Majestic Theater (New York)
The Majestic Theater is a theater in New York City (245 West 44th Street). With 1,607 seats, it is one of the largest theaters on Broadway .
The Majestic Theater opened on March 28, 1927 with the musical Rufus LeMaire's Affairs . It has hosted the premieres of major musicals by composers such as George Gershwin , Richard Rodgers , Alan Jay Lerner , Harold Rome , Stephen Sondheim and Andrew Lloyd Webber . These include Of Thee I Sing (1931), Pardon My English (1933), Carousel (1945), South Pacific (1949), Fanny (1954), The Music Man (1957), Camelot (1960), Sugar (1972/73 ),A Little Night Music (1973) and The Wiz (1978). The musical The Phantom of the Opera has been presentedsince January 26, 1988.
Designed by Herbert J. Krapp and built by Charnin Bros., the theater is adjacent to the Broadhurst Theater , which it shares with. It's part of a larger entertainment complex that also includes the John Golden Theater , Bernard B. Jacobs Theater, and the Milford Plaza Hotel across the block on 45th Street .
As early as 1903 there was a theater of the same name on Columbus Circle . Here operettas by Victor Herbert were performed. However, it was renamed the Park Theater in 1911 and demolished in 1954.
During the Great Depression, the Shubert Brothers bought the company; the Shubert Organization they founded is the owner and operator of the Majestic Theater to this day. In 1987 it was declared a monument by the city. In 1996 the Tony Awards were presented at the Majestic Theater .