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American Airlines Theatre
Selwyn Theatre | |
 | |
| Address | 227 West 42nd Street New York City United States |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 40°45′23.4″N 73°59′15.8″W / 40.756500°N 73.987722°W / 40.756500; -73.987722Coordinates: 40°45′23.4″N 73°59′15.8″W / 40.756500°N 73.987722°W / 40.756500; -73.987722 |
| Owner | City and State of New York |
| Operator | Roundabout Theatre Company |
| Type | Broadway |
| Capacity | 740 |
| Production | True West |
| Construction | |
| Opened | October 2, 1918[1] |
| Reopened | June 30, 2000 |
| Tenants | |
| New 42nd Street | |
The American Airlines Theatre, originally the Selwyn Theatre, is a historic Italian Renaissance style Broadway theatre in New York City built in 1918. It was designed by George Keister and built by the Selwyn brothers. Used for musicals and other dramatic performances it was eventually converted for film. It was used briefly as a visitor's center but stood vacant for years until a 1997 renovation and restoration. It is located at 227 West 42nd Street.
Contents
1 History
1.1 Design
1.2 Productions
1.3 Renovation
2 Productions since June 30, 2000
3 Selected productions at Selwyn Theatre
4 Box office record
5 References
5.1 Citations
5.2 Bibliography
6 External links
History
Design
Originally named the Selwyn Theatre, it was designed by the architect George Keister and constructed by the Selwyn brothers, Edgar and Archie, in 1918.[2] It was one of three theatres they built and controlled on 42nd Street, along with the Apollo and the Times Square Theater. It was decorated in the style of the Italian Renaissance, and originally had 1,180 seats.[3] At the time of its opening, the design had several innovations. Its most novel feature was separate smoking rooms for men and women.[3] Additionally, each dressing room was equipped with a shower and telephone.[3]
Productions
The venue initially hosted major musical and dramatic productions, including Cole Porter's Wake Up and Dream, and in October 1930 Clifton Webb appeared there in Three's a Crowd,[4] but eventually became a cinema. It would return to legitimate theater several times over the next six decades, but eventually fell into disrepair. It was used briefly in the early 1990s as a home for the Times Square Visitors Center and for a limited production of Eugene O'Neill's The Hairy Ape, but for the most part, stood vacant.
Renovation
The City and State of New York took possession of the Selwyn in 1990. In 1992, it was one of six 42nd Street theatres to fall under the protection of the New 42nd Street organization. The Roundabout Theatre Company committed to renovating the Selwyn in 1997. It was restored to its former grandeur (albeit now with just 740 seats), renamed the American Airlines in honor of its principal sponsor, and reopened on June 30, 2000. The American Airlines Theatre currently serves as the home of the Roundabout and houses its major dramatic productions.
Productions since June 30, 2000
| Show | Opening day | Closing day | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Man Who Came to Dinner | July 27, 2000 | October 8, 2000 | Revival |
| Betrayal | November 14, 2000 | February 4, 2001 | Revival 2001 Tony Award Best Revival of a Play Nominee |
| Design for Living | March 15, 2001 | May 13, 2001 | Revival |
| Major Barbara | July 12, 2001 | September 16, 2001 | Revival |
| The Women | November 8, 2001 | January 13, 2002 | Revival |
| An Almost Holy Picture | February 7, 2002 | April 7, 2002 | |
| The Man Who Had All the Luck | May 1, 2002 | June 30, 2002 | Revival |
| The Boys from Syracuse | August 18, 2002 | October 20, 2002 | Revival |
| Tartuffe | January 9, 2003 | February 23, 2003 | Revival |
| A Day in the Death of Joe Egg | April 3, 2003 | June 1, 2003 | Revival 2003 Tony Award Best Revival of a Play Nominee |
| Big River | July 24, 2003 | September 21, 2003 | Revival 2004 Tony Award Best Revival of a Musical Nominee |
| The Caretaker | November 9, 2003 | January 4, 2004 | Revival |
| Twentieth Century | March 25, 2004 | June 6, 2004 | Revival |
| After the Fall | June 25, 2004 | September 12, 2004 | Revival |
| 12 Angry Men | October 28, 2004 | May 15, 2005 | 2005 Tony Award Best Revival of a Play Nominee |
| The Constant Wife | June 16, 2005 | August 21, 2005 | Revival 2006 Tony Award Best Revival of a Play Nominee |
| A Naked Girl on the Appian Way | October 6, 2005 | December 4, 2005 | |
| The Pajama Game | February 23, 2006 | June 17, 2006 | Revival 2006 Tony Award Best Revival of a Musical |
| Heartbreak House | October 11, 2006 | December 17, 2006 | Revival |
| Prelude to a Kiss | March 8, 2007 | April 29, 2007 | Revival |
| Old Acquaintance | June 28, 2007 | August 19, 2007 | Revival |
| Pygmalion | September 21, 2007 | December 16, 2007 | Revival |
| The 39 Steps | January 10, 2008 | March 16, 2008 | 2008 Best New Play Nominee |
| Les liaisons dangereuses | May 1, 2008 | July 6, 2008 | Revival 2008 Tony Award Best Revival of a Play Nominee |
| A Man for All Seasons | October 7, 2008 | December 14, 2008 | Revival |
