Sony Hall
The Diamond Horseshoe Century Theatre Mayfair Theatre Stairway Theatre Billy Rose's Diamond Horseshoe | |
Concert venue | |
Opened | December 24, 1938 |
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Website | |
www |
Sony Hall is a
History
The
1945 saw the premiere of Diamond Horseshoe, a film by George Seaton starring Betty Grable, set and filmed in the Diamond Horseshoe.[2][5][6] The influence of this film could not keep the club afloat and it closed in 1951 due to shifts in taste in entertainment away from lavish revues and towards more intimate fare.[2] For some time afterward, the basement operated as the Sonja Henie Ice Palace, with a skating rink.[7]
The hotel's operators leased the Paramount's basement as a theater in December 1960.[8] The space was operated by the partnership of Irving Maidman and Norman Twain.[9][10] Russell Patterson renovated the basement into the Mayfair Theatre, a 299-seat off-Broadway venue.[7][11] A skating rink was removed from the space and a 56-foot-wide (17 m) stage was installed, an unusually wide stage for an off-Broadway venue; the stage's width could be reduced to 26 feet (7.9 m) for intimate productions.[7] The theater opened in March 1961 with the play Roots by Arthur Wesker.[12][13] The Mayfair lasted two years before Maidman converted it to a cabaret. Maidman cited the large number of competing off-Broadway venues as a reason for the closure.[14]
By 1969 the theater was being used to show burlesque and a new agreement specified that beginning April 25, 1970, the space would no longer be rented as "a Burlesque Theatre or for the exhibition of 'adult' or 'sex exploitation' films".[8] Shortly after this agreement the space was renamed the Stairway Theatre and hosted two short-lived Broadway productions, The Castro Complex and A Place Without Doors over three months.[15][5] These productions were not successful and in 1971 the theater returned to a burlesque house in violation of its lease.[8]
Two theatrical productions were hosted between 1974 and 1976 under the moniker Mayfair Theatre,
Throughout the 1980s the theater was used for a few notable special events including the memorial luncheon for
In 2011 the developer
Queen of the Night ran for exactly two years, closing on December 31, 2015. For the next few years the theater existed as a private venue until reopening on March 27, 2018, as Sony Hall, a
Design
The original incarnation of the space was designed by Thomas W. Lamb as a nostalgic take on a saloon from the 1890s, including walls painted deep red and white, period-appropriate light fixtures, and posters of vaudeville stars dotting the walls.[2][20] This interior crumbled due to years of neglect and most original elements in the theater were not able to be preserved due to deterioration.[17] Due to the state of the hall, it was gutted as part of its renovation for the 2013 production of Queen of the Night.[21] This renovation and redesign was carried out by architectural firm Stonehill & Taylor with Meg Sharpe designing the interiors, creative direction by Giovanna Battaglia, and Douglas Little designing the production's scenery.[17][22] Due to the nature of immersive theater, the Queen of the Night scenery was fully integrated into the architecture, but edited out during the minor 2018 Sony Hall renovations.[17][18] The overall design nods to the real history of the space while infusing an imagined history created for the production of Queen of the Night.[21]
The exterior of the hall is marked by one of a pair of ornate
Once inside, the main room's interior, while largely new construction, takes design cues from Lamb's original intent. The
The walls are lined with antique faceted mirrors above curving
Production history
Theater name | Production | opened | closed | ref |
---|---|---|---|---|
The Diamond Horseshoe Century Theatre | Queen of the Night | December 31, 2013 | December 31, 2015 | [2][18] |
Century Theatre | Waltz of the Stork | January 5, 1982 | May 23, 1982 | [15] |
A Taste of Honey | June 24, 1981 | November 8, 1981 | ||
Heartland | February 23, 1981 | March 15, 1981 | ||
Emlyn Williams as Charles Dickens | January 14, 1981 | February 1, 1981 | ||
Banjo Dancing | October 21, 1980 | November 30, 1980 | ||
Of the Fields, Lately | May 27, 1980 | June 1, 1980 | ||
On Golden Pond | September 12, 1979 | April 20, 1980 | ||
Lone Star & Pvt. Wars | June 7, 1979 | August 5, 1979 | ||
Manny | April 18, 1979 | May 13, 1979 | ||
Are You Now or Have You Ever Been | February 6, 1979 | March 4, 1979 | ||
Taxi Tales | December 28, 1978 | December 31, 1978 | ||
The American Dance Machine | June 14, 1978 | December 3, 1978 | ||
Patio / Porch | April 13, 1978 | April 30, 1978 | ||
Mayfair Theatre | Dance With Me | January 23, 1975 | January 4, 1976 | |
Tubstrip | October 31, 1974 | November 17, 1974 | ||
Stairway Theatre | A Place Without Doors | December 22, 1970 | January 16, 1971 | |
The Castro Complex | November 18, 1970 | November 22, 1970 |
References
- ^ a b c History. Paramount Hotel. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Monahan, Patrick.The Diamond Horseshoe, the World War II-Era Nightclub Resurrected by Randy Weiner and Simon Hammerstein. Vanity Fair. January 24, 2014. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
- ^ W Magazine. January 17, 2014. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
- ^ New York Times. December 26, 2013. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e Culwell-Block, Logan. 9 Former Broadway Theatres Still Visible Today. Playbill. July 6, 2019. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
- ^ Billy Rose's Diamond Horseshoe(1945). TCM. Retrieved May 12, 2020,
- ^ ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
- ^ a b c Century Paramt. Htl. v. Rock Land Corp. Civil Court of the City of New York, Trial Term, New York County. 68 Misc. 2d 603, 604-5 (N.Y. Misc. 1971). November 3, 1971. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
- ProQuest 1325462711.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
- ProQuest 1327545379.
- ProQuest 1327544863.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
- ^ a b c d e Century Theatre. Internet Broadway Database. The Broadway League. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
- New York Times. May 29, 2013. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Diamond Horseshoe: Stonehill & Taylor. Restaurant & Bar Design Ltd. Retrieved Mat 12, 2020.
- ^ Metro. March 26, 2018. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
- ^ a b About. Sony Hall. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
- ^ a b c Sullivan, Megan. Diamond Horseshoe Club at the Paramount. Lodging. November 6, 2014. Retrieved May 13, 2020.
- ^ a b c Robin, Natalie. Noble Concepts: Queen Of The Night. Live Design. Mar 24, 2014. Retrieved May 13, 2020.
- ^ a b Santiago , Rebecca. The Diamond Horseshoe Club and Theater Reopens in New York's Paramount Hotel. Architectural Digest. December 31, 2013. Retrieved May 13, 2020.
- ^ Architizer. Retrieved May 13, 2020.