The Charles Playhouse is a

theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actor, actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The p ...

at 74 Warrenton Street

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the capital city, state capital and List of municipalities in Massachusetts, most populous city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financ ...

in the

Boston Theater District The Boston Theater District is the center of Boston's theater scene. Many of its theaters are on Washington Street, Tremont Street, Boylston Street, and Huntington Avenue. History Plays were banned in Boston by the Puritans until 1792. Bos ...

. The venue comprises an approximately 500-seat mainstage, which hosts the long-running

Blue Man Group Blue Man Group is an American performance art company formed in 1987. It was purchased in July 2017 by the Canadian company Cirque du Soleil. Blue Man Group is known for its stage productions, which incorporate many kinds of music and art, b ...

, and a 200-seat second stage that hosted '' Shear Madness'' until March 2020.

History

In 1957, the Charles Playhouse opened at 54 Charles Street. In 1958, the company moved to the current Warrenton Street location. The Warrenton Street building was originally built in 1839, as the Fifth Universalist Church from a design by architect

Asher Benjamin Asher Benjamin (June 15, 1773July 26, 1845) was an American architect and author whose work transitioned between Federal architecture and the later Greek Revival architecture. His seven handbooks on design deeply influenced the look of cities an ...

. In 1864, it became the second home of Congregation Ohabei Shalom, the first synagogue in Boston.Blowen, Michael. "Curtain to rise on a new Charles." Boston Globe, 22 Sep 1995: 58. It was later transformed into a

speakeasy A speakeasy, also called a blind pig or blind tiger, is an illicit establishment that sells alcoholic beverages, or a retro style bar that replicates aspects of historical speakeasies. Speakeasy bars came into prominence in the United States ...

called The Lido Venice, which became the Southland ballroom and cafe- featuring prominent jazz artists such as

Count Basie William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and th ...

Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous jazz orchestra from 1923 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Ellington was ba ...

Cab Calloway Cabell Calloway III (December 25, 1907 – November 18, 1994) was an American singer, songwriter, bandleader, conductor and dancer. He was associated with the Cotton Club in Harlem, where he was a regular performer and became a popular vocali ...

Jimmie Lunceford James Melvin Lunceford (June 6, 1902 – July 12, 1947) was an American jazz alto saxophonist and bandleader in the swing era. Early life Lunceford was born on a farm in the Evergreen community, west of the Tombigbee River, near Fulton, ...

, and many others during the Jazz Age. In 1958, the Charles Playhouse staged a revival of O'Neill's ''

The Iceman Cometh ''The Iceman Cometh'' is a play written by American playwright Eugene O'Neill in 1939. First published in 1946, the play premiered on Broadway at the Martin Beck Theatre on October 9, 1946, directed by Eddie Dowling, where it ran for 136 perf ...

''. The founding artistic director, Michael Murray, led the company until 1968. The founder and managing director was Frank Sugrue. The acting company included many stars-to-be such as

Al Pacino Alfredo James Pacino (; ; born April 25, 1940) is an American actor. Considered one of the most influential actors of the 20th century, he has received List of awards and nominations received by Al Pacino, numerous accolades: including an Aca ...

Olympia Dukakis Olympia Dukakis (June 20, 1931 – May 1, 2021) was an American actress. She performed in more than 130 stage productions, more than 60 films and in 50 television series. Best known as a screen actress, she started her career in theater. Not lon ...

, Jill Clayburgh, Jane Alexander,

Ned Beatty Ned Thomas Beatty (July 6, 1937 – June 13, 2021) was an American actor and comedian. In a career that spanned five decades, he appeared in more than 160 films. Throughout his career, Beatty gained a reputation for being "the busiest actor in ...

, and

John Cazale John Holland Cazale (; August 12, 1935 – March 13, 1978) was an American actor. He appeared in five films over seven years, all of which were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture: ''The Godfather'' (1972), '' The Conversation'' (19 ...

. The company produced Boston premieres of plays by

Brecht Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known professionally as Bertolt Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a pl ...

Beckett Beckett is an English surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Adam Beckett (born 1950), American animator, special effects artist and teacher, worked on ''Star Wars'' * Alex Beckett (born 1954), Scottish footballer * Allan Beckett (19 ...

, Osborne, and Ionesco, as well as classics by

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

, Shaw,

Ibsen Henrik Johan Ibsen (; ; 20 March 1828 – 23 May 1906) was a Norwegian playwright and theatre director. As one of the founders of modernism in theatre, Ibsen is often referred to as "the father of realism" and one of the most influential playw ...

, Pirandello, and others. The Charles Playhouse was regarded as one of the pioneering regional theaters in America. In his book, ''Regional Theatre: the Revolutionary Stage'', Joseph Wesley Zeigler identifies it as one of six theatres which were the foundations of the Regional Theatre Movement. In 1995, Sugre sold the Charles Playhouse to Jon B. Platt, who operated the Colonial Theatre. In 1998, Platt sold his Boston theatres to SFX Entertainment (now

Live Nation Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. is an American global entertainment company and monopoly that was founded in 2010 following the merger of Live Nation and Ticketmaster. The company promotes, operates, and manages ticket sales for live entertain ...

). In 2008, Live Nation sold most of its theatrical division, including the Charles Playhouse, to Key Brand Entertainment (now the John Gore Organization).Live Nation Finds a Buyer for Its Theater Business
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References

External links

* * Boston Public Library, Special Collections
William B. Jackson Theater Collection
Includes materials related to the Charles Playhouse *Boston Public Library, Rare Books and Manuscripts Department
Charles Playhouse Collection, 1945-2003
{{National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts Theatres on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts Buildings and structures in Boston Theatres in Boston 1957 establishments in Massachusetts Boston Theater District Theatres completed in 1958 National Register of Historic Places in Boston Religious buildings and structures completed in 1839 Event venues on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts

History

See also

References

External links