a businessman. He did what he thought was right to save Broadway. Was there another way? Maybe, but the simple fact is, Broadway began to turn around afterwards. I know we will likely never come to an agreement here, and I understand very well the emotion you feel for what was lost, but if you really know Schoenfeld's story, it is awfully hard to deny that he loved Broadway. He literally spent his entire life supporting it.

Here's a timeline of those days, with photos. I still want to weep when I see the half-destroyed Helen Hayes. I wish it could have been saved - but I am very glad that there is still a Broadway to work on, which didn't seem at all likely back then.

 

 

Updated On: 8/3/19 at 04:51 AM