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Wikipedia

Apollo Theater

November 14, 2023

This article is about the theater in Harlem, New York City. For the theater in London, see Apollo Theatre. For the former theater in Times Square, New York City, see Apollo Theatre (42nd Street). For the theater in Glasgow, see The Apollo (Glasgow). For other uses, see Apollo (disambiguation) and Apollo Theatre (disambiguation).

The Apollo Theater (formerly the Hurtig & Seamon's New Theatre; also Apollo Theatre or 125th Street Apollo Theatre) is a multi-use theater at 253 West 125th Street in the Harlem neighborhood of Upper Manhattan in New York City. It is a popular venue for black American performers and is the home of the TV show Showtime at the Apollo. The theater, which has approximately 1,500 seats across three levels, was designed by George Keister with elements of the neoclassical style. The facade and interior of the theater are New York City designated landmarks and are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The nonprofit Apollo Theater Foundation (ATF) operates the theater, as well as two smaller auditoriums at the Victoria Theater and a recording studio at the Apollo.

Apollo Theater
Marquee in 2006
Location253 West 125th Street
Manhattan, New York
Public transitSubway: 125th Street
OperatorApollo Theater Foundation
TypeIndoor theater
Seating typefixed
Capacity1,500 (approximate)
Apollo Theater
New York City Landmark No. 1299, 1300
Location253 West 125th Street
Manhattan, New York
Coordinates40°48′36″N 73°57′00″W / 40.81000°N 73.95000°W / 40.81000; -73.95000
Built1913–1914[2]
ArchitectGeorge Keister[2]
Architectural styleClassical Revival
NRHP reference No.83004059[1]
NYCL No.1299, 1300
Significant dates
Added to NRHPNovember 17, 1983
Designated NYCLJune 28, 1983
Construction
Broke ground1913
Opened1914
Renovated1934, 1978, 1982–1988, 2002–2005
Expanded2024 (planned)

The Apollo was developed by Jules Hurtig and Harry Seamon as a burlesque venue, which opened in 1913 and originally served only white patrons. In 1928, the Minsky brothers leased the theater for burlesque shows. Sidney Cohen acquired the theater in 1934, and it became a venue for black performers. Frank Schiffman and his family operated the theater from 1935 to 1976. A group of black businessmen briefly operated the theater from 1978 to 1979, and former Manhattan borough president Percy Sutton bought it at an auction in 1981. The Apollo reopened in 1985 following a major refurbishment that saw the construction of new recording studios. In September 1991, the New York State Urban Development Corporation bought the Apollo and assigned its operation to the ATF. Further renovations took place in the mid-2000s, and an expansion of the theater was undertaken in the early 2020s.

Among the theater's longest-running events is Amateur Night at the Apollo, which takes place every Wednesday and involves audiences who judge the quality of novice performances. Many of the theater's most famous performers are inducted in the Apollo Legends Hall of Fame, and the theater has also commissioned various works and hosted educational programs. Over the years, the theater has hosted many musical, dance, theatrical, and comedy acts, with several performers often featured on the same bill. In addition, the theater has hosted other events including film screenings, recordings, and tapings, as well as non-performance events such as speeches, debates, and tributes. Over its existence, the Apollo has had a wide impact on African-American culture and has been featured in multiple books and shows.

Site edit

The Apollo Theater is located at 253 West 125th Street, between Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard (Seventh Avenue) and Frederick Douglass Boulevard (Eighth Avenue), in the Harlem neighborhood of Upper Manhattan in New York City.[3][4] The irregular land lot has frontage on both 125th Street to the south and 126th Street to the north. The site covers 17,454 sq ft (1,621.5 m2), with a frontage of 50 ft (15 m) on 125th Street and a depth of 200 ft (61 m).[5] The theater is adjacent to the Victoria Theater to the west.[4][5] Several MTA Regional Bus Operations routes stop outside the theater, while the New York City Subway's 125th Street/St. Nicholas Avenue station, served by the A, ​B, ​C, and ​D trains, is located one block to the west.[6]

Design edit

The theater was designed by George Keister with elements of the neoclassical style.[3][2][4] It was one of several theaters that Keister designed in that style, along with the Belasco Theatre, Bronx Opera House, Selwyn Theater, and Earl Carroll Theatre.[7]

Facade edit

The theater's main facade is on the south, toward 125th Street, and is three stories high.[8] The ground floor has been renovated several times and consists of a ticket office to the west and a storefront to the east.[9] The modern design of the ground floor dates to a renovation completed in 2005.[10][11] The eastern side of the ground floor contains a glass-and-steel storefront,[10] with monitors installed in place of the original display cases.[11] The modern-day box office is a semicircular steel structure that protrudes outward.[11]

The second and third stories are made of white glazed terracotta, which dates from the theater's opening in 1914. A cornice with dentils runs horizontally across the facade just below the second floor. The second- and third-story windows are arranged vertically into four bays.[8] The bays are separated by three fluted pilasters topped by capitals in the Ionic order, and there is a paneled pilaster with Tuscan capitals outside each of the outermost bays. The capitals of all five pilasters contain anthemia.[9] Within each bay, the second and third floors each contain a square window and are separated by spandrel panels with shields and fluting. Above the third-story windows are spandrels with Greek fret designs, as well as a metal cornice with modillions.[8]

A steel marquee was added above the ground floor in the 1940s; it stretched half the width of the facade and bore the name "Apollo" on its two side elevations.[8] A modern marquee with LEDs was installed in 2005 and was intended to resemble the original marquee.[11] The marquee displayed letters with the name of the entertainer who were performing that night. Jack Schiffman, the son of former theater owner Frank Schiffman, recalled that the marquee also displayed various additional signs or movie posters.[12] A vertical sign with the name "Apollo" was erected near the western end of the facade in the 1940s.[8] The original vertical sign was replaced in 2005 with the current yellow-and-red blade sign.[11]

Interior edit

The theater has an "L"-shaped plan, with a narrow lobby leading to the main entrance on 125th Street, as well as the auditorium at the rear on 126th Street.[13] Although the interior underwent several modifications in the mid-20th century, many of the 1910s-era decorations remained intact in 1983.[14] The theater's original decorative features were preserved during the mid-1980s renovation.[15]

Lobby edit

The main lobby is a long and narrow space; some observers, including Jack Schiffman, have likened it to a bowling alley.[16][17] The space was modified significantly in the 1930s and again in the 1960s,[14] and the lobby was enlarged in the late 1970s.[18] Following another renovation in 2006, the Tree of Hope, a stump that performers rubbed for good luck, was moved to the lobby.[19]

The lobby occupies the western half of the ground level frontage on 125th Street; the eastern half of the frontage houses a store.[20] The original main lobby had a group of murals.[14] By the early 1970s,[16] the lobby had been redecorated with a montage of notable entertainers who appeared at the Apollo.[13][21] There was also a ticket office and box office on one wall of the lobby.[14][22] The modern-day lobby has two staircases, which lead to the first and second balconies of the auditorium.[17][22] The space is illuminated by four grand chandeliers.[23] There is a gift shop near the entrance.[24] As of 2023, a cafe is planned to be built within the lobby; it is expected to open in 2025.[25][26]

Auditorium edit

 
The auditorium as seen from the stage

The auditorium is at the north end of the building and is rectangular in plan, with curved walls, a domed ceiling, and two balcony levels over the orchestra level.[14][27] The Apollo Theater was cited as having 2,000 seats in the 1930s[28][29] and 1,700 seats in the 1970s;[30] it was described in 1985 as having 1,500[30][31] or 1,550 seats.[32] By the early 2010s, the theater had 1,536 seats.[33] The seats were refurbished in the 1980s[34] and again in 2006, when wide cranberry-colored seats were installed. The bottom of each row of seats is illuminated by aisle lighting. In addition, there is a seating area for disabled patrons.[35] On each level, the seats are divided by two central aisles. [36]

The rear (western) end of the orchestra contains a standing rail with scagliola.[14] Scagliola decorations, composed of scrolls supporting a triangular pediment, are also placed around the doorways on the rear wall of the orchestra. Fluted columns on the orchestra level support the first balcony; the lower parts of the columns are devoid of ornamentation. The orchestra is raked, sloping down toward an orchestra pit in front of the stage. The front walls of the auditorium flank a flat proscenium opening in the center.[36]

The balconies are also raked and contain similar scagliola decorations to the orchestra level. The balconies' fronts have brass handrails and are decorated with plasterwork motifs such as rope moldings, garlands, Greek fret motifs, wreaths, and shields.[36] At the first balcony, there are also square columns supporting the second balcony.[31][36] The second balcony was described by author James V. Hatch as "the bird's nest", since audiences in the second balcony could see the entire theater.[37]

On either side of the proscenium are two boxes each on the first and second balcony levels, which are accessed by their own staircases.[36] The boxes have brass railings and are housed within round-arched openings. The spandrels above the arches contain classical motifs like urns, garlands, wreaths, medallions, and scrolls. On the first balcony level, the boxes have Greek fret motifs on their soffits, as well as foliate pendants and brackets, but lack much of their original ornamentation. The second-balcony boxes retain their original classical decorations.[14] The proscenium arch has a surround with colonnettes on either side of the arch and a band running atop it. The colonnettes are topped by small capitals, while the band has leaf motifs and fluting. An entablature runs above the arch and is supported by brackets on either end. The surround and entablature both contain plaster decorations such as urns, foliate motifs, circles, and horses in rhombuses.[14]

Above the boxes and the proscenium arch is a cornice with large dentils, as well as a plaster frieze decorated with foliate motifs. The ceiling is slightly coved at its edge.[14] At the center of the ceiling is a semicircular dome with a medallion surrounded by a molding of cornucopia.[14][31] The theater was mechanically advanced for its time, with a ventilation system to remove cigarette smoke, as well as electric lights.[38] The ventilation system was rebuilt when the theater was renovated in the 1980s, and lighting trusses were added at that time.[34]