| Hedda Gabler | January 25, 2009 | March 28, 2009 | Revival |
| The Philanthropist | April 26, 2009 | July 5, 2009 | Revival |
| After Miss Julie | October 22, 2009 | December 6, 2009 | Broadway Premiere |
| Present Laughter | January 21, 2010 | March 21, 2010 | Revival |
| Everyday Rapture | April 19, 2010 | July 11, 2010 | Broadway Premiere |
| Mrs. Warren's Profession | October 3, 2010 | November 28, 2010 | Revival |
| The Importance of Being Earnest | January 13, 2011 | July 3, 2011 | Revival |
| Man and Boy | October 9, 2011 | November 27, 2011 | Revival |
| The Road to Mecca | January 17, 2012 | March 4, 2012 | Broadway Premiere |
| Don't Dress for Dinner | April 26, 2012 | June 17, 2012 | Broadway Premiere |
| Cyrano de Bergerac | October 11, 2012 | November 25, 2012 | Revival |
| Picnic | January 13, 2013 | February 24, 2013 | Revival |
| The Big Knife | April 16, 2013 | June 2, 2013 | Revival |
| The Winslow Boy | October 17, 2013 | December 1, 2013 | Revival |
| Machinal | January 16, 2014 | March 2, 2014 | Revival |
Violet | April 20, 2014 | August 10, 2014 | Broadway Premiere |
| The Real Thing | October 30, 2014 | January 4, 2015[5] | Revival of the 1982 Tom Stoppard play |
| On the Twentieth Century | March 15, 2015 | July 19, 2015[6] | Revival |
| Old Times | October 6, 2015 | November 29, 2015 | Revival |
| Noises Off | January 14, 2016 | March 6, 2016 | Revival |
| Long Day's Journey into Night | April 27, 2016 | June 26, 2016 | Revival |
| The Cherry Orchard | October 16, 2016 | December 4, 2016 | Revival of Chekhov play with reworked script by Stephen Karam |
| The Price | March 16, 2017 | May 14, 2017 | Revival |
| Marvin's Room | June 29, 2017 | August 27, 2017 | Broadway Premiere |
| Time and the Conways | October 10, 2017 | November 26, 2017 | Revival |
| John Lithgow: Stories by Heart | January 11, 2018 | March 4, 2018 | Solo Show, Broadway Premiere |
| Travesties | April 24, 2018 | June 17, 2018 | Revival |
| Bernhardt/Hamlet | September 25, 2018 | November 18, 2018 | Broadway Premiere |
| True West | January 24, 2019 | TBA | Revival |
| All My Sons | April 22, 2019 | June 23, 2019 | Revival |
Selected productions at Selwyn Theatre
Selwyn Theatre in 1918
Productions that had more than 100 consecutive performances at the Selwyn Theatre:
The Crowded Hour (1918) (139 performances)
Tumble In (128 performances)
Buddies (1919) (259 performances)
Ed Wynn's Carnival (1920) (150 performances)
Tickle Me (1920) (207 performances)
The Circle (1921) (175 performances)
The Blue Kitten (1922) (140 performances)
Helen of Troy, New York (1923) (191 performances)
Battling Butter (play)|Battling Butter (1923) (moved to Times Square Theater, total 313 performances)
André Charlot's Revue of 1924 (298 performances)
Kid Boots (started at Earl Carroll Theatre in 1923, moved in 1924, total 498 performances)
Charlot Revue (1925)
Castles in the Air (1926) (160 performances)
The Constant Nymph (1926) (148 performances)
The Royal Family (1927) (345 performances)
This Year of Grace (1928) (157 performances)
Wake Up and Dream (1929) (136 performances)
Three's a Crowd (1930) (271 performances)
Box office record
The Pajama Game achieved the box office record for the American Airlines Theatre. The production grossed $477,030 for the week ending April 30, 2006.[7][not in citation given]
References
Citations
^ "Jane Cowl in Quest of Information", The New York Times (October 3, 1918)
^ Henderson, Mary C., The City and the Theatre: New York playhouses from Bowling Green to Times Square
(1973), p. 275: "Selwyn Theatre 229 West Forty-second Street, Standard house. Architect: George Keister. Opening production: October 2, 1918, Information Please."
^ abc Bianco, Anthony (2004). Ghosts of 42nd Street: A History of America's Most Infamous Block. New York: Harper Collins. p. 82. ISBN 0-688-17089-7..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"""""""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration{color:#555}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg/12px-Wikisource-logo.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output code.cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#33aa33;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right{padding-right:0.2em}
^ Parker, John (ed), Who's Who in the Theatre, 10th revised edition, London, 1947: 1430
^ Roundabout Theatre: The Real Thing. Accessed January 22, 2015
^ Roundabout Theatre: On the Twentieth Century. Accessed January 22, 2015
^ American Airlines Theatre, Playbill Vault
Bibliography
Broadway Theatres: History and Architecture, William Morrison, 1999, Dover Publications,
ISBN 0-486-40244-4
Lost Broadway Theatres, Nicholas Van Hoogstraten, Princeton Architectural Press, 1997,
ISBN 1-56898-116-3
External links
 | Wikimedia Commons has media related to Selwyn Theatre, Manhattan and New 42nd Street Building. |
- Spotlight on Broadway video history of the theatre.
- Roundabout Theatre website
- The Selwyn at the New 42nd Street
- Google Maps photo of entrance
American Airlines Theatre at the Internet Broadway Database
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