The Theater Center facts for kids
The Theater Center when it was still named The Snapple Theater Center
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| Address | 210 West 50th Street New York City United States |
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| Owner | Catherine Russell |
| Type | Off-Broadway |
| Capacity | Jerry Orbach: 199 Anne L. Bernstein: 199 |
| Production | The Fantasticks, Perfect Crime |
| Opened | May 22, 2006 |
The Theater Center is a special theater in New York City. It is located on 50th Street in Manhattan. Before 2016, it was known as The Snapple Theater Center. This theater is an Off-Broadway venue, which means it's a professional theater smaller than the famous Broadway theaters. The Theater Center has two stages where different shows are performed.
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History of The Theater Center
Building the Theater
A talented actress and producer named Catherine Russell helped build this theater. She worked with the company Snapple to make it happen. This was a new idea for Off-Broadway theaters. It was one of the first times a big company like Snapple helped fund a theater.
The theater opened its doors on May 22, 2006. It was first called the Snapple Theater Center. A person known as "the Snapple Lady" even helped celebrate its opening.
First Shows and New Names
Two famous plays started playing there right away. One was Perfect Crime, which starred Catherine Russell herself. The other was a new version of The Fantasticks. Both shows became very popular and ran for a long time.
In 2007, one of the theater's stages was named after actor Jerry Orbach. He was famous for playing El Gallo in the original 1960 production of The Fantasticks. Later, in 2012, the other stage was named for producer Anne L. Bernstein.
Name Change and Recent Events
In May 2016, the theater changed its name. It dropped "Snapple" and became simply "The Theater Center."
The Fantasticks finished its long run in June 2017. After that, many other shows came to the Jerry Orbach Theater. In 2021, Perfect Crime made history. It was the first live play in New York City to get permission to start performances again after theaters closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As of 2023, Perfect Crime is still playing at The Theater Center.
Theater Facilities
The Theater Center is a modern entertainment space. It is about 20,000 square feet in size. It has two theaters that can seat a total of 398 people.
Besides the stages, the center also has:
- Rehearsal studios for actors to practice
- Modern lobby areas
- WiFi for visitors
- Two bars with comfortable seating
- Two stands where you can buy show merchandise
The two main stages inside are the Anne L. Bernstein Theater and the Jerry Orbach Theater.