Other spaces edit

In addition to the main auditorium, the ground floor had a store to the east of the lobby. There originally was a cafe and cabaret in the basement,[20] which served as a rehearsal space and was converted into a staff recreation room in the 1940s.[39] In addition, there were a ladies' parlor and men's smoking room, which were enlarged in the 1940s.[39][40] The second story originally had a dining room, while the third story had meeting rooms and lofts. By the 1980s, the second and third floors were being used as storage space and offices, with small rooms on both stories.[20] The third floor also has a sound stage; to accommodate this use, the windows on that story were covered up in 1985.[41]

When the Apollo Theater was developed, the dressing rooms were placed in a separate annex with showers and baths.[38] The dressing rooms are simple in design.[21] There is a wall of signatures in the dressing room. The Apollo's historian Billy Mitchell said in 2012, "Anyone who’s been to or performed at the Apollo in the last 20 years has their name on the wall—from Pee-wee Herman to the president of the United States".[42]

A production studio for TV broadcasts and video productions was constructed on top of an adjacent wing during the 1980s.[43] The studio is variously cited as covering 3,500 square feet (330 m2),[44] 3,800 square feet (350 m2),[30][43] or 4,000 square feet (370 m2).[45][46] It could record 24 tracks at once[31][47] and was equipped with 96 microphone lines connecting with the auditorium.[44] The studio has been used by media companies such as advertising firm Saatchi & Saatchi[48] and Black Entertainment Television.[49]

History edit

In the late 19th century, Harlem was developed as a suburb of New York City and was inhabited largely by upper-middle-class whites.[50] Black residents began moving to Harlem in the beginning of the 20th century with the development of row houses, apartments, and the city's first subway line.[50][51] By the early 20th century the neighborhood had several vaudeville, burlesque, film, and legitimate theaters centered around 125th Street and Seventh Avenue,[52] which led to the corridor being known as "Harlem's 42nd Street".[53] Among the operators of these early theaters were theatrical producers Jules Hurtig and Harry Seamon, who leased the Harlem Music Hall at 209 West 125th Street in 1897.[54][55] Hurtig and Seamon produced several shows starring black superstars Bert Williams and George Walker between 1898 and 1905.[56] The Music Hall was converted to burlesque c. 1911.[55]

Burlesque theater edit

Development and early years edit

C. J. Stumpf & H. J. Langhoff of Milwaukee, Wisconsin,[55][57] acquired land on 125th and 126th Street from the Cromwell estate and Lit family around 1911 or 1912.[58] They announced plans in June 1912 for a three-story commercial structure at 253 to 259 West 125th Street, with a 2,500-seat burlesque theater in the rear, at 240 to 260 West 126th Street.[58][59] Hurtig and Seamon, who had been leasing the nearby Harlem Music Hall, wanted a larger venue to accommodate the burlesque productions of the Columbia Amusement Company, which they had joined,[38] and were set to lease the theater for 30 years for a total of $1.375 million; the theater itself would cost $200,000. Work could not begin until the existing leases on the site expired the following May.[58][59] Stumpf and Langhoff hired Keister to design the theater,[57] while either Cramp & Company[60] or the Security Construction Company was hired as the general contractor.[38] One local real-estate investor wrote that the theater was to be "the most important new work for the immediate future" on that block of 125th Street.[61]

A groundbreaking ceremony occurred in January 1913, at which point it was known as Hurtig & Seamon's New (Burlesque) Theater.[38] Local real-estate journal Harlem Magazine wrote: "The theatre when completed will add in no small degree to the appearance and prosperity of this locality."[55] The theater hosted its first Columbia show on Dec. 17, 1913.[62] Hurtig & Seamon initially employed female ushers, described by Variety magazine as "all good-looking and polite girls",[63] and banned black patrons.[53][64][65] Initially, the theater also hosted movies during the summer when burlesque was on hiatus,[66] as well as other events such as benefits and fundraisers.[67] A stock burlesque company composed of numerous Broadway performers was established at the theater in 1917.[68]

Beginning in 1920, Hurtig & Seamon's New Theatre faced competition from the nearby Mount Morris Theatre on 116th Street, which featured shows on the American wheel, a lower-tier Columbia subsidiary.[69] The American wheel was dissolved in 1922 and the New Theatre retained its monopoly on Columbia burlesque in Upper Manhattan.[70] The growth of Harlem's black population forced many theater owners to begin admitting black patrons in the 1920s,[71] though Jamaican-American author Joel Augustus Rogers claimed that the New Theatre's black patrons were consistently given inferior seats.[72] The New Theatre began sponsoring shows with mixed-race casts in the middle of that decade,[73] and Hurtig & Seamon also planned to produce shows with all-black casts.[74] The theater building was sold in August 1925 to the Benenson Realty Company, though Hurtig & Seamon continued to operate the theater.[75][76] That year, the theater's orchestra was expanded,[77] and a runway was introduced.[78] As Columbia burlesque withered in 1926, Hurtig & Seamon elected to present stock burlesque in 1927,[79] then, later that year, switched allegiance to the Mutual Burlesque Association.[78]

Minsky years edit

 
In 1928 Hurtig and Seamon's Apollo Theater was a Minsky burlesque house.

In May 1928, Hurtig & Seamon leased their New Theater to the Minsky brothers and their partner, Joseph Weinstock,[80][81][82] who had been staging burlesque shows at a small theater above the Harlem Opera House named the Apollo.[81][83][84][85] (At the same time, Hurtig and Seamon's former space, the Harlem Music Hall, was leased for one year by Henry Drake and Ethel Walker, black performers and show producers. Renamed the Drake and Walker Theater, it was the first in the city controlled by black interests.)[86] Hurtig and Seamon, along with I. H. Herk, retained an interest in the New Theater. As part of the agreement, the New Theater was renamed Hurtig & Seamon's Apollo,[87][84] and the Harlem Opera House and the former Apollo within it were restricted from staging burlesque, vaudeville, musical comedy, or "tab shows" as long as Hurtig & Seamon's Apollo staged burlesque. In exchange, the latter theater could not show movies.[80][88][89]

Hurtig & Seamon's Apollo reopened in August 1928 after the Minskys renovated the lobby, repainted the auditorium, and extended the runway at orchestra level.[87][90] Variety magazine reported that Walter Reade had leased the new Apollo for 16+1⁄2 years,[91] but Billy Minsky bought out Hurtig and Seamon's lease the next month and continued to operate the theater.[92] Initially, the theater still presented shows from the Mutual Circuit, which Herk headed, as part of an agreement with Hurtig and Seamon, who also own franchises with Mutual.[93] Performers typically mingled with audience members and performed for longer durations than under Hurtig and Seamon's tenure.[80] Minsky and Herk split in mid-1929,[94] but the theater continued to feature a mixture of stock shows and Mutual shows.[95] Mutual began a decline precipitated by the Depression, and Billy Minsky announced in March 1930 that he would stop presenting Mutual shows.[96][97] The following month, he started presenting stock shows with both black and white casts.[98] Bessie Smith was among the earliest black entertainers to perform at the Apollo.[80]

Burlesque at the Apollo Theater began to decline in 1930 as Minsky concentrated on his new flagship theater off Times Square, the Republic.[80] The Minskys moved many of their shows from the Irving Place Theatre and Minsky's Brooklyn theater to the Apollo in 1931.[99] For the 1931–1932 season, the theater hosted Columbia burlesque,[100][101] with two shows per day.[102] After Billy Minsky died in 1932, his younger brother Herbert took over the theater's operation.[103] That same year, Herk, Herbert Minsky, and Weinstock agreed to showcase Columbia burlesque at the Apollo.[104][105] Attendance decreased after the Apollo started presenting shows without nudity or stripteases.[106] The theater briefly hosted performances from the Empire Wheel in late 1932,[107] and the Apollo began to stage black vaudeville that year.[34] The Apollo's operators also started serving alcoholic beverages in April 1933.[108] After failing to renew its burlesque license, the Apollo closed temporarily that May[109][110] and remained dark for seven months.[111][112] The theater began hosting burlesque again in December 1933, with two midday shows in addition to the usual evening show.[112] By then, however, newly elected mayor Fiorello La Guardia had begun to crack down on burlesque theaters citywide.[113]

Cohen and Schiffman operation edit

Sidney Cohen,[a] who owned other theaters in the area,[114] took over the theater in January 1934.[115][116] At the time, many of Harlem's most popular black theaters were clustered around 125th Street.[117] The theater was converted into a performance venue for black entertainers, with an all-black staff.[118][119] Most vestiges of the former burlesque shows were quickly removed.[118] Unlike the previous burlesque shows, which had been controversial because they verged on nudity, the new programming would be family-friendly.[120] The theater was renamed the 125th Street Apollo Theatre[121] and reopened on January 26, 1934, catering to the black community of Harlem.[64][122] Cohen initially employed Clarence Robinson as the Apollo Theatre's producer[115][118][121] and Morris Sussman as the manager.[120][121] He also hired talent scout John Hammond to book his shows.[114] Though advertised as a "resort for the better people", the theater quickly attracted working-class, unemployed, and young audiences.[123]

The Apollo was frequented by black performers, who, during the early 20th century, were not allowed to perform at many other venues.[117] The theater was a prominent venue on the primarily black "Chitlin' Circuit",[124] though many shows featured actors of different races.[125] It featured a wide variety of musical performances, including R&B, jazz, blues, and gospel performances.[126] Early shows consisted of revues, but this was quickly changed to a loosely connected format of dance, comedy, music, and novelty acts.[127] The performances resembled vaudeville shows,[114][128] with six to eight acts sharing a bill.[129][130] Up to seven comedians or musicians and eight singing groups would perform for a week, doing as many as seven shows per day. Novice performers often started off as the opening act and aspired to become the headliner of the show.[131] Because the Apollo did not have wealthy backers, in contrast to venues such as Carnegie Hall and the Metropolitan Opera House, its income depended heavily on the success or failure of each week's show. As a cost-cutting measure, the Apollo paid performers low salaries, to which most up-and-coming performers readily agreed.[132]

