The Broadway Theater
Broadway Reveled With Todd Tobin
Reposted By Todd Tobin
The History Of Broadway By Robert Nickel
Broadway is one of the longest streets in New York City, beginning in downtown Manhattan and running through the city to connect Manhattan with the Bronx. When referencing Broadway in terms of theater, the Great White Way, as the section of this lengthy street has come to be known, encompasses 14 blocks of the city. Thirty-six theaters located between 6th and 8th avenues and West 41st and 53rd streets make up the Broadway theater district. This small section of the city has been home to some of the world’s most renowned stage performances.
The early history of theater in New York City was sparse until 1750, when the first professional, larger-scale permanent theater was erected by Walter Murray on Nassau Street. The theater seated less than 300 people and put on productions of Shakespeare and various operas for the city’s amusement.
A band of British actors called the city home for a period in the mid-1700s, performing operas and farces. The advent of the American Revolutionary War temporarily suspended theater in New York City but performances resumed in the late 18th century. The Park Theatre, an impressive 2,000-seat venue, was built on Chatham Street in 1798. Various other larger theaters were built throughout the city in the first half of the 19th century.
Early theater in the city consisted largely of classic performance from the Old World. Slowly new forms of stage performance began to appear, with minstrel shows and burlesque performances being among the first. Early minstrel shows were often performed by actors in black-face makeup. Early burlesques were variety shows which included song and dance, improvisational skits, parodies and satires, in addition to pantomime and other performances.
Most of the early resident theaters in New York City were built downtown. Slowly there was a migration that occurred, beginning in the mid-19th century, and resulted primarily from owners seeking less pricey real estate. In the mid-1800s the majority of theater was located in the Union Square area but by the beginning of the 20th century, most of the city’s grandest theaters were located nearer to Madison Square and continued to spread toward the Times Square region throughout the early 1900s.
When many people think of Broadway, the first thing that comes to mind is the Broadway musical. Musical performances as we know them today did not truly emerge in New York City until the mid-1800s, with the first full-length musical play, The Elves, appearing in 1857. The first musical that is similar in structure and style to our modern conception of musical plays was The Black Crook. This 5.5-hour performance opened in 1866 and mixed dance into the telling of the story. The first musical comedy, The Black Domino/Between You, Me and the Post, opened that same year.
Vaudeville comedy began in 1881 with the opening of the first dedicated theater just east of Union Square. Vaudeville and burlesque performances continued to be popular in the city, especially among the middle and lower classes but slowly, more literate and classy musical comedies became more prevalent. The musical comedies of the late 1800s and early 1900s took their inspiration from the real lives of lower and middle class New Yorkers and quickly endeared themselves to the public as a result. The improvement of transportation in the city and the arrival of street lights made it possible for theaters to be safely enjoyed by a larger part of the city’s enormous population. Plays could run well into the evening and still draw large audiences. The increased security and transportation resulted in a boom in theater profits in the early part of the 20th century.
The invention of motion pictures posed a serious challenge to theater, and talking pictures posed an even more dramatic challenge. Broadway Theater continued to thrive, due in no small part to the arrival of the extravagant and ornate musicals of the 1920s. These plays, while light on story, were huge productions with impressive sets, fancy costumes and some of the most unforgettable musical numbers. These plays resulted in some of the classic Broadway musical numbers still revered today, including pieces from Cole Porter, George Gershwin, Rodgers and Hart, Noel Coward, and Jerome Kern.
The play Show Boat, released in 1927, is considered by many to be the birth of modern musicals, with a completely merged musical score and play storyline. This musical merged all components of the play into a seamless production and was a tremendous hit with audiences.
While the Great Depression was hard on Broadway, the theater emerged victoriously after these lean years, and jumped into its golden age with the opening of Oklahoma! in 1943. The blockbuster ran for an astounding 2,212 performances and rocketed Broadway into a period of unprecedented success that continues today.
The popularity of Broadway has resulted in many changes in New York City, including the establishment of many New York hotels near and around the theater district. It’s possible to find accommodations that are within comfortable walking distance of all the major theaters.
Todd Tobin
About the Author
Lifelong Kansas City Resident Todd Tobin has been an advocate for education for his entire career. He knew he wanted to be a teacher from a young age and became a high school history teacher after obtaining his bachelor’s degree from the University of Missouri. He later went on to receive his Masters in Education from Webster University. Tobin taught history to grades nine through 12 at several high schools in the Kansas City Missouri School District for twenty years before returning to law school at the University of Missouri Kansas City. His law practice now focuses on advocating for troubled youth and directing them towards rehabilitation rather than detention centers. Tobin is married to his college sweetheart, Annelise. The couple has three adult daughters and five grandchildren.
Tobin’s career as a high school teacher took him on a tour of inner city high schools that left him frustrated about the lack of advocacy on the behalf of troubled students. Parents who were overtaxed working several jobs just to keep the family above water or parents who were absent due to a variety of less altruistic reasons were the plight of more than 50% of students in inner city high schools. He saw how easily the kids could be swayed off track and how many of those kids had been very good students before lack of supervision and lack of economic opportunities caused them to take a different path in life.
