The AMT Theater is an Off-Broadway theater venue located at 354 West 45th Street between Eighth and Ninth Avenues in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. It was previously called the 45th Street Theatre from 2007 to 2012[1] and the Davenport Theatre from 2014 to 2018, during which time it was leased by producer Ken Davenport renamed after his great-grandfather, Delbert Essex Davenport, a producer, publicist, and author in the early 1900s.[2]
45th Street Theatre, Davenport Theatre | |
 | |
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| Address | 354 West 45th Street New York City United States |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 40°45′36″N 73°59′26″W / 40.760065°N 73.990536°W |
| Type | Off-Broadway |
| Website | |
| https://www.amttheater.org/ | |
In 2019, the theater was converted to NYC Tango, a dance hall.[3] Following the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown, the building reopened in 2022 as AMT Theater with An Unbalanced Mind.[4]
Theatre history
edit- 1984–2004 – Primary Stages
- 2007–2012 – 45th Street Theatre (some overlap with Primary Stages)
- 2013 – New Theatre at 45th Street[5]
- 2014–2018 – Davenport Theatre
- 2019–2022 – New York City Tango
- 2022–Present – AMT Theatre (Renovated and Funded by Albert Tapper)
Building history
editThe five-story building was built in 1915 as an electric substation by the United Electric Light & Power Company which promoted alternating current in the war of the currents while New York Edison was promoting direct current. Although the direct current standard lost to AC in the war, Edison had continued to electrify lower Manhattan with direct current and accounted for 90 percent of the electric power at the time against United's 10 percent. The substation in particular was aimed at providing reliable power to Broadway theatres and Times Square signs at a time when most theatres had direct current.[6] In 1928, New York Edison began the process to adopt the AC standard and by 1935 had totally acquired United.[7][8]
After the building was decommissioned as a substation it became a Masonic Lodge. The masonic emblem with the inscription "Gran Logia de Lengua Española Vales De Nueva York" still hangs over the entrance and the abbreviation ALGDGADU is also above the entrance.[7] The abbreviation is interpreted from Spanish "A La Gloria Del Gran Arquitecto Del Universo" to say "to the Glory of the Great Architect of the Universe."[9][10]
According to the building's certificate of occupancy from 1959, the space was intended to be used as offices and a recording studio[11] and had been used illegally as a theater space for several decades.[12]
During its period as the Davenport Theatre from 2014 to 2018 there were two performances spaces, a 149-seat main stage on the ground floor and a 99-seat black box, which was renovated and renamed, The Loft at the Davenport Theatre on the third floor.
In 2019, the theater was converted to NYC Tango, a dance hall.[3] Following the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown, the building reopened in 2022 as AMT Theater with An Unbalanced Mind.[4]
Productions
editSelected productions at the theater.[1][13]
| Production | Opened | Closed |
|---|---|---|
| Popcorn Falls | October 8, 2019 | Nov 25, 2018 |
| Operation Crucible | October 31, 2018 | |
| Once a Year on Blackpool Sands | September 4, 2018 | September 10, 2018 |
| Afterglow | July 24, 2017 | TBD |
| Endangered! | July 10, 2017 | TBD |
| Money Talks | July 10, 2017 | September 30, 2017 |
| Shear Madness | July 15, 2016 | April 23, 2017 |
| Daddy Long Legs | September 28, 2015 | June 6, 2016 |
| Release the Kraken! (aka The RATCHET Play) - The Remix | April 16, 2015 | April 26, 2015 |
| Men and Women Talking Love and Sex | December 5, 2014 | February 14, 2015 |
| Pageant | July 14, 2014 | October 26, 2014 |
| Forbidden Broadway Comes Out Swinging! | May 4, 2014 | July 20, 2014 |
| Around the World in 80 Days (as the New Theater) | June 4, 2013 | October 13, 2013 |
| Wanda's World (as the 45th Street Theatre) | January 23, 2008 | February 10, 2008 |
| Idol: The Musical (as the 45th Street Theatre) | August 12, 2007 | August 12, 2007 |
| Jayson (as the 45th Street Theatre) | July 10, 1998 | August 16, 1998 |
| Golden Boy (as the 45th Street Theatre) | November 19, 1995 | December 16, 1995 |
| We'll Meet Again (as the 45th Street Theatre) | July 27, 1995 | October 1, 1995 |
| Awake and Sing! (as the 45th Street Theatre) | July 6, 1993 | July 25, 1993 |
| The Brooklyn Trojan Women (as the 45th Street Theatre) | June 1, 1993 | June 30, 1993 |
References
edit- ^ a b 45th Street Theatre at the Internet off-Broadway Database
- ^ "Tada! Introducing The Davenport Theatre!". The Producer's Perspective. 27 January 2014. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
- ^ a b "Argentine Tango | New York City Tango| Manhattan". www.newyorkcitytango.com. Archived from the original on 2019-09-01.
- ^ a b Wild, Stephi. "AMT Opens New Theater With AN UNBALANCED MIND". Retrieved 2022-08-16.
- ^ "The New Theater at 45th Street".
- ^ "Magic Bus | IEEE Power & Energy Magazine".
- ^ a b "History | IEEE Power & Energy Magazine".
- ^ "Gran Logia de Lengua Española, New York City | 301810". Emporis. Archived from the original on February 22, 2018. Retrieved 2022-05-03.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ "Freemasons for Dummies: Can You Identify This?". 7 August 2012.
- ^ "Las Abreviaturas en la Masoneria".
- ^ "Clinton Theater Seeks 'Legal' Status". The Midtown Gazette. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
- ^ "45th Street Theater Has One Problem: It's Not Legally a Theater". DNAinfo New York. Archived from the original on 2016-08-13. Retrieved 2016-02-23.
- ^ Davenport Theatre at the Internet off-Broadway Database