The Apollo's conversion had occurred at the end of the Harlem Renaissance.[65] It was held in such high regard by local black residents that, according to Schiffman's son Robert, it was not damaged during the Harlem riots of 1935, 1943, or 1964.[131][133] Nonetheless, it was a source of pride for Harlem's black community and was often used as a gathering place during demonstrations.[133][131] Although the Schiffmans were white, Robert recalled that local residents frequently referred to the Apollo as "our theater", never "the white man's theater" or "Frank Schiffman's theater".[134] Over the years, the format of the shows was changed.[135]

1930s and 1940s edit

The first major performer at the Apollo, jazz singer and Broadway star Adelaide Hall, appeared at the Apollo in February 1934. Hall's limited-engagement show was highly praised by the press, which helped establish the Apollo's reputation.[64] Sussman hosted competitions for amateur performers on Wednesday nights, as well as "kiddie hours" on Sundays.[136] The Apollo Theatre had vigorous competition from other venues, namely Leo Brecher's Harlem Opera House and Frank Schiffman's Lafayette.[120][137][138] The former had been a popular vaudeville venue, while the latter had previously been the neighborhood's predominant black theater.[138] Cohen took out advertisements and broadcast shows on local radio stations, prompting equally vigorous promotion campaigns from Schiffman and Brecher.[120] Cohen, Schiffman, and Brecher agreed to a truce in May 1935,[120][139] and Cohen leased the theater the next month to the Harlem Opera House's operator, Duane Theater Corporation.[28][29] Ralph Cooper was hired as the emcee the same year.[140]

After Cohen died in late 1935, the Opera House became a movie theater, while the Apollo continued to present stage shows.[114][141][142] The Apollo was rebranded as "The Only Stage Show in Harlem".[141] Initially, the Apollo attracted blues and ragtime performers,[117] as well as comedians[125] and big bands.[125][143] Early shows were accompanied by a chorus line of 16 girls,[115] most of whom were fair-skinned;[144] the chorus girls were no longer employed at the theater by the late 1930s.[145][146] The New York Amsterdam News described the Apollo in 1939 as "the only theatre in the country where Negro performers are predominantly featured", at a time when many other venues still did not allow black performers.[147] The Apollo temporarily closed in mid-1940 for upgrades,[148][149] reopening that September.[150] The theater began showing musical comedies for the first time in February 1941.[151][152] Jazz performances[126] and bebop at the Apollo were popular in the 1940s,[143] and gospel was hosted sporadically.[153]

The Apollo appealed to mixed-race audiences in the 1940s; on Sundays, as much as four-fifths of the audience were white.[154] During World War II, the theater offered 35 free tickets to members of the U.S. armed forces, and entertainers at the Apollo performed at the nearby Harlem Defense Recreation Center on Tuesday nights.[155] Schiffman closed the theater temporarily for renovations in August 1945. The project cost $45,000 and entailed new sound systems, a remodeled orchestra pit, women's and men's lounges, a staff recreation room, and modifications to decorations.[39][40] After World War II, the theater occasionally staged a chorus line with six acts.[135] By 1946, Schiffman had announced plans to widen the theater and add an air-cooling system when construction materials became available.[156] The theater was sold in 1949 to the Harlem Apollo Realty Corporation, although Schiffman and Brecher continued to operate the Apollo.[157] That year, they began experimenting with staging Broadway-class shows at the Apollo.[158][159] Schiffman's sons Jack and Robert began working at the theater in the late 1940s and early 1950s.[130]

1950s and 1960s edit

As the years progressed, variety shows were presented less often.[114] The Apollo started staging rock music concerts when that genre became popular,[135] and the big bands gave way to R&B performances.[160][161] The theater also began hosting different musical genres such as mambo[162] and gospel.[161][163][164] There were often two shows a day if a headliner was performing, and it showed movies at other times.[135] Additionally, the theater was closed for upgrades for two weeks every August;[165] a large CinemaScope screen was installed during one such closure in 1955.[166] By the late 1950s, Variety magazine criticized the theater for "allowing some of its actors to carry on with assorted vulgarisms".[167] The Apollo was one of the few remaining venues for black entertainers in Harlem during that time, although other venues such as the Waldorf Astoria New York and Copacabana had started allowing black performers.[168] Even so, many popular black artists such as Eartha Kitt and Sammy Davis Jr. regularly returned for "the folks who can't make it downtown".[169]

The 1960s, the venue's most successful decade,[114] saw the rising popularity of R&B at the Apollo,[126] as well as mixed-genre productions.[170] The theater was renovated slightly in 1960,[171] and new sound-amplification equipment and lighting was added during August 1961.[165] During the 1964 Harlem riots, the Apollo temporarily screened movies exclusively due to decreased patronage.[172][173] The lobby and auditorium were renovated in 1967;[174] the project was conducted almost entirely by black workers and cost $50,000.[175][176] Business began to decline after the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed, allowing black entertainers to perform in nightclubs and hotels.[51][177][178] The Apollo was smaller than similar venues; the neighborhood's economy was in decline; and the Apollo was not near other popular venues.[178][179] Other issues included a perception of rising crime[133][134] and a lack of parking.[133] The theater's production manager, Charles Coles, said in 1967 that white audiences avoided the Apollo because of the 1964 riots and the rise of race-integrated venues.[180] The Apollo continued to decline through the late 1960s and early 1970s.[181]

The Schiffman family was looking to sell the Apollo to black entrepreneurs in the 1960s, having rejected several purchase offers from white theatrical operators.[134] There was also growing support for grassroots performances at the theater.[182] During that time, the Apollo continued to host variety shows every night and was often sold out during weekends;[180] many of these live acts were accompanied by films.[129][183][184] Robert Schiffman took over the theater's management in 1971.[131] The next year, a group of investors led by New York Amsterdam News editor Clarence B. Jones expressed interest in buying the theater,[135][185] but the deal was canceled when interest rates increased sharply.[186] As late as 1973, it had between 42 and 45 weeks of live shows annually,[183] and the Apollo's headliners earned as much as $50,000 per week.[135] The theater had pivoted away from staging comedy and drama and were instead mostly presenting recording groups. Frank Schiffman recalled that the theater's audience at the time was predominantly black and largely consisted of local residents.[184]

Decline and closure edit

 
The theater as seen from the west

Although the Apollo did host some successful shows between 1970 and 1974, the theater's offerings dropped sharply afterward; Herb Boyd wrote in 2009 that "Apollo lovers had to resort to memories rather than performances".[181] By the 1970s, the Apollo was the only remaining black vaudeville theater in the U.S.;[179][184] other such theaters had closed because they were attracting fewer entertainers and could not compete with large venues.[179] The Apollo Theater was struggling financially by early 1975, forcing its owners to lay off over 100 staff members.[187] The Apollo had been forced to cut back its schedule of live shows to 20–22 weeks per year, less than half of the 45–50 weeks that the theater had presented in its peak.[179] Management could not raise prices, even by a few cents, because that would drive away the local residents who frequented the theater.[132] In addition, the surrounding area was deserted at night; the Apollo could not afford to pay performers at the significantly higher rates that they demanded; and patrons preferred to watch headliners' performances instead of multi-act shows.[188]

To raise money, Robert Schiffman wanted to show first runs of films featuring black actors but faced competition from other Manhattan theaters.[179][189] The Apollo's managers began running for-sale advertisements in several major papers in 1975.[179] The area had also become dangerous;[114] for example, a young patron was killed at the theater later the same year.[190][191] The Apollo was used exclusively for movies and gospel shows in the mid-1970s[192] and was closed in January 1976.[186] The theater had faulty stage equipment and deteriorating facilities, and many of the Apollo's onetime headliners refused to perform there. More obscure acts did not draw large enough crowds to make a profit, and the Apollo had closed by 1977.[18] Robert Schiffman considered replacing the existing theater with a new 3,000-seat venue,[133] and there were also calls to renovate the Apollo or to merge it with the Victoria Theater.[193] During the Apollo's closure, the already-dilapidated seats and decorations continued to decay, and burst water pipes destroyed the stage.[186]

Robert Schiffman sold the Apollo in early 1978[194][186] to a group of black businessmen,[195][196] who became the first black owners of the theater.[197] The new owners included Rich and Elmer T. Morris[196] and Guy Fisher.[198] The group spent $250,000 renovating the Apollo,[18][195] which entailed replacing the sound system, renovating backstage areas, and furnishing the lobby.[18] In addition, the new owners hired David E. McCarthy as the general manager[199] and added reserved seating.[197] The theater reopened on May 6, 1978,[200][201] with a performance by percussionist Ralph MacDonald that was beset by technical issues.[202] In the months after it reopened, the Apollo hosted numerous acts and was moderately successful.[18] The Internal Revenue Service raided the theater in November 1979 after finding that the new owners had failed to pay tens of thousands of dollars in taxes over the two preceding years.[203][204] The theater's operators filed for bankruptcy in May 1981[205][206] after Elmer Morris's arrest on drug charges.[207]