Tobin runs after school and weekend tutoring clinics to give these troubled students a place to go that is an alternative to hanging out on the streets. He has created an internship program in his thriving law practice to offer avenues of education that might otherwise not be available to some of these students. Tobin’s wife Annelise is also an educator and participates in these programs with her husband. Two of the couple’s daughters are also intimately involved in the tutoring program and internships. Tobin’s oldest daughter, Carolynn is an attorney in his firm and his youngest daughter Sondra is an elementary school teacher. Their middle daughter, Kirsten is an actress in New York City.
When Tobin is not advocating for disadvantaged youth or helping to further their education, he likes to travel to New York City with his wife to visit their daughter Kirsten. Tobin and Annelise are big fans of Broadway and make a point of seeing at least a show or two on every visit to New York. The entire family recently took a cruise through the Mexican Riviera to celebrate Todd and Annelise’s 40th wedding anniversary. No one in the Tobin family dares mention that Todd is nearing retirement. Education and advocacy have been his life’s calling and his wife and daughters fully expect him to be an active participant in the firm he built until the day he dies.
LOMBARDI on Broadway TV Commercial
|
|
1952 NEVA PATTERSON The Seven Year Itch Broadway Theater Vintage DBW Photo C89 $9.99 |
|
|
Broadway Concert Poster ~BARBARA COOK~ A Concert for the Theatre $25.00 |
|
|
The Seagull (DVD, 2002) BROADWAY THEATRE MINT $13.85 |
|
|
(8) Disney’s ‘Beauty & the Beast’ Broadway Musical @ Hershey Theatre, PA – 7/26 $200.00 |
|
|
THE CURIOUS SAVAGE BROADWAY 1950 THEATRE w/SNIPE VINTAGE PHOTO T30 $9.99 |
|
|
The Who Tommy Broadway window card St. James Theatre $35.00 |
|
|
Beauty and the Beast original window card NICE! Broadway Pacific Theatre $125.00 |
|
|
HOW DOES THE SHOW GO ON Disney INTRODUCTION TO THEATER BOOK Musicals Broadway $4.99 |
|
|
@ GOD OFF BROADWAY THE BLACKFRIARS THEATRE OF NY $9.99 |
|
|
Playbill St James Theatre The Pajama Game Broadway NY Bob Hope -1716 $5.99 |
|
|
Broadway North, The Dream of a Canadian Musical Theatre $24.99 |
|
|
1977 The New Amsterdam: Biography of a Broadway Theatre, First Edition $19.95 |
|
|
1946 Song of Norway The Broadway Theatre Program & Stub $12.00 |
|
|
Broadway Playbill HAIR 1971 + Tarot “The Lovers” Insert NY Biltmore Theatre $19.99 |
|
|
1991 FIDDLER ON THE ROOF GERSHWIN THEATRE BROADWAY NEW YORK NYC NY TICKET STUB $5.99 |
|
|
1991 THE SECRET GARDEN BROADWAY ST JAMES THEATER NEW YORK CITY POSTCARD $1.99 |
|
|
1991 THE SECRET GARDEN BROADWAY ST JAMES THEATER NEW YORK CITY LARGE POSTCARD $2.99 |
|
|
2002 THE PRODUCERS ST JAMES THEATRE BROADWAY NY NEW YORK SHOW TICKET STUB $1.99 |
|
|
The Broadway IngTnue 37 Theatre Songs for Soprano Softcover with CD $29.35 |
|
|
The Broadway IngTnue 37 Theatre Songs for Soprano $17.63 |
|
|
the COMMON PURSUIT Broadway Play pin Theatre Button $10.00 |
|
|
In the Heights ad/flyer Broadway musical Jordin Sparks Am Idol theater NYC RARE $0.99 |
|
|
1st Edition The New Amsterdam The Biography of Broadway Theatre Mary C Henderson $15.99 |
|
|
A LIFE IN THE THEATRE BROADWAY PLAYBILL-PATRICK STEWART $4.00 |
|
|
PLAYBILL THE LYONS Broadway Cort Theatre PREVIEWS APRIL 2012 =NEW!= $4.49 |
|
|
PLAYBILL THE BEST MAN, Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre Broadway 2012 =BRAND NEW= $3.99 |
|
|
Playbill BONNIE & CLYDE THE MUSICAL BROADWAY Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre =NEW!= $4.99 |
|
|
Playbill SISTER ACT Broadway RETIRED COLOR DESIGN! The Broadway Theatre =NEW= $6.99 |
|
|
Eugene O’Neill’s A Moon for the Misbegotten (Broadway Theatre Archive) [VHS] $13.99 |
|
|
In the SHADOWS Lew Field Broadway Theatre DANCE 1911 $8.99 |
|
|
Booth Theatre Broadway Program 1921 The Green Goddess George Arliss Playbill $9.99 |
|
|
1951 PLAYBILL of “SEVENTEEN” at The Broadhurst Theater on Broadway in NYC $8.88 |
|
|
1992 The WHO Pete Townshend TOMMY On BROADWAY AD Theatre Advertisement $9.99 |
|
|
Showtime: A History of the Broadway Musical Theater by Larry Stempel (2010,… $19.99 |
|
|
The Rivoli Motion Picture Theater Broadway at 49th NY $17.99 |
|
|
The Prince of Homburg (Broadway Theatre Archive) $8.94 |
|
