The Nederlander Theatre – 208 W 41st Street
The Nederlander wasn’t always called that, it had several different names including the Nation, the Billy Rose and the Trafalgar up until 1980 when James and Joseph Nederlander bought the theatre and named it their namesake. In May of the next year, the theatre had one of its most distinguished shows to date, Lena Horne in Lena Horn: The Lady and Her Music.
Over the next few years the Nederlander housed many shows including Raggedy Ann in 1986 and Our Country’s Good in 1989. On April 29, 1996 the show that called the Nederlander its home for 12 years opened, Rent. Rent was a rock opera that dealt with strong subject matters and this theatre couldn’t be more perfect. The Nederlander at the time sat away from the rest of the big Broadway shows, creating this grungy off-beat area for what would soon be the hottest ticket in town.
On September 8, 2008 the cast of Rent closed the curtain one more time and the Nederlander started looking for another play to call them home. They started to vamp up the appearance of the theatre around this time with plush seats and carved wood panels to make way for Guys and Dolls.
After a few plays opening and closing their doors at the theatre, Newsies found their home there in 2012. Originally only opening for limited engagement, that spark that found its way between the Nederlander and Rent was now lit up again five years later.
Not your average Broadway theatre but much more.
Rent took the Nederlander stage for 12 years.
Today, Newsies called the Nederlander their home.
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