Sutton operation edit

Inner City Broadcasting, a firm owned by Percy E. Sutton, agreed in late 1981 to buy the theater;[208][209] he paid either $220,000[34][43][207] or $225,000.[177] Inner City had beat out a competing bid from the Bible of Deliverance Evangelist Church.[210] Sutton recalled that there were "roaches, dead rats, swimming rats" in the flooded basement.[211] Inner City acquired an 81 percent stake in the theater's legal owner, the Apollo Theatre Investor Group,[212][213] while Sutton owned the remaining 19 percent of the group.[213] According to Sutton, the purchase price was "the cheapest part of bringing the Apollo back", since the theater needed extensive renovations.[207]

The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) started to consider designating the Apollo Theater as a city landmark in early 1982,[214] and it hosted hearings for the theater's landmark status during the middle of that year.[215][216] That July, state officials also proposed listing the theater on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) after nonprofit New York Landmarks Conservancy had conducted a report of the theater.[217] The Apollo's facade and interior were designated as New York City landmarks in June 1983.[218][219] The theater was added to the NRHP in November 1983;[220] the NRHP listing became official in June 1984.[220][45]

Initial renovation edit

 
The upper facade and marquee of the Apollo

Sutton initially intended to spend $5.7 million on renovating the Apollo,[177][221] and he intended to host and broadcast live shows from the theater.[208][222] The Apollo Entertainment TV Network was formed in mid-1982 to broadcast programs from the theater's studios.[223][224] The Harlem Urban Development Corporation (HUDC) announced a $1 million grant for the theater in May 1982.[225][226] The original reopening date of July 1982 was postponed due to the complexity of the project,[227] and the state government expressed concerns that Sutton could not afford to pay for increasing renovation costs.[228] That September, the U.S. federal government gave a $1.5 million Urban Development Action Grant[229][230] to the city government, which lent the money to the Apollo's operators.[231] The city's Industrial Development Agency also issued $2.8 million in bonds to fund the construction of a recording studio.[227] Percy Sutton and his brother Oliver wished to raise the rest of the $6.8 million cost by themselves.[231]

The Suttons announced in December 1982 that they would withdraw from the project after the New York State Mortgage Agency rejected the Suttons' request for insurance assistance.[232][233][234] Despite this, mayor Ed Koch expressed optimism that the renovation would continue.[235] The renovation was restarted in May 1983 after the state UDC agreed to give the theater $2.5 million;[236][237] without this funding, the Apollo Theatre Investor Group would have canceled the project entirely.[238] Sutton transferred the theater building and underlying land to the New York state government, as he wished to receive a $9 million state grant.[177] He then leased the theater for 99 years.[239] Sutton ultimately obtained $10 million from a consortium of lenders.[221][240] The renovation experienced more delays, and a construction management firm incurred nearly $800,000 in charges before work had even started.[177]

The renovated theater included a production studio for TV broadcasts and video productions,[45][46] as well as a new hall of fame with memorabilia from the theater's history.[131][241] Air-conditioning and an elevator were added,[15][242] and the theater also received new lights, sound systems, and dressing rooms and a restored interior.[15] By late 1983 and early 1984, the Apollo was expected to open in late 1984.[243][244] To advertise the Apollo's return, Sutton briefly reopened the theater for several events during its renovation.[245] These included the AUDELCO awards in November 1983,[246][247] an Amateur Night that December,[248][249] and a revue in June 1984.[250][251] Sutton estimated that it cost $72,000 just to operate the theater once a month.[249] At the end of 1984, the State Mortgage Agency agreed to insure three-fourths of a $2.9 million mortgage that the Manufacturers Hanover Corporation had placed on the theater;[252][253] that bank had provided $6 million in total funding.[31][254] The first phase cost $5.5 million in total.[255] Local residents hoped that the Apollo's renovation would spur a revival of the neighboring stretch of 125th Street.[131]

Reopening and late 1980s edit

The first shows at the refurbished theater were hosted on May 22, 1985.[239][256] At the time of the rededication, the recording studio was not complete.[242] Sutton had intended to stage a wide variety of genres on different evenings:[30] for example, the Apollo hosted jazz and rock on Friday and Saturday nights, gospel on Sunday mornings, and Amateur Nights on Wednesday nights.[257] The revived theater also had a mixed-race dance company, which according to Sutton was intended to "send a message that everyone is welcome here".[240] By October 1985, the theater had closed temporarily to accommodate the construction of the recording studio;[258] the New York Amsterdam News reported two months later that the work would last until late 1986.[15] Showtime at the Apollo, a TV series showcasing Amateur Night performers, was launched in 1987.[43][259] The facilities were not all complete until mid-1988,[213][260] and the renovation ended up costing $20 million.[221][261][262]

Sutton's lenders allowed him to defer payments on the loans until 1992 while he tried to make a profit.[213] To raise money, Sutton sold recordings of shows on a pay-per-view basis and tried to create syndicated TV programs at the theater.[177][221] He also planned to earn money from Showtime at the Apollo, the Apollo Theater Records label, and licensing agreements,[213][260][262] but the theater remained unprofitable.[245] Advertising firm Saatchi & Saatchi signed a contract in 1989 for the exclusive use of the Apollo's broadcast studios,[48] but only one syndicated program was created through 1991.[177] The theater was also being used only 50 percent of the time, while the studio's uptime was 30 percent.[263] The Apollo was losing $2.4 million a year by 1990[264][265] and was predicted to lose $2.1 million over the next year.[46][245] Sutton had expected to earn $1.7 million from videos and pay $1.3 million in salaries in 1990, but he ended up earning $280,000 and paying $1.8 million.[177] The theater still faced competition from larger venues and was affected by perceptions of high crime.[177][221] The Apollo Theatre Investor Group was delinquent on payments to the UDC by early 1991.[266] Newsday reported in 1991 that the group had never kept a formal ledger, which may have worsened its financial issues.[261]

Sutton announced in April 1991 that he would shutter the theater on June 1 unless his lenders restructured the loans.[265] After Sutton made a payment of $36,000 later that month,[212] the Manufacturers Hanover Corporation agreed to waive further loan payments for six months.[264][267] Sutton considered transferring the theater's operation to a new nonprofit organization, which would cost him $6 million.[177] He asked entertainers such as Bill Cosby to perform at the Apollo to raise money,[221][263] A network TV special, benefit performances, and film screenings were organized to raise money, and numerous celebrities formed an organization called Save the Apollo Film Committee.[268] Three hundred churches with black congregations also donated to the Apollo,[269] and State Assembly member Geraldine L. Daniels asked the Recording Academy to consider hosting the Grammy Awards there.[270] By July 1991, the Apollo Theatre Investor Group was creating a nonprofit to take over the theater's operation.[271]

Apollo Theater Foundation operation edit

In September 1991, the New York State Urban Development Corporation (UDC) bought the Apollo and assigned its operation to the nonprofit Apollo Theater Foundation (ATF). As part of the deal, Manufacturers Hanover agreed to forgive $2.9 million in unpaid mortgage payments.[271][272][273] In addition, the state UDC agreed to restructure a $7.67 million grant,[273] although it was unwilling to forgive the entire debt, which totaled $11.4 million.[271] Performers such as Natalie Cole continued to host shows to raise money for the Apollo.[274] Sutton remained involved with the theater as an unpaid consultant, and Inner City provided $500,000 per year in radio advertising for the Apollo.[211] In addition, Inner City Theater Group licensed the Apollo's name and the rights to use the theater for five years.[275]

1990s edit

The ATF took over the theater in September 1992.[276][277] A plaque, celebrating the Apollo's listing on the National Register of Historic Places, was added to the theater the same month,[276][277] although the plaque was stolen in 1996.[278] Leon Denmark was appointed as the foundation's director.[279] The foundation sought to attract notable black performers and to reduce the theater's debts.[280] During its first operating season in 1993–1994, the ATF subsidized performances at the main auditorium and a smaller auditorium, and it launched the Community Arts Program to attract less experienced entertainers.[281] In addition, local TV station WPIX began broadcasting events from the Apollo.[211] The ATF also created a public museum and held events to pay for maintenance.[279] The revitalization of the Apollo Theater led to increased pedestrian traffic along West 125th Street,[282] while the theater itself had 12 events per month, attracting 17,000 guests.[283]

Grace Blake became the ATF's director in 1996.[279] The next year, the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation allocated funding for a gift shop next to the theater.[284] The Apollo was mostly empty by 1998, except on Amateur Nights, and it was physically deteriorating.[51][47] The only other major show at the theater was Showtime at the Apollo, and the Apollo was rented out for other events for the rest of the time.[178] Many black performers shunned the theater because of its small size and because larger venues were no longer segregated.[47] The ATF began raising $30 million for the theater in the late 1990s,[178][47] but the city and state governments refused to issue $750,000 in grants unless the foundation could provide financial statements.[47][285] At the time, there was a dispute over how much Inner City owed the ATF for the use of the Apollo's name.[275][286]

In 1998, the Attorney General of New York's office began investigating whether Inner City was underpaying ATF.[287][288] Then–attorney general Dennis Vacco accused the foundation's board of directors of mismanagement and sued the six black members of the 10-member board, including chairman Charles Rangel.[289][290] Vacco also unsuccessfully requested that a judge place the theater into receivership.[291][292] Rangel and Sutton denied Vacco's accusations,[51] and Vacco's successor Eliot Spitzer calculated that Inner City owed the ATF only $1 million.[293] By early 1999, Time Warner was considering taking over the Apollo's board,[294] and the state government was willing to drop the lawsuits if Time Warner took over the board and ousted Rangel as chairman.[295] That August, Time Warner donated $500,000 and expanded the ATF's board to 19 members;[296][297] the agreement would go into force when Rangel resigned as chairman.[298] Rangel initially refused to step down,[299][300] but Ossie Davis was ultimately appointed as the new chairman that September.[301] Spitzer dropped his office's lawsuits in late 1999,[302][303] and governor George Pataki approved a $750,000 grant for the Apollo.[304][305] Time Warner planned to host events such as TV specials, pay-per-view shows, and concerts there.[306]

