Broadway Marquees

Wednesday, May 30, 2018: Immediately after I arrived at Penn Station from Newark airport I headed straight for the Broadway theaters. I wanted to get as many pictures of the marquees as I could before getting in line for “The Band’s Visit”. I also had the goal of getting a couple of Playbills from “Mean Girls” for one of my co-workers. Needless to say I ran out of time and didn’t get all of the pictures I wanted. Shortly after running into Katrina Lenk they put up the barriers, and a line was forming. I was so excited, talking to people in front of the theater and in line. They were all happy and thrilled for me, and even offered to let me be first in line because it was my first-ever Broadway show! But I didn’t want to take the spot of the man six people in front of me (whose wife and friends kept insisting) just to be first, so I politely declined. This was all a wonderful experience. I hope you enjoy the pictures.

Link: https://www.flickr.com/photos/57377062@N04/sets/72157667630832067

Updated On: 6/2/18 at 05:18 AM

I’m glad you like the pictures. There certainly were a LOT of marquees to try and get.

I was surprised at how they ranged in size from the magnificent and grand (like the Harry Potter marquee you mentioned), the very small yet delightful (Carousel), the “If I blinked I’d had missed it” (Saint Joan), to the strangley colorful (Springsteen on Broadway).

They were all fascinating and wonderful to see, and around every corner was another hit Broadway show and another marquee. For blocks and blocks and blocks and blocks.

And I loved all of the amazing styles of architecture. Just gorgeous. Especially when you had such contrasting types next to each other (all along the south side of 45th Street), right across the street from each other (Broadhurst and Hayes), and then there were those with balconies (Majestic, Schoenfeld, and St. James).

Broadway and all of its theaters is an incredibly unique place. And I can’t wait to get back there in August to see them again, to experience the Lincoln Center, and to discover what I missed the first time around.

dmwnc1959 said: "Sooooo, digging up my old thread here. I’m heading back to Broadway (woooohoooo!!!!) in 31 days and want to add to my little picture album of marquees.

Other than “Beetlejuice” at the Winter Garden, are there any notable (“King Kong” at the Broadway), beautiful (“Hadestown” and the Walter Kerr), or amazing (“Tootsie” is definitely not this) theater marquees I should not miss?

It won’t be the same without “Hello, Dolly!” on the front, but I’m also looking at “To Kill A Mockingbird” on the front of the Shubert.

Since I’m seeing “Kinky Boots” and POTO, I’ll snag a few pics of those while I’m there."

I have to say - while we're on the subject of marquees - one of the marquees I was most disappointed with was "Summer - The Donna Summer Musical" when photos of it's debut first appeared on-line about a year ago. I mean the same Francesco Scavullo photo taken forty years ago for her "Live And More" album cover?

Yet, when I went to NYC to see the show (which I was so disappointed with) I have to say the marquee really took my breath away. Though I've seen it hundreds of times over the past fur decades (probably the most-used photo of Summer for any article or advertisement), the gigantic marquee of Summer singing over Broadway really was a stunner in person.

bandit964 said: "I'm hoping they do something exciting at the Hirschfeld for Moulin Rouge.

**windmill**"

I do wonder if they'll move the windmill from inside the theatre to outside. Should be interesting and I certainly trust their design team

dmwnc1959 said: "Sooooo, digging up my old thread here. I’m heading back to Broadway (woooohoooo!!!!) in 31 days and want to add to my little picture album of marquees.

Other than “Beetlejuice” at the Winter Garden, are there any notable (“King Kong” at the Broadway), beautiful (“Hadestown” and the Walter Kerr), or amazing (“Tootsie” is definitely not this) theater marquees I should not miss?

It won’t be the same without “Hello, Dolly!” on the front, but I’m also looking at “To Kill A Mockingbird” on the front of the Shubert.

Since I’m seeing “Kinky Boots” and POTO, I’ll snag a few pics of those while I’m there."

Those are terrific! Hope you'll take more on a future visit.

BdwayLife said: "Thank you for sharing your beautiful photos--you covered a lot of territory! I'm visiting in May for 5 nights...these have me getting excited! "

Glad you liked them! My goal is to try and see as many places that I haven’t visited before. I had a plan all laid out with exact times and subways. For the most part it worked out perfectly. The one thing I didn’t plan on was that between Washington Square Arch and the next subway line to get to Times Square I stumbled upon The Stonewall Inn and the quiet park with the statues. It is a historic site that very few visit, and was an honor to see.