The Belasco is actually east, not south of Broadway. It's a dual edged sword - because of an offbeat or less desirable location, some theatres, like the Nederlander, Belasco, Cort, Lyceum, were/are often infrequently booked. Then, iffy shows that can't get a better booking end up at one of these theatres, fail, and then the failure is ridiculously blamed on the theatre.
Still, a problematic location can sometimes can work in the theatre's favor. Rent chose the Nederlander for its outsider, fringe status, and it has certainly worked out well for them, proving that a show can be a hit at that theatre. It will be interesting to see what happens to the Nederlander when Rent eventually closes. Urinetown, similarly, was the longest running show in the history of Henry Miller's Theatre (like the Belasco, also east of Broadway), but given the state of disrepair of that house, it wouldn't have been appropriate for any normal show.
The Belasco has actually had some hits in the past few years, including Frankie and Johnny in the Claire de Lune and the Ralph Fiennes Hamlet and though not a hit, a high profile tenant with Follies. Prior to that, it was often a transfer house for shows like Raisin in the Sun, Don't Drink the Water and Ain't Misbehavin', playing out the last years of their runs.
The right show can often turn around the profile of a theatre. Prior to the Frank Langella version of Dracula in 1977, the Martin Beck which is on the wrong side of Eighth Avenue, was considered a death house. But Dracula turned around that theatre's profile in the industry, and showed that a hit could play there and the 80s and 90s brought in such tenants as the Elizabeth Taylor Little Foxes, Into the Woods, Guys and Dolls, etc. Same thing with the Lyceum. It was considered unbookable, prior to the 1980 revival of Morning's at Seven, but although it has housed some hits, it still remains empty more often than not.
The Ambassador sat empty for much of the 1990s, but it has had several hits of late, including Bring in 'da Noise, Bring in 'da Funk, Topdog/Underdog, and as the third home for Chicago. But Broadway's two hardest luck houses remain the Cort and the Longacre, both on 48th Street, ironically. Apart from The Heiress and Sarafina at the Cort, and the Diana Rigg Medea at the Longacre, you have to go back over 25 years to find a hit at those houses.
"Gif me the cobra jool!"
Updated On: 6/6/04 at 02:38 PM