2000s edit

 
Seen in 2006

By 2000, Time Warner planned to fully renovate the Apollo, but this was delayed by internal disputes over whether Time Warner should replace Blake as the ATF's director. The ATF's board hired Caples Jefferson Architects to design the renovation, and the New York Landmarks Conservancy created a report on the theater's condition.[293] Time Warner executive Derek Q. Johnson was appointed as the ATF's president in early 2001,[307][308] when annual patronage totaled 115,000.[309] Plans for the renovation were announced that May, with a tentative budget of $6 million[310][311] or $6.5 million.[53][312] The ATF also wished to lease the neighboring Victoria Theater for 99 years and expand into the Victoria,[312][313] although this was expected to inflate the cost of the renovation to almost $200 million.[312][314] The Coca-Cola Company signed a ten-year sponsorship agreement with the ATF that August,[315] and the Dance Theatre of Harlem also partnered with the Apollo that year.[316] Between 2001 and 2003, the theater's annual budget increased from $3 million to $10 million,[317] and the theater began to host events such as musicals, galas, and fundraisers.[318][23]

The first phase of renovation involved restoration of the facade and marquee,[319] which was underway by 2002 and was expected to cost $12 million.[320] That July, the ATF announced that it planned to close the theater for eight months.[318][319] Davis Brody Bond and Beyer Blinder Belle were hired as restoration architects, while local firms Bordy-Lawson Associates and Jack Travis Architect designed other parts of the renovation.[318] Johnson resigned in September 2002 after the ATF's board canceled plans to lease the Victoria and approved a smaller renovation project costing $53–54 million.[317][320] Jonelle Procope was named as the Apollo's director in 2003.[317][321] The ATF was involved in another proposal to renovate the Victoria in the mid-2000s,[322] but this proposal was unsuccessful.[323] The ATF launched an annual spring benefit in 2005 to raise money.[324][325] The renovation of the facade was finished that December,[10][11] and the ATF installed wider seats in early 2006.[35][19] The first phase of the renovation also included replacing the stage and dressing rooms.[19] By then, the theater had 1.3 million annual visitors;[326] many tourists visited the theater just to tour it or learn its history, but the Apollo still hosted events and performances, and it remained an important gathering space for Harlem's residents.[327]

The ceilings, walls, and other interior decorations were to be restored in the second phase of renovations.[19] As part of the Apollo Rising Capital Campaign,[328] by the beginning of 2008, the ATF had raised $51.5 million for the project's first phase and was planning to raise another $44.5 million for the second phase. The lobby would be expanded by 4,000 square feet (370 m2), which would have required that the theater be closed for several months in 2009.[41][329][330] The work also entailed recladding the lobby, restoring the auditorium's decorations, and adding a walk of fame.[41][331] In addition, a multi-purpose space would have been established on the second floor.[41] The ATF delayed the interior renovation and paused its capital campaign in 2009.[309][332] Although the Apollo was receiving many grassroots donations, Procope had decided to focus on expanding the theater's programming;[332] it sold 400,000 tickets per year at the time.[309]

2010s edit

In the early 2010s, the Apollo was used primarily for TV shows, benefit parties, special events, and Amateur Nights.[129] These included the Dining with the Divas luncheon, which started in 2011,[333] as well as the Apollo Theater Spring Gala.[334] A walk of fame was dedicated outside the theater in May 2010, recognizing performers in the Apollo Legends Hall of Fame.[335][336] That year, the ATF decided to expand its board to 27 members.[337] By 2011, the ATF was looking to expand into the site of the neighboring Showman's Cafe club, which had been vacant for 35 years, and was looking to raise $12 million for the project.[338] The foundation revamped the Amateur Nights website, placed advertisements in the subway system, developed a mobile app for Amateur Nights, and invited a more diverse slate of performers.[339][340] The ATF launched the 21st Century Apollo Campaign in 2014, seeking to raise $20 million; at the time, it had raised $10 million.[341][342] Three-fourths of this amount was to be used to expand programming, $4 million would be raised for a reserve fund, and $1 million would be raised for smaller improvements.[343]

By the mid-2010s, the ATF's finances had stabilized, with an annual operating budget of $13.2 million, and the organization had 30 trustees, six more than in 2009. A growing number of tourists were visiting the Apollo as well; for instance, Amateur Nights had attracted 60,000 viewers in 2013, of which nearly half were tourists.[343] The ATF recorded surpluses in its budget for several consecutive years in the 2010s.[344] The foundation announced in 2018 that it would build two auditoriums, one with 199 seats and another with 99 seats, on the third and fourth stories of the Victoria Theater.[345][344] The new stages, the first major expansion of the Apollo since 1934, would host works by rising artists and would also allow the ATF to produce a wider variety of content.[344]

2020s expansion edit

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City, the Apollo Theater was temporarily closed in March 2020[346][347] and did not reopen until August 2021.[348][349] The ATF announced in late 2021 that they would open the auditoriums in the Victoria Theater the next year.[350] The expansion into the Victoria Theater, which also included office space operated by the ATF, occurred amid increased interest in tourism in Harlem.[351] ATF officials announced in October 2022 that they would renovate the original theater in early 2024, which would require that the main auditorium be closed for six months. The project included a restoration of the facade; expansion of the lobby; and upgrades to the seating, lighting, sound systems, restrooms, and soundstage.[352][353] The theater had raised $63 million for its capital campaign[352][354] and was planned to be renamed the Apollo Performing Arts Center when the renovations were completed.[355]

Procope announced in late 2022 that she would step down as the Apollo's director the following June.[354][356] The 99-seat performance space in the Apollo Victoria Theater was renamed after Procope in early 2023.[357][358] That June, Michelle Ebanks was appointed as the Apollo's director.[26][359]

Programming and governance edit

The Apollo Theater Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization established in 1991,[272][273] controls the theater. As of 2023, Jonelle Procope is listed as the president and CEO of the Apollo Theater Foundation.[360][361] For the fiscal year that ended in June 2023, the organization recorded $4,507,683 in revenue and $9,935,823 in expenses.[360] The ATF hosts programs such as Amateur Night, as well as events like concerts.[281]

The theater's audience was often mixed: in the 1940s it was estimated that during the week about 40% of the audience was white, which would go up to 75% for weekend shows.[114] Some performers such as Elvis Presley, Mick Jagger, and the Beatles' members sat in the audience.[131] Bill Clinton visited the Apollo in 2005, after the end of his presidency,[33] while Jamaican prime minister P. J. Patterson was the first Caribbean head of state to visit the theater in 2002.[362]

Amateur Night at the Apollo edit

"Amateur Night" redirects here. For the 2016 film, see Amateur Night (film).
 
Marquee for Amateur Night at the Apollo

Amateur Night was first hosted in 1934[281][363] or 1935[32][242] and has been hosted nearly continuously since then, except from the 1970s to 1985.[23][364] Schiffman had introduced an amateur night at the Lafayette Theater, where Ralph Cooper had hosted Harlem Amateur Hour;[34] Cooper hosted the event at the Apollo for fifty years.[365][366] At the Apollo, Amateur Nights were held every Wednesday evening[17][363] and broadcast on the radio over WMCA and eleven affiliate stations.[114][367] The shows attracted audiences of all races.[368] Until the 1990s, Amateur Nights often ran for up to four hours and hosted as many as 30 performers. After the ATF took over the Apollo, it shortened Amateur Nights to about 12 performers per night.[363] A mobile app for Amateur Nights was launched in 2011,[340] and auditions were hosted virtually for the first time in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic.[369][370] Amateur Nights performances were showcased in the TV series Showtime at the Apollo, which ran from 1987 to 2008 and was relaunched in 2018.[371][372]

Traditionally, many contestants would rub a stump on the stage for good luck;[129][373] this stump, known as the Tree of Hope, was originally planted in the median of Seventh Avenue in Harlem.[374][309] A winner and three runners-up are selected after each show.[32][242][363] First-place winners were given money and invited to return to the Apollo;[242] the contests have sometimes ended in a tie.[375][376] Early winners of Amateur Nights were invited to perform at the Apollo the following week;[37] by the late 20th century, winners were invited to participate in monthly Show Off shows and annual Top Dog competitions.[363][368][377]

The "executioner", holding a broom, would sweep Amateur Night performers off the stage if they were performing poorly.[378] The executioner might also use other objects, such as a chair, balls, gavels, or weapon props.[339] Vaudeville tap dancer "Sandman" Sims played the role from the 1950s to 2000,[114] while C. P. Lacey also served as executioner for over 20 years starting in the 1980s.[339] The performer might also be chased offstage with a cap pistol, accompanied by the sound of a siren.[114][367] According to Showtime at the Apollo presenter Steve Harvey, some musicians were informally off limits, and contestants were booed off the stage if they missed a single note while performing these musicians' songs.[373] Luther Vandross was booed off stage four times before he won,[47][363][37] and James Brown was also unsuccessful in his first performance in 1952.[309]

Amateur Night performers came from across the U.S.[367] The vast majority of Amateur Nights performers have historically been young black performers, although there have also been older or white performers.[367][363] The Amateur Nights events helped popularize young or obscure artists.[367] Winners have included Pearl Bailey,[368][37] Thelma Carpenter,[379] Ella Fitzgerald,[199][380] The Jackson 5,[381] Sarah Vaughan,[37][382] Frankie Lymon, King Curtis, Wilson Pickett, Ruth Brown, Gladys Knight, Smokey Robinson,[37] The Ronettes, The Isley Brothers, Stephanie Mills,[368] Leslie Uggams, The Teenagers,[32][368] Sammy Davis Jr., Billie Holiday, and Dionne Warwick.[363] One author wrote in 2010 that "if there had been no Apollo Theater, many of these stars would never have been given their first chance."[37]

