Next Theatre Naming?

[macbeth]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 8:44am

Seeing the coverage of the James Earl Jones memorial reminded me that we're still waiting for the Hal Prince Theater. 

Do you think we'll see that or any others in the near future? 

[BorisTomashevsky]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 10:07am

I think the next major contributor to pass will be Lloyd Webber. Whether he will get a renaming (which he more than deserves, his contributions have been unmatched), I’m not sure. He owns a bunch of London theatres but I can’t see him renaming any for himself ahead of time (it’s been done in the past - the Belasco for example) but whoever inherits his company might do that in tribute. Maybe the Adelphi. 

I wouldn’t expect a Hal Prince anytime soon as it’s almost been six years. 

[bwaylyric]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 10:07am

Will the Todd Haimes Theatre get a permanent sign - not the current LED one that goes up intermittently?

[theblackumbrella]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 11:07am

Lorraine Hansberry 

Hal Prince 

Terrence McNally 

Angela Lansbury

Chita Rivera 

Audra McDonald 

Lynn Nottage

[JSquared2]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 11:18am

BorisTomashevsky said: "I think the next major contributor to passwill be Lloyd Webber. Whether he will get a renaming (which he more than deserves, his contributions have been unmatched), I’m not sure. He owns a bunch of London theatres but I can’t see him renaming any for himself ahead of time(it’s been done in the past - the Belasco for example) but whoever inherits his company might do that in tribute. Maybe the Adelphi.

I wouldn’t expect a Hal Prince anytime soon as it’s almost been six years."

 

Whaa??  What's almost been six years?  Hal Prince's death?  Do they only name theatres for the living or recently deceased?  What about the Lena Horne?

 

[BorisTomashevsky]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 11:21am

The Lena Horne renaming was part of a broader effort around representation, wasn’t it? 

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 11:25am

I'm sure I'm in the minority on this one but, while it's a great great honor to have a theater renamed for you, I'd hate for so many of these great houses to lose their iconic names. 

[Markie27]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 11:35am

Jordan Catalano said: "I'm sure I'm in the minority on this one but, while it's a great great honor to have a theater renamed for you, I'd hate for so many of these great houses to lose their iconic names."

Oh God yes I agree completely.  please please do not touch Majestic, Palace, CITS, Winter Garden, Ambassador, Broadway, Longacre, Lyceum, Lyric, Music Box, Studio 54 and the new Amsterdam.  I really don’t care much about houses renamed for theatre critics although Walter Kerr has a nice ring to it.  

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 11:43am

You mean you don't want to go see "Cats" at the Jesse Green Theatre????

[JSquared2]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 11:47am

Jordan Catalano said: "You mean you don't want to go see "Cats" at the Jesse Green Theatre????"

No, but I wouldn't mind relieving myself in the John Simon Memorial Shi*ter!

 

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 11:48am

See, now we're talking. You don't have to rename the whole theatre, just the bathrooms. 

[Dreamboy3]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 12:10pm

lol as I’ve gotten older it’s harder to remember the name changes. It doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be changed but I will always remember where the Alvin, the 46th Street, the Uris, and the ANTA were. I will never remember which is the Schoenfeld and which is the Jacobs but I always remembered which was the Plymouth and which was the Royale. 
 

Of the list above, surely Hal Prince and Audra do or will deserve theaters named after them. 
 
I hope someone donates enough money to Roundabout to rename the Haimes. 

[bwaylyric]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 12:19pm

Dreamboy3 said: "I hope someone donates enough money to Roundabout to rename the Haimes."

What's wrong with the Haimes name?  Would you rather have the Tesla Theatre?

 

[merle57]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 12:57pm

They should rename the St James for Oscar Hammerstein since his innovative Oklahoma! played there as did Flower Drum Song and some of his 30s shows.  The Majestic should be renamed the Harold Prince. They should also name a theatre for MERMAN-MARTIN for Ethel Merman and Mary Martin, and one for VERDON-FOSSE. . Lincoln Center should name a theatre in their complex  for Jerome Robbins.  Instead of Lena Horne,  It would have been better to honor Lorraine Hansberry to honor a great black artist since Horne rarely played Broadway   If they ever get the Hellinger back, it should be the Lerner-Loewe since their My Fair Lady is the theatre's longest run. Yes, Lansbury should. get a theatre name as well. But none of these greats will receive the honor -- it will go to billionaires who want to honor themselves.  Trump will soon rename Kennedy Center for Himself. 

Updated On: 4/9/25 at 12:57 PM

[BroadwayNYC2]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 1:39pm

I hope…we stop doing this! Renaming doesn’t serve a purpose. Nobody “deserves” it. It’s become a rallying cry. 

