Plymouth Theater
236 W 45th Street
between 7th & 8th Avenues
Completed 1918
Architect Herbert J Krapp
Built back-to-back, the Plymouth
and its companion the Broadhurst were meant to evoke the style of
the neighboring Henry B Herts designed Shubert and Booth theaters
using less expensive materials. These first theaters designed by
Herbert J Krapp use patterned brick and terra cotta materials on
the facades. This is an especially nice execution of Krapp's
lavish Adamesque interiors, for which he would become noted, and
is individually landmarked
The Shuberts built the Plymouth
for, and in partnership with, producer Arthur Hopkins. In this age
of producer-cum-impresario-cum-entrepreneur Hopkins had the
singular approach of wanting to only offer 'high-brow' productions
by the likes of Ibsen and Tolstoy. His formula worked for the
Plymouth. Operating the theater for years after Hopkins death, the
Shuberts purchased the Plymouth outright in 1948; it remains a
Shubert Organization property today. The Plymouth was designated a
New York City landmark in December 1987
1917 William Gillette and Estelle Winwood
star in Clare Kummer's comedy A Successful Calamity, the
premiere production at the Plymouth
1918 A very 'high-brow' Tolstoy drama, Redemption,
stars John Barrymore, Helen Westly and Thomas Mitchell for 204
performances
1919 John Barrymore and Lionel Barrymore
are on stage together in Sam Benelli's drama The Jest. A
bit too 'outre,' the show runs for only 77 performances
1920 John Barrymore is Richard III,
in his first Shakespearean role
1924 Maxwell Anderson's and Laurence
Stalling's classic anti-war drama What Price Glory stars
Louis Wolheim, William Boyd, Leyla Georgia and a young Brian
Donlevy
1927 Who is Ruby Stevens? Well, she sings
in cabarets. Never heard of her. Trot on over to the Plymouth
where she's starring in Burlesque, the drama penned by
George M Watters and Arthur Hopkins. Oh, and she's now going by
the name Barbara Stanwyck
1931 Paul Muni stars in the Elmer Rice
drama Counselor-at-Large. This high-brow production runs
for 397 performances
1937 Playwright Rachel Crothers last
Broadway show, Susan and God, stars Gertrude Lawrence
1938 Author Robert Sherwood. Star Raymond
Massey. Abe Lincoln in Illinois. Pulitzer Prize
1942 Tallulah Bankhead, E G Marshall,
Frederic March, Florence Eldridge, Montgomery Clift and little
Dickie Van Patten appear in the Thornton Wilder Pulitzer-Prize
winner The Skin of Our Teeth. Elia Kazan directs
1945 Not all roads are smooth. Robert E
Sherwood, who won a Pulitzer Prize just a few lines above, returns
to the Plymouth with The Rugged Path. Even with Spencer
Tracy as star, the show only runs for 81 performances
1948 Noel Coward's classic drama Private
Lives stars Tallulah Bankhead and Donald Cook
1950 Claude Dauphin, Leora Dana and Johnny
Stewart star in the Anita Loos hit The Happy Time. The
comedy has a run of 614 performances
1952 John Williams wins the Tony
as featured dramatic actor for his role in Frederick Knott's
thriller Dial M for Murder
1954 Charles Laughton directs Henry Fonda,
Lloyd Nolan and a young James Bumgarner in The Caine Mutiny
Court Martial. James Bumgarner? Think 'Maverick' and 'The
Rockford Files'
1955 Christopher Fry adapted the Jean
Giraudoux comedy Tiger at the Gates for Broadway audiences.
The show stars Michael Redgrave, Morris Carnovsky, Nehemiah
Persoff and Diane Cilento
1958 Where does Julie Newmar fit between
Claudette Colbert and Charles Boyer in The Marriage-Go-Round?
With the Tony
for featured dramatic actress, of course
1960 Elizabeth Seal stars in Irma La
Douce and brings home a Tony
as best musical actress for her trouble
1964 Alec Guiness and Kate Reid star in
Sidney Michael's drama Dylan. Sir Alec receives the Tony
for best dramatic actor
1965 It was Art Carney and Walter Matthau
first. Neil Simon's comedy The Odd Couple, destined to
become a staple of American television for decades, is directed by
Mike Nichols and runs for 965 performances. Matthau, Simon and
Nichols earn Tonys
1968 Neil Simon is back, this time with Plaza
Suite, starring Maureen Stapleton and George C Scott. Mike
Nichols again directs. Mike Nichols again receives a Tony
1970 Neil Simon again. Maureen Stapleton
again, with Betsy von Furstenberg in The Gingerbread Lady.
Stapleton wins a Tony
as Best Dramatic Actress
1974 Peter Shaffer's Equus starts a
run of 1,209 performances. The cast includes Anthony Hopkins,
Peter Firth, Marian Seldes and Frances Sternhagen. The show is
awarded a Tony,
as is director John Dexter
1981 Jane Lapotaire receives the best
dramatic actress Tony
for her portrayal of Piaf in Pam Gem's lyric drama
1981 How long? Eight and a half hours.
Huh? Yeah, you see it in two performances. How much? A hundred
dollars. $100? Yep, a hundred smackers. That's fifty dollars a
show!!! The Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby gives 49
complete performances of the show and receives a Tony
for best drama. Star Roger Rees gets a Tony
as best dramatic actor, and Trevor Nunn and John Caird receive Tonys
for their direction
1983 A revival of the George S
Kaufman-Moss Hart drama You Can't Take It With You stars
Jason Robards Jr, Colleen Dewhurst, James Coco and Elizabeth
Wilson. The show packs in appreciative audiences for 312
performances
1984 British star Jeremy Irons make his
Broadway debut in the Tom Stoppard comedy The Real Thing.
And he takes a Tony
his first time out. Also bringing home Tonys
for their performances are Glenn Close and Christine Baranski, as
does ubiquitous director Mike Nichols
1985 Lily Tomlin's one-woman show, The
Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe, earns
the multi-talented comic-actor a best dramatic actress Tony
1987 John Malkovich and Joan Allen star in
Lanford Wilson's gripping drama Burn This. Miss Allen is
rewarded with a best dramatic actress Tony
1989 Wendy Wasserstein's Tony
award winning drama The Heidi Chronicles stars Joan Allen
and Boyd Gaines. Gaines takes home the Tony
for best dramatic actor
1991 Irish playwright Brian Friel's Dancing
at Lughnasa makes dramatic impressions on American audiences.
The show, director Patrick Mason and lead Brid Brennan receive Tonys
1994 James Lapine and Stephen Sondheim win
Tonys for
the book and score of Passion. Starring Donna Murphy, this
musical only runs for 280 performances, but also manages to win a Tony
as best musical and a best musical actress award for Miss Murphy
1996 Rosemary Harris, George Grizzard,
Elaine Stritch, Mary Beth Hurt and Marian Seldes appear in Edward
Albee's A Delicate Balance. Grizzard and director Gerald
Gutierrez receive Tonys
1997 The Frank Wildhorn-Leslie Bricusse
treatment of the classic spit personality tale, Jekyll
and Hyde, opened April 8th and went on to run until
January 2001
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