Apollo Legends Hall of Fame edit

The Apollo Legends Hall of Fame was created in 1985.[131][241] The Hall of Fame initially consisted of the names of 25 performers who debuted at the Apollo before 1955,[383] as well as memorabilia representing the theater's history.[131] Every year thereafter, up to ten people have been inducted into the Hall of Fame. Nominees for the Hall of Fame are required to have either performed at the Apollo or have created a show or other artistic work inspired by those who performed at the Apollo.[241] Some of the Hall of Fame's inductees are honored in the Walk of Fame, created in 2010. The walk consists of bronze plaques inset into the sidewalk.[335][336]

Commissioned work and educational programs edit

The theater's educational programs over the years have included lectures, such as a 1974 lecture by blues musician B.B. King.[384] The ATF formed a partnership with the Verizon Foundation in 2007 to teach local students about the theater's history,[385] and it began hosting the Master Class Series for performers in 2012.[386] Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the ATF curated numerous education programs that taught 20,000 children annually.[354] In late 2022, the ATF created the Apollo Apprenticeship program, which provides internships in event management, technical production, technical direction, management, and project creation.[387]

In 2010, playwright Keith Josef Adkins launched New Black Fest at the Apollo,[388] an annual event that showcases theatrical works by black playwrights.[389] The ATF launched the Apollo New Works program in 2020 after receiving $3 million in grants from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and Ford Foundation.[390] Apollo New Works is intended to showcase musical, theatrical, or dance performances by black artists; a set of artists-in-residence is selected every year.[390][391] The ATF and the United Talent Agency signed an agreement in 2021 to allow the UTA to promote films, TV shows, and other shows produced at the Apollo.[372][392] As of 2023, the Apollo presents both remote and in-person workshops and programs to over 20,000 people per year.[393]

In partnership with the Columbia Center for Oral History Research, in 2008, the ATF assembled an archive of historical documents, photographs, and other media and launched an oral history project.[394][395] Dozens of performers, including Smokey Robinson, Leslie Uggams, and Fred Wesley, gave interviews for the project.[394] The archive includes a 100-foot-long (30 m) plywood wall that thousands of mourners signed after Michael Jackson's death.[396]

Notable performances and performers edit

Music edit

Among the earliest acts to play the Apollo were blues performers Bessie Smith[117] and Lead Belly Ledbetter.[117][397] During the theater's first decade, numerous prominent jazz and big band musicians played at the Apollo. Most of them were black, such as Count Basie, Cab Calloway, Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Earl Hines, Erskine Hawkins, Andy Kirk, Jimmie Lunceford, and Fats Waller, but there were also some white performers such as Charlie Barnet, Louis Prima, and Harry James.[128] In the 1940s, the Apollo attracted big band performers such as Buddy Johnson,[398] Lionel Hampton,[399] and Cootie Williams,[400] and it hosted other performers like Dinah Washington and Sammy Davis Jr.[401][402] Other jazz acts included Sarah Vaughan, Billie Holiday, Nat King Cole, Art Blakey, Horace Silver,[114][402] Cannonball Adderley, Betty Carter, Ornette Coleman, Dizzy Gillespie, Louis Jordan, Max Roach,[117][403] John Coltrane, Miles Davis, and Thelonious Monk.[401][403] White jazz musicians like Dave Brubeck, Maynard Ferguson, Stan Getz, and Buddy Rich also sometimes performed at the Apollo,[404] as did Latin American big band musicians like Mario Bauzá, Juan Tizol, and Ralph Escudero.[405]

The early 1950s were marked by performances from such musicians as Little Esther,[406] Josephine Baker,[407] Anita O'Day,[408] and B.B. King.[409] In the mid-1950s, the theater started hosting mambo performances[162] after Machito's Afro-Cubans performed at the Apollo 13 times in 13 years.[410] The theater's first gospel acts were the Five Blind Boys of Mississippi, the Pilgrim Travelers, and Alex Bradford in 1955,[164][411] while other gospel musicians at the Apollo included Lou Rawls,[184] Clara Ward,[412] The Dixie Hummingbirds, Shirley Caesar,[401] the Staple Singers, Mahalia Jackson, The Clark Sisters, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, and Sam Cooke with the Soul Stirrers.[114] The theater also hosted rock and roll performers like the Billy Williams Quartet,[413] Tommy Smalls,[414] Alan Freed,[415] The Four Aces, Bobby Darin, Jerry Lee Lewis, Jimmy Cavallo, and Buddy Holly.[416] Funk performer James Brown frequented the Apollo in the 1960s,[417] playing nearly 300 nights annually.[418] Soul performers such as Otis Redding, Aretha Franklin, Wilson Pickett, Joe Tex, and Sam & Dave also appeared at the theater in the 1960s.[401] Numerous DJs also headed shows in the Apollo,[170] such as Fred Barr, Frankie Crocker, Jocko Henderson, Symphony Sid,[419] Gary Byrd, Don Cornelius, Vy Higginsen, and Eddie O'Jay.[117]

Bands such as Parliament-Funkadelic, T-Connection, Sister Sledge, and War performed at the Apollo when it briefly reopened in the late 1970s.[401] The theater seldom hosted Latin music after it opened, except for special occasions such as a 1983 tribute to Machito.[420] After the Apollo was renovated in the 1980s, it hosted such diverse acts as the New York Philharmonic,[421] rock and soul band Hall & Oates,[422] and pop musician Prince.[423] During the 2000s, the Apollo also attempted to launch a Latin music series[420][424] and hosted performers such as the band Gorillaz.[425] Additionally, the Apollo partnered with Opera Philadelphia to create several operas based on black culture.[426] Several rappers have performed at the Apollo in the late 20th and the 21st centuries, including Ice Cube,[427] Drake,[428] and Lil Wayne.[429] The Apollo's musical offerings have also included competitions, such as an R&B contest in the 1960s[430] and a gospel competition in the 2010s.[431]

Concerts edit

Some of the theater's concerts have attracted particular notice. For instance, Aretha Franklin played to sold-out crowds in 1971,[432][433] and Bob Marley and The Wailers performed there for their Survival Tour in 1979.[434] Pop star Michael Jackson played a free concert at the Apollo in 2002, raising $2.5 million for the U.S. Democratic Party;[435] this was his last ever performance at the Apollo.[432]

The theater has hosted numerous benefit concerts throughout its history. These included a fundraiser for the Scottsboro Boys in 1937,[397] a concert for Attica Prison riot victims' families in 1971,[436] as well as a gospel concert that Shirley Caesar and The Clark Sisters performed for the United Negro College Fund in 1986.[437] Starting in 1993, the theater also hosted concerts to raise money for its Hall of Fame.[438][439]

Dance edit

The theater also featured tap dancers such as the Berry Brothers, Nicholas Brothers, Buck and Bubbles, and Bojangles Robinson.[401][402] The theater hosted dancers such as Bunny Briggs and Babe Lawrence during the mid-20th century,[401] as well as Cholly Atkins, Bill Bailey, Honi Coles, The Four Step Brothers, and Tip, Tap and Toe.[402][440] Other dancers appearing at the Apollo have included Carmen De Lavallade and Geoffrey Holder.[114] The theater hosted the Les Ballets Africains, the national dance company of Guinea, for several years starting in 1970.[441] Dancing continued to feature at the Apollo in later years, such as in 1990 when the Apollo held a tap-dancing festival.[442] Starting in 2011, the Ballet Hispanico performed at the Apollo regularly.[443]

Revues and legitimate theatre edit

The Apollo has hosted numerous revues and legitimate theatrical productions. These included a popular revue with white and black performers during the 1930s;[444] a pageant honoring black soldiers during World War II;[445][446] and separate revues led by boxer Ray Robinson,[447] comedian Timmie Rogers,[448] and actress Pearl Bailey.[449] The Apollo's first musical comedy, Tan Manhattan, was staged in 1941.[151][152] The Apollo also hosted plays such as Anna Lucasta (1949),[158][159] The Respectful Prostitute (1950),[450] and The Detective Story (1951).[451] The theater started staging R&B revues in 1955,[452] with each bill featuring up to a dozen performers.[401] The Jewel Box Revue, a show featuring female impersonators,[432] was first presented at the Apollo in 1959[453] and was staged several times through at least the 1970s.[454] The Motortown Revue was staged at the theater in 1962,[455] featuring artists such as Smokey Robinson, the Supremes, the Temptations, and Stevie Wonder.[432] Other revues in the 1960s and 1970s included the musical drama Listen My Brother,[456] and an all-black production of the drama Jazztime.[457]

Harlem Song, a revue about Harlem's history, opened at the Apollo in 2002, becoming the Apollo's first "open-ended" show with no definite end date.[458][459] The theater has also hosted other plays, musicals, and revues in the 21st century, such as The Jackie Wilson Story in 2003[460] and Apollo Club Harlem in 2013,[461] as well as James Brown: Get on the Good Foot, also in 2013.[462] James Brown: Get on the Good Foot, was also the first show ever produced by the Apollo that went on tour internationally.[343]

Comedy edit

Comic acts have also appeared on the Apollo stage. In the theater's early years, these included Butterbeans and Susie, Moms Mabley, Dewey "Pigmeat" Markham, Redd Foxx, Dick Gregory, Richard Pryor, Nipsey Russell, Slappy White, Flip Wilson,[117][402] Godfrey Cambridge,[117] Timmie Rogers,[463] and Stump and Stumpy.[401] Among the theater's most popular comedy acts in the mid-20th century were Mabley, who satirized Jim Crow laws in her shows, and Rogers, who performed song-and-dance routines. Russell, White, and Foxx also focused on social commentary in their shows.[464] By the 1960s, the theater hosted younger comedians including George Kirby, Godfrey Cambridge, and Scoey Mitchell.[465] Bill Cosby made his debut at the theater in 1968,[465][466] and Pryor and Wilson also made frequent appearances in the 1960s.[467] Later on, Chris Rock taped a comedy show at the Apollo in 1999.[468]

