The Murray Hill Theatre was a Broadway theatre located on

Lexington Avenue Lexington Avenue, often colloquially abbreviated as "Lex", is an avenue on the East Side of the borough of Manhattan in New York City that carries southbound one-way traffic from East 131st Street to Gramercy Park at East 21st Street. Along it ...

between East 41st and

42nd 4 (four) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is considered unlucky in many East Asian cultures. In mathematics Four is the smallest c ...

streets in Manhattan, New York City. It operated as a legitimate theatre for plays, musicals, and operas until it became a part of the

Columbia Amusement Company The Columbia Amusement Company, also called the Columbia Wheel or the Eastern Burlesque Wheel, was a show business organization that produced burlesque shows in the United States between 1902 and 1927. Each year, about four dozen Columbia burlesque ...

's chain of

burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.

theaters in 1908. The theatre was acquired by the motion picture empire of Marcus Loew, and re-opened as a movie theatre, Loew's 42nd Street Theatre, in 1917. It continued to operate as a movie theatre until it was demolished in 1951.

History

The Murray Hill Theatre was built by impresario Frank B. Murtha and opened on October 19, 1896, with the world premiere of Oscar Weil and

Charles Dazey Charles Turner Dazey (August 13, 1855 – February 9, 1938) was an American writer and playwright. He was born in Lima, Illinois; attended the Kentucky State University, state university in Lexington, Kentucky; and graduated from Harvard Unive ...

's opera ''In Mexico''; a work performed by The Bostonians. It had a seating capacity of 1500 people. Over the next decade the theatre was leased to two different theatre companies: first the Murray Hill Theatre Stock Company of Henry V. Donnelly and later a theatre company led by W. T. Keogh. In 1904, the theatre began a slow shift away from the legitimate plays, musicals, and operas it had presented earlier and became a theatre for

burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.

and vaudeville entertainments; ultimately becoming one of the many burlesque theaters operated by the

(COA). The COA began operating the theatre after being granted a theatre license by the

New York City Council The New York City Council is the lawmaking body of New York City. It has 51 members from 51 council districts throughout the five Borough (New York City), boroughs. The council serves as a check against the Mayor of New York City, mayor in a may ...

on May 1, 1908. Under their tenure, the theatre was host to

Will Rogers William Penn Adair Rogers (November 4, 1879 – August 15, 1935) was an American vaudeville performer, actor, and humorous social commentator. He was born as a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, in the Indian Territory (now part of Oklahoma ...

in 1910. The theatre was purchased by Marcus Loew and after some remodeling, re-opened as the movie theatre Loew's 42nd Street Theatre in 1917. It continued to operate as a movie theatre until it was demolished in 1951.

Partial list of productions

*''

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are characters in William Shakespeare's tragedy ''Hamlet''. They are childhood friends of Hamlet, summoned by King Claudius to distract the prince from his apparent madness and if possible to ascertain the cause of ...

'' (1900) *''

Gay New York ''Gay New York: Gender, Urban Culture, and the Making of the Gay Male World, 1890–1940'' is a 1994 history book by George Chauncey about gay life in New York City during the early 20th century. An updated 2019 edition commemorates the Stonewa ...

'' (1906)

References

External links

* {{Turtle Bay, Manhattan 1896 establishments in New York (state) 1951 disestablishments in New York (state) Buildings and structures demolished in 1951 Cinemas and movie theaters in Manhattan Demolished buildings and structures in Manhattan Demolished theatres in New York City Former Broadway theatres Former theatres in Manhattan Murray Hill, Manhattan