[Jarethan]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 1:59pm

Dreamboy3 said: "lol as I’ve gotten older it’s harder to remember the name changes. It doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be changed but I will always remember where the Alvin, the 46th Street, the Uris, and the ANTA were. I will never remember which is the Schoenfeld and which is the Jacobs but I always remembered which was the Plymouth and which was the Royale.


Of the list above, surely Hal Prince and Audra do or will deserve theaters named after them.

I hope someone donates enough money to Roundabout to rename the Haimes."F

Funny you say that about the Plymouth and the Royale.  To this day, I can never remember which is which until I look at the seating plan.  I always liked both theatres, especially the Plymouth, to me the perfect theatre for no-musicals, although these days, everything is a musical theatre.

I guess it is not going to happen, given how long he has been dead, but I think we need a Tennessee Williams theatre more than a Hirschfeld, Neal Simon (who's plays are not really standing the test of time already), John Golden (I know a lot of people would disagree with this, probably forgetting it is named after someone who no one knows anything about), Hudson (I assume it is named after someone -- I may be wrong).   That said, I agre with Jordan that I would like a lot of the theatres not named after people to retain their names as part of Broadway history.  I would not agree with Jordan re Studio 54...I actually wish they WOULD change the name.

[JSquared2]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 2:05pm

Dreamboy3 said: "lol as I’ve gotten older it’s harder to remember the name changes. It doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be changed but I will always remember where the Alvin, the 46th Street, the Uris, and the ANTA were. I will never remember which is the Schoenfeld and which is the Jacobs but I always remembered which was the Plymouth and which was the Royale.


Of the list above, surely Hal Prince and Audra do or will deserve theaters named after them.

I hope someone donates enough money to Roundabout to rename the Haimes."

 

Right?  I mean, hell, the man only gave the last 40 YEARS of his life to building the Roundabout into what it is today.  You may not have liked every show he ever put on --- but FFS were you happier when it was the American Airlines Theatre?

 

[BorisTomashevsky]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 2:15pm

I think that person meant they’re hoping for the installation of a more traditional, non-LED sign which reads “Todd Haimes Theatre” as opposed to the current changeable screens.

Sadly I think the changeable screens are “it” and wouldn’t expect anything further to be added. 

Updated On: 4/9/25 at 02:15 PM

[JSquared2]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 2:26pm

BorisTomashevsky said: "I think that personmeant they’re hoping for the installation of a more traditional, non-LED sign which reads “Todd Haimes Theatre” as opposed to the current changeable screens.

Sadly I think the changeable screens are “it” and wouldn’t expect anything further to be added."

 

The previous poster said:

I hope someone donates enough money to Roundabout to rename the Haimes."

And yes, digital marquees are here to stay.

[Dreamboy3]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 4:18pm

Sorry.  Didn’t mean to start a whole thing about the Haimes Theater. I meant that we have a Haimes Theater and not a Harold Prince Theater.  And that makes no sense if we are talking about who theaters should be named after.  As someone who has been a subscriber at Roundabout for decades, there have been some really dreadful seasons. We just kept renewing because it was a good way to see the friends we subscribe with. And the most recent seasons have been (IMHO) noticeably better.

Hopefully a Tesla Theater will never happen. I mean, I still call it the New York State Theater. 

[uncageg]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 4:26pm

Jordan Catalano said: "I'm sure I'm in the minority on this one but, while it's a great great honor to have a theater renamed for you, I'd hate for so many of these great houses to lose their iconic names."

 

I feel the same as you.

 

[everythingtaboo]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 4:48pm

I'll be honest, I'm still amazed that Lena Horne got a theatre named after her. I mean, yes it was a notable feat to have a one-woman show that ran that long, but that's her sole Broadway credit and it's a revue, not even a proper play or book musical. No one thinks Lena Horne and thinks Broadway. 

 

If we did have to name Broadway houses after legendary women of color, I'm Team Chita.

 

 

[BorisTomashevsky]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 4:53pm

Lena had five Broadway credits, but I agree that anyone else would have been a better choice. Diahaan Carroll for one. 

[ChairinMain]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 5:39pm

The Rivera has a very nice ring to it, as does the Prince. Don't know why, those are the two that feel most appropriate to me. 

[everythingtaboo]

Posted: 4/9/25 at 5:58pm

BorisTomashevsky said: "Lena had five Broadway credits, but I agree that anyone else would have been a better choice. Diahaan Carroll for one."

Not to nitpick but according to IBDB, two of those credits were a week each, one was a month. Carroll only had three credits total. I'm just not seeing how they're anywhere close to synonymous with Broadway. 

Updated On: 4/9/25 at 05:58 PM