Other events edit

Films edit

The Apollo has screened some films throughout its history. In the theater's heyday as a venue for black artists, it hosted Take My Life in 1943,[469] Sepia Cinderella in 1947.[470] Prince of Foxes in 1950,[471] and a musical film called Rockin' the Blues in 1956.[472] As part of a pilot program that launched in 1965, a local community group screened films to teach local teenagers about cinema.[473][474] During the same decade, the Apollo also hosted gospel films[475] and a summertime film festival with films such as What Ever Happened to Aunt Alice?.[476]

The Apollo hosted the documentary Save the Children in 1973[477] and first runs of the films Cleopatra Jones and the Casino of Gold in 1975 and The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings in 1976,[478] though the Apollo was not as successful in attracting other films at the time.[179] The documentary The Liberators: Fighting on Two Fronts in World War II was also screened at the theater in 1992.[479]

Recordings and tapings edit

Over the years, there have been recordings of numerous performances at the Apollo Theater. A Night at the Apollo, a track released in 1957, consisted of samples of performances at the theater.[480] James Brown recorded a show at the theater in 1962; this became the album Live at the Apollo,[481][482] which spent 66 weeks on the Billboard pop albums chart.[432] Brown went on to record the albums Live at the Apollo, Volume II (1967), Revolution of the Mind (1971),[481][483] and Live at the Apollo 1995, as well as the 1968 television special James Brown: Man to Man, at the theater.[484] Gospel recording artist Byron Cage played at the Apollo for his album Live at the Apollo: The Proclamation in 2007.[485] Bruno Mars recorded a concert titled Bruno Mars: 24K Magic Live at the Apollo in 2017,[486] and Guns N' Roses released "Live at the Apollo 2017" the same year after visiting the theater during their Not in This Lifetime... Tour.[487][488]

Some of the Apollo's shows have also been filmed for specific purposes. For example, in April 1976, Fred and Felicidad Dukes and Rafee Kamaal produced two 60-minute television specials with Group W Productions to help revitalize the theater.[489][490] A TV special called "Motown Returns to the Apollo" was taped in May 1985[491][492] to celebrate the Apollo's reopening.[493] NBC filmed the show A Hot Night in Harlem in 2004 to raise money for the theater's ongoing renovation.[494][495]

Non-performance events edit

When Schiffman operated the Apollo, he frequently rented the theater for meetings on topics concerning black Americans, including discussions of civil rights and employment.[173][496] Civil-rights leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr., A. Philip Randolph, and Bayard Rustin, as well as organizations like the NAACP and the Congress of Racial Equality, hosted speeches at the Apollo during the 1950s and 1960s.[497] Between 20 and 25 civil rights–related events took place at the Apollo each year between 1966 and 1971.[496] There have been some religious services, such as sermons by Jesse Jackson in 1969.[498] Fela Kuti's sermon and musical performance in 1991,[499] and Suzan Johnson Cook's worship series in 2008.[500]

 
The exterior of the Apollo as seen after Michael Jackson died

The Apollo has hosted memorial services, including those of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. in 1972,[501] James Brown in 2007, and Michael Jackson in 2009.[502][381] Similarly, the theater has hosted tribute shows such as a tribute to Bob Marley in 1984;[503] "Swing into Spring: A Harlem Tribute to Lionel Hampton" in 1996;[53] and a benefit honoring Ossie Davis in 2004.[504] Several awards ceremonies have been held at the Apollo, including the Caribbean Music Awards,[505] and the Rhythm and Blues Foundation's Pioneer Awards.[506]

The theater hosted a poetry recital in 1994,[507] as well as the first professional boxing match in the theater's history (a card pitting Lou Savarese against David Izonritei) in 1997.[508][509] The theater hosted a debate between Al Gore and Bill Bradley during the 2000 Democratic Party presidential primaries,[510] and then-U.S. senator Barack Obama campaigned at the theater during his 2008 presidential campaign.[33] Events in the 21st century have included a fashion show at the Apollo in 2004,[511] a commencement ceremony for Wagner Graduate School of Public Service graduates,[512] as well as an annual skipping rope competition called the Double Dutch Holiday Classic.[513]

Impact edit

The Los Angeles Sentinel wrote in 1982 that "the Apollo has had a significant impact on the careers of virtually every black performer who has played there",[117] and the New York Amsterdam News said the next year that the theater "led the way in the presentation of swing, bebop, rhythm and blues, modern jazz, commercially produced gospel, soul and funk".[514] The Wall Street Journal wrote in 2011: "You'd be hard-pressed to find a major African-American entertainer, singer, bandleader, dancer or comic who didn't appear there."[129] Record producer Quincy Jones said in 2004: "The influence of the Apollo reaches beyond the shores of this country-it is truly the premiere platform for world music."[495]

Works about the theater edit

The Apollo was showcased in a 90-minute episode of the David Frost Show in 1969.[515] The Apollo ... It Was Just Like Magic, a musical dramatization of the theater's history, was produced off-off-Broadway in 1981.[516] The theater's history was chronicled in the 1976 television special Apollo,[517] the 1980 NBC special Uptown,[518][519] and the 2019 documentary The Apollo.[520][521] Lee Daniels also considered directing a documentary called The Apollo Theater Film Project in the mid-2010s.[522][523]

Several books have been written about the theater. These include Showtime at the Apollo: The Story of Harlem's World Famous Theater by Ted Fox, published in 1983[514][524] and republished in 2003.[495] A graphic novel of the same name was published in 2019.[525] The theater was also the subject of "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing", a 2011 exhibit at the Museum of the City of New York,[502][129] as well as a traveling exhibition at the National Museum of American History in 2010.[309]

See also edit

References edit

Notes edit

  1. ^ Also spelled "Sydney"[28][29]