|
Kathleen Turner in Gemini, Playbill, The Little Theatre,1978. NYC Broadway $6.75 |
|
|
When Broadway Was the Runway: Theater, Fashion, and… $29.12 |
|
|
DC COMICS SUPERMAN 1966 BROADWAY MUSICIAL “PLAYBILL”…THE ALVIN THEATRE $14.99 |
|
|
Theater Yearbook 1988-1989 The Complete Broadway and Off-Broadway Sourcebook $36.21 |
|
|
Theater Yearbook 1988-1989 The Complete Broadway and Off-Broadway Sourcebook $18.57 |
|
|
Theater Yearbook 1989-1990 The Complete Broadway and Off-Broadway Sourcebook $19.55 |
|
|
Theater Yearbook 1989-1990 The Complete Broadway and Off-Broadway Sourcebook $37.19 |
|
|
Theater Yearbook 1991-1992 The Complete Broadway and Off-Broadway Sourcebook $24.45 |
|
|
Theater Yearbook 1990-1991 The Complete Broadway and Off-Broadway Sourcebook $39.15 |
|
|
Theater Yearbook 1990-1991 The Complete Broadway and Off-Broadway Sourcebook $21.51 |
|
|
The Phantom Of The Opera Audio Book Cassette Tape Plays Broadway Theater $8.99 |
|
|
1988 Phantom of the Opera souvenir program Majestic Theater Broadway Har Prince $15.00 |
|
|
RAFFI ON BROADWAY: A FAMILY CONCERT – VHS LIVE at the GERSHWIN THEATRE $4.99 |
|
|
CHARLES FROHMAN ‘THE GIRL FROM KAYS’ VINTAGE BROADWAY THEATRE SHOW AWARD PLAQUE $359.99 |
|
|
Fargo Theatre on Broadway Street, Fargo, North Dakota, United States of Photo Mugs Fargo Theatre on Broadway Street, Fargo, North Dakota, United States of America, North America…. |
|
|
Broadway 1920 Coffee Mug … |
|
|
Victor Herbert Coffee Mug … |
|
|
Les Miserables: The 10th Anniversary Dream Cast in Concert at London’s Royal Albert Hall $24.93 To mark the 10th anniversary of the award-winning musical, an all-star array of “Les Miz” cast members from productions around the world took the stage at London’s Royal Albert Hall, joined by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, to perform the songs in concert. Colm Wilkinson, Judy Kuhn, Philip Quast, Lea Salonga, and Ruthie Henshall head the cast; songs include “I Dreamed a Dream,” “One Day More!,”… |
|
|
Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Hall: In Celebration of 25 Years $10.68 All products are BRAND NEW and factory sealed. Fast shipping and 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed…. |
|
|
Mamma Mia! The Musical Based on the Songs of ABBA: Original Cast Recording (1999 London Cast) $8.84 All products are BRAND NEW and factory sealed. Fast shipping and 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed…. |
|
|
Blast!: An Explosive Musical Celebration [VHS] $3.99 If your favorite part of a football game is when the marching band takes the field, then you’re going to love Blast. Think of the most rousing, in-sync band that you ever saw, turn them way up, add cool costumes and a black-and-white checkered stage with colored spotlights, throw in a good helping of the Stomp vibe, and you’ve got Blast. Color is the theme that threads the different musical pie… |
|
|
Carola (Broadway Theatre Archive) [VHS] $2.69 Backstage intrigue runs up against the Gestapo in this drama by Jean Cocteau. Carola takes place in one of the few Parisian theaters still functioning during the Nazi occupation. Desperate to keep the theater running, the manager asks his glamorous star Carola (Leslie Caron) to entertain a German general. Meanwhile, a member of the French Resistance has been spotted entering the theater. The cast … |
|
|
Verna – USO Girl (Broadway Theatre Archive) [VHS] $13.98 Academy Award winner Sissy Spacek is Verna USO Girl, a kindhearted – but not particularly talented-member of a performing troupe in World War II Belgium. She wins the heart of an American soldier memorably played by William Hurt. “Verna:USO Girl” takes an entertaining look at the camaraderie between USO entertainers and combat troops. Adapted by Albert Innaurato from Paul Gallico’s short story…. |
|
|
Bright Red Stage Theater Draped Curtain Background on Black – 12W x 8H – Peel and Stick Wall Decal by Wallmonkeys $9.99 WallMonkeys wall graphics are printed on the highest quality re-positionable, self-adhesive fabric paper. Each order is printed in-house and on-demand. WallMonkeys uses premium materials & state-of-the-art production technologies. Our white fabric material is superior to vinyl decals. You can literally see and feel the difference. Our wall graphics apply in minutes and won’t damage your paint or l… |
