Biltmore Theater will be Samuel J. Friedman Theater on Sept.4!

I still like the name Royale Theater & Plymouth Theater. I think of PASSION at Royale!

J*

There's a difference between something like the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre and things like the American Airlines, Hilton or the Cadillac Winter Garden (which is thankfully the Winter Garden again). Broadway turned its back on the Biltmore Theatre for 17 years as that building sat moldering, so as far as I'm concerned, MTC could have even gone the corporate renaming route if they wanted and no one on Broadway would really have any right to complain about it.

In general, I also really don't mind the name changes for some of the generically named Broadway theatres. It's more discomfiting though that Bernard Jacobs or Gerald Schoenfeld got theatres named for them before Arthur Miller, Tennessee Williams, Cole Porter or any number of other deserving creative artists.

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In general, I also really don't mind the name changes for some of the generically named Broadway theatres. It's more discomfiting though that Bernard Jacobs or Gerald Schoenfeld got theatres named for them before Arthur Miller, Tennessee Williams, Cole Porter or any number of other deserving creative artists.

I completely AGREE with you on that. Cole Porter, Arthur Miller are great american composer and playwright that DESERVED a theater to be renamed after them.

I am sorry but I REALLY NOT IN FAVOR of renaming the HELEN HAYES THEATER at all!

J*

Updated On: 8/11/08 at 01:32 PM

I don't think the Virginia should have been renamed.

It's one thing to rename a theatre that's not named after a person.

But, rededicating a theatre that's already dedicated to someone else just doesn't seem right to me. You're invalidating the person it's already named after.

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** Could this gorgeous building be called anything other than The Palace Theatre'!

This is a pretty sad direction that the naming of Broadway theatres is going in! Why cant they be named along the lines of the Neil Simon, Eugenne O'Neil etc.
London has names such as The Novello, The Noel Coward, The Gielgud etc all names that are strong in British Theatre history. The recent renaming of 3 or 4 of the major Broadway houses are ridiculous and only have meaning to people sitting in offices above the theatre marquees!
What's wrong with The Hammerstein, The Kern, The Edward Albee the list of your great playwrights etc is as long as those of the UK. Why not take some of our names such as The Comedy, The Lyric, The Phoenix as throw away examples. Broadway already has some lovely names for its theatres like The Majestic, The Palace, The Music Box etc but names like The Bernard B Jacobs Theatre and the Gerald Schonfeild Theatre are laughable......... so lets not even start on The Hilton and The American Airlines Theatre names!!!

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The Hilton Theater was named Paris Hilton!

J*

Exactly!!! Theres something 'theatrical' about going to see a show in a theatre with names like The Palace, The Theatre Royal, The Noel Coward.
When the London production of 'Once On This Island 'opened at The Peacock Theatre (many moons ago called The Royalty) it was renamed 'The Island Theatre' and was promoted by soft drink 'Lilt'! This renaming and the in your face product placing all over the building generated as much bad publicity as did the bad reviews of the show!
London is being promised a new theatre sometime in the future on Shaftesbury Avenue-the West Ends Broadway, it's name is to be 'The Sondheim'. Being built by Cameron Macintosh he decided to honor a great American musician, at no time did he think about being named The Cameron Mackintosh theatre! Cameron himself bought and changed the names of two of Londons major theatres from The Strand and The Albery to The Noel Coward and The Ivor Novello in honor of great British figures that are still major names today 100 years after their heyday of fame.

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Updated On: 8/11/08 at 02:07 PM

Why don't they just call it The WHO?!? Theater.

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I can't believe the Helen Hayes is going to be renamed. I think it's wrong to rename a theater that was already named for someone else. Helen Hayes wasn't just anybody, she was a great actress who contributed greatly to the American theater landscape. To rename that theater is a slap in the face to her memory. It's sad.

If you are going to rename a theater, at least do it with names like Merman, Fosse & Verdon etc.

The lobby is named for 2 other people. Why not start renaming various parts of theaters? How about in the Palace the Lestat Mens Room?

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Updated On: 8/11/08 at 06:36 PM

Did I miss the announcement about the Helen Hayes being renamed?

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I still have an issue with the renaming of the Royale.

and call me old, but when I hear the name Royale, I think of the original production of Grease which played there for so many years