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Miller Theater (Philadelphia)

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Coordinates: 39°56′51″N 75°09′53″W / 39.9476°N 75.1648°W / 39.9476; -75.1648
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Miller Theater
Sam S. Shubert Theater (1918–91)
Merriam Theater (1991-2022)
The Miller Theater
Miller Theater in 2024
Map
Address250 S. Broad St.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
U.S.
Coordinates39°56′51″N 75°09′53″W / 39.9476°N 75.1648°W / 39.9476; -75.1648
Public transit
OwnerThe Philadelphia Orchestra and Ensemble Arts[1]
Capacity1,870
Construction
OpenedAugust 26, 1918[2]
Years active1918–present
ArchitectHerbert J. Krapp
Website
https://www.ensembleartsphilly.org/

Miller Theater, originally the Sam S. Shubert Theatre and later, the Merriam Theater, is Philadelphia's most continuous location for touring Broadway shows. It is located at 250 South Broad Street within the Avenue of the Arts cultural district of Center City Philadelphia. The Theatre was built by The Shubert Organization in 1918.

In 1972, the theater came under the ownership of the Academy of Music, and was owned by the University of the Arts. In November 2016, it was purchased by the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, now The Philadelphia Orchestra and Ensemble Arts, and later renamed the Miller Theater.

History

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Lee and J. J. Shubert, theatrical producers, set out to build a theater memorializing their brother, Sam, who had died several years earlier in a railroad accident.[3] Two theaters were built, one in Philadelphia and one in New York City. The Shubert Theatre in Philadelphia was built in 1918 on the site of the demolished Horticultural Hall that included the reuse of the hall's marble staircase in the theater's interior design. The building stands seven stories high with theater on the first level and six floors used for offices and classrooms. Herbert J. Krapp is the original architect.[4] Additions and renovations were made in 1958.

In 1986, the stage and sound were modernized, and in 1991, the theatre was renamed and dedicated to John W. Merriam, a local entrepreneur, who was active for many years on the board of directors of the University of the Arts.[5][6]

In March 2022, the theater was renamed Miller Theater in honor of Alan B. Miller, a founding board member of the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, who donated an undisclosed amount of money toward restorations and upgrades.[7]

Productions

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The theater opened in 1918 with a road production of a musical from London and New York called Chu Chin Chow, featuring Florence Reed.[8] In the early years, George Gershwin musicals and Al Jolson reviews graced the Shubert stage. John Barrymore played Hamlet in the 1920s[9] and burlesque was featured in the 1930s. Other performers included: Helen Hayes, Katharine Hepburn, Sammy Davis Jr., Angela Lansbury, and Laurence Olivier. Through the decades, a number of highly acclaimed Broadway, off-Broadway and one-night performances have been performed at the theater.

Pre- and Post-Broadway engagements at the Shubert:

[11]

References

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Notes

  1. ^ "Philadelphia's Kimmel Center Purchasing Merriam Theatre". Playbill. October 21, 2016. Retrieved December 5, 2024.
  2. ^ "Merriam Theater - Philadelphia, PA". www.waymarking.com.
  3. ^ "Thurston Hall Will Head Stock Company At Local Playhouse". The Pittsburgh Press. October 3, 1920. p. 1. Retrieved November 5, 2024.
  4. ^ "Philadelphia College of Performing Arts". Philadelphia Architects and Buildings Project. Retrieved December 5, 2024.
  5. ^ "Exit the Shubert name, and enter merriam". The Philadelphia Inquirer. December 11, 1991. p. 69.
  6. ^ Wallace, Andy (April 7, 1994). "John W. Merriam, A Leading Developer". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on October 20, 2013. Retrieved December 5, 2024.
  7. ^ Crimmins, Peter (March 24, 2022). "The Merriam Theater is dead. Long live the Miller Theater". WHYY News. Retrieved December 5, 2024.
  8. ^ Glazer, Irvin R. (1986). Philadelphia Theatres, A-Z: A Comprehensive, Descriptive Record of 813 Theatres Constructed Since 1724. Greenwood Press. ISBN 978-0-313-24054-6.
  9. ^ Morrison, Michael A. (1997-09-28). John Barrymore, Shakespearean Actor. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-62028-4.
  10. ^ "Legitimate: Plays Out Of Town: Sadie Thompson". Variety. Vol. 156, no. 8. November 1, 1944. p. 44.
  11. ^ "Shubert Theatre (Philadelphia, PA)". Ovrtur. Retrieved 2022-06-22.
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