Citations edit

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November 14, 2023
apollo, theater, this, article, about, theater, harlem, york, city, theater, london, apollo, theatre, former, theater, times, square, york, city, apollo, theatre, 42nd, street, theater, glasgow, apollo, glasgow, other, uses, apollo, disambiguation, apollo, the. This article is about the theater in Harlem New York City For the theater in London see Apollo Theatre For the former theater in Times Square New York City see Apollo Theatre 42nd Street For the theater in Glasgow see The Apollo Glasgow For other uses see Apollo disambiguation and Apollo Theatre disambiguation The Apollo Theater formerly the Hurtig amp Seamon s New Theatre also Apollo Theatre or 125th Street Apollo Theatre is a multi use theater at 253 West 125th Street in the Harlem neighborhood of Upper Manhattan in New York City It is a popular venue for black American performers and is the home of the TV show Showtime at the Apollo The theater which has approximately 1 500 seats across three levels was designed by George Keister with elements of the neoclassical style The facade and interior of the theater are New York City designated landmarks and are listed on the National Register of Historic Places The nonprofit Apollo Theater Foundation ATF operates the theater as well as two smaller auditoriums at the Victoria Theater and a recording studio at the Apollo Apollo TheaterMarquee in 2006Location253 West 125th StreetManhattan New YorkPublic transitSubway 125th StreetOperatorApollo Theater FoundationTypeIndoor theaterSeating typefixedCapacity1 500 approximate Apollo TheaterU S National Register of Historic PlacesNew York City Landmark No 1299 1300Location253 West 125th StreetManhattan New YorkCoordinates40 48 36 N 73 57 00 W 40 81000 N 73 95000 W 40 81000 73 95000Built1913 1914 2 ArchitectGeorge Keister 2 Architectural styleClassical RevivalNRHP reference No 83004059 1 NYCL No 1299 1300Significant datesAdded to NRHPNovember 17 1983Designated NYCLJune 28 1983ConstructionBroke ground1913Opened1914Renovated1934 1978 1982 1988 2002 2005Expanded2024 planned The Apollo was developed by Jules Hurtig and Harry Seamon as a burlesque venue which opened in 1913 and originally served only white patrons In 1928 the Minsky brothers leased the theater for burlesque shows Sidney Cohen acquired the theater in 1934 and it became a venue for black performers Frank Schiffman and his family operated the theater from 1935 to 1976 A group of black businessmen briefly operated the theater from 1978 to 1979 and former Manhattan borough president Percy Sutton bought it at an auction in 1981 The Apollo reopened in 1985 following a major refurbishment that saw the construction of new recording studios In September 1991 the New York State Urban Development Corporation bought the Apollo and assigned its operation to the ATF Further renovations took place in the mid 2000s and an expansion of the theater was undertaken in the early 2020s Among the theater s longest running events is Amateur Night at the Apollo which takes place every Wednesday and involves audiences who judge the quality of novice performances Many of the theater s most famous performers are inducted in the Apollo Legends Hall of Fame and the theater has also commissioned various works and hosted educational programs Over the years the theater has hosted many musical dance theatrical and comedy acts with several performers often featured on the same bill In addition the theater has hosted other events including film screenings recordings and tapings as well as non performance events such as speeches debates and tributes Over its existence the Apollo has had a wide impact on African American culture and has been featured in multiple books and shows Contents 1 Site 2 Design 2 1 Facade 2 2 Interior 2 2 1 Lobby 2 2 2 Auditorium 2 2 3 Other spaces 3 History 3 1 Burlesque theater 3 1 1 Development and early years 3 1 2 Minsky years 3 2 Cohen and Schiffman operation 3 2 1 1930s and 1940s 3 2 2 1950s and 1960s 3 2 3 Decline and closure 3 3 Sutton operation 3 3 1 Initial renovation 3 3 2 Reopening and late 1980s 3 4 Apollo Theater Foundation operation 3 4 1 1990s 3 4 2 2000s 3 4 3 2010s 3 4 4 2020s expansion 4 Programming and governance 4 1 Amateur Night at the Apollo 4 2 Apollo Legends Hall of Fame 4 3 Commissioned work and educational programs 5 Notable performances and performers 5 1 Music 5 1 1 Concerts 5 2 Dance 5 3 Revues and legitimate theatre 5 4 Comedy 6 Other events 6 1 Films 6 2 Recordings and tapings 6 3 Non performance events 7 Impact 7 1 Works about the theater 8 See also 9 References 9 1 Notes 9 2 Citations 9 3 Sources 10 External linksSite editThe Apollo Theater is located at 253 West 125th Street between Adam Clayton Powell Jr Boulevard Seventh Avenue and Frederick Douglass Boulevard Eighth Avenue in the Harlem neighborhood of Upper Manhattan in New York City 3 4 The irregular land lot has frontage on both 125th Street to the south and 126th Street to the north The site covers 17 454 sq ft 1 621 5 m2 with a frontage of 50 ft 15 m on 125th Street and a depth of 200 ft 61 m 5 The theater is adjacent to the Victoria Theater to the west 4 5 Several MTA Regional Bus Operations routes stop outside the theater while the New York City Subway s 125th Street St Nicholas Avenue station served by the A B C and D trains is located one block to the west 6 Design editThe theater was designed by George Keister with elements of the neoclassical style 3 2 4 It was one of several theaters that Keister designed in that style along with the Belasco Theatre Bronx Opera House Selwyn Theater and Earl Carroll Theatre 7 Facade edit The theater s main facade is on the south toward 125th Street and is three stories high 8 The ground floor has been renovated several times and consists of a ticket office to the west and a storefront to the east 9 The modern design of the ground floor dates to a renovation completed in 2005 10 11 The eastern side of the ground floor contains a glass and steel storefront 10 with monitors installed in place of the original display cases 11 The modern day box office is a semicircular steel structure that protrudes outward 11 The second and third stories are made of white glazed terracotta which dates from the theater s opening in 1914 A cornice with dentils runs horizontally across the facade just below the second floor The second and third story windows are arranged vertically into four bays 8 The bays are separated by three fluted pilasters topped by capitals in the Ionic order and there is a paneled pilaster with Tuscan capitals outside each of the outermost bays The capitals of all five pilasters contain anthemia 9 Within each bay the second and third floors each contain a square window and are separated by spandrel panels with shields and fluting Above the third story windows are spandrels with Greek fret designs as well as a metal cornice with modillions 8 A steel marquee was added above the ground floor in the 1940s it stretched half the width of the facade and bore the name Apollo on its two side elevations 8 A modern marquee with LEDs was installed in 2005 and was intended to resemble the original marquee 11 The marquee displayed letters with the name of the entertainer who were performing that night Jack Schiffman the son of former theater owner Frank Schiffman recalled that the marquee also displayed various additional signs or movie posters 12 A vertical sign with the name Apollo was erected near the western end of the facade in the 1940s 8 The original vertical sign was replaced in 2005 with the current yellow and red blade sign 11 Interior edit The theater has an L shaped plan with a narrow lobby leading to the main entrance on 125th Street as well as the auditorium at the rear on 126th Street 13 Although the interior underwent several modifications in the mid 20th century many of the 1910s era decorations remained intact in 1983 14 The theater s original decorative features were preserved during the mid 1980s renovation 15 Lobby edit The main lobby is a long and narrow space some observers including Jack Schiffman have likened it to a bowling alley 16 17 The space was modified significantly in the 1930s and again in the 1960s 14 and the lobby was enlarged in the late 1970s 18 Following another renovation in 2006 the Tree of Hope a stump that performers rubbed for good luck was moved to the lobby 19 The lobby occupies the western half of the ground level frontage on 125th Street the eastern half of the frontage houses a store 20 The original main lobby had a group of murals 14 By the early 1970s 16 the lobby had been redecorated with a montage of notable entertainers who appeared at the Apollo 13 21 There was also a ticket office and box office on one wall of the lobby 14 22 The modern day lobby has two staircases which lead to the first and second balconies of the auditorium 17 22 The space is illuminated by four grand chandeliers 23 There is a gift shop near the entrance 24 As of 2023 update a cafe is planned to be built within the lobby it is expected to open in 2025 25 26 Auditorium edit nbsp The auditorium as seen from the stageThe auditorium is at the north end of the building and is rectangular in plan with curved walls a domed ceiling and two balcony levels over the orchestra level 14 27 The Apollo Theater was cited as having 2 000 seats in the 1930s 28 29 and 1 700 seats in the 1970s 30 it was described in 1985 as having 1 500 30 31 or 1 550 seats 32 By the early 2010s the theater had 1 536 seats 33 The seats were refurbished in the 1980s 34 and again in 2006 when wide cranberry colored seats were installed The bottom of each row of seats is illuminated by aisle lighting In addition there is a seating area for disabled patrons 35 On each level the seats are divided by two central aisles 36 The rear western end of the orchestra contains a standing rail with scagliola 14 Scagliola decorations composed of scrolls supporting a triangular pediment are also placed around the doorways on the rear wall of the orchestra Fluted columns on the orchestra level support the first balcony the lower parts of the columns are devoid of ornamentation The orchestra is raked sloping down toward an orchestra pit in front of the stage The front walls of the auditorium flank a flat proscenium opening in the center 36 The balconies are also raked and contain similar scagliola decorations to the orchestra level The balconies fronts have brass handrails and are decorated with plasterwork motifs such as rope moldings garlands Greek fret motifs wreaths and shields 36 At the first balcony there are also square columns supporting the second balcony 31 36 The second balcony was described by author James V Hatch as the bird s nest since audiences in the second balcony could see the entire theater 37 On either side of the proscenium are two boxes each on the first and second balcony levels which are accessed by their own staircases 36 The boxes have brass railings and are housed within round arched openings The spandrels above the arches contain classical motifs like urns garlands wreaths medallions and scrolls On the first balcony level the boxes have Greek fret motifs on their soffits as well as foliate pendants and brackets but lack much of their original ornamentation The second balcony boxes retain their original classical decorations 14 The proscenium arch has a surround with colonnettes on either side of the arch and a band running atop it The colonnettes are topped by small capitals while the band has leaf motifs and fluting An entablature runs above the arch and is supported by brackets on either end The surround and entablature both contain plaster decorations such as urns foliate motifs circles and horses in rhombuses 14 Above the boxes and the proscenium arch is a cornice with large dentils as well as a plaster frieze decorated with foliate motifs The ceiling is slightly coved at its edge 14 At the center of the ceiling is a semicircular dome with a medallion surrounded by a molding of cornucopia 14 31 The theater was mechanically advanced for its time with a ventilation system to remove cigarette smoke as well as electric lights 38 The ventilation system was rebuilt when the theater was renovated in the 1980s and lighting trusses were added at that time 34 Other spaces edit In addition to the main auditorium the ground floor had a store to the east of the lobby There originally was a cafe and cabaret in the basement 20 which served as a rehearsal space and was converted into a staff recreation room in the 1940s 39 In addition there were a ladies parlor and men s smoking room which were enlarged in the 1940s 39 40 The second story originally had a dining room while the third story had meeting rooms and lofts By the 1980s the second and third floors were being used as storage space and offices with small rooms on both stories 20 The third floor also has a sound stage to accommodate this use the windows on that story were covered up in 1985 41 When the Apollo Theater was developed the dressing rooms were placed in a separate annex with showers and baths 38 The dressing rooms are simple in design 21 There is a wall of signatures in the dressing room The Apollo s historian Billy Mitchell said in 2012 Anyone who s been to or performed at the Apollo in the last 20 years has their name on the wall from Pee wee Herman to the president of the United States 42 A production studio for TV broadcasts and video productions was constructed on top of an adjacent wing during the 1980s 43 The studio is variously cited as covering 3 500 square feet 330 m2 44 3 800 square feet 350 m2 30 43 or 4 000 square feet 370 m2 45 46 It could record 24 tracks at once 31 47 and was equipped with 96 microphone lines connecting with the auditorium 44 The studio has been used by media companies such as advertising firm Saatchi amp Saatchi 48 and Black Entertainment Television 49 History editIn the late 19th century Harlem was developed as a suburb of New York City and was inhabited largely by upper middle class whites 50 Black residents began moving to Harlem in the beginning of the 20th century with the development of row houses apartments and the city s first subway line 50 51 By the early 20th century the neighborhood had several vaudeville burlesque film and legitimate theaters centered around 125th Street and Seventh Avenue 52 which led to the corridor being known as Harlem s 42nd Street 53 Among the operators of these early theaters were theatrical producers Jules Hurtig and Harry Seamon who leased the Harlem Music Hall at 209 West 125th Street in 1897 54 55 Hurtig and Seamon produced several shows starring black superstars Bert Williams and George Walker between 1898 and 1905 56 The Music Hall was converted to burlesque c 1911 55 Burlesque theater edit Development and early years edit C J Stumpf amp H J Langhoff of Milwaukee Wisconsin 55 57 acquired land on 125th and 126th Street from the Cromwell estate and Lit family around 1911 or 1912 58 They announced plans in June 1912 for a three story commercial structure at 253 to 259 West 125th Street with a 2 500 seat burlesque theater in the rear at 240 to 260 West 126th Street 58 59 Hurtig and Seamon who had been leasing the nearby Harlem Music Hall wanted a larger venue to accommodate the burlesque productions of the Columbia Amusement Company which they had joined 38 and were set to lease the theater for 30 years for a total of 1 375 million the theater itself would cost 200 000 Work could not begin until the existing leases on the site expired the following May 58 59 Stumpf and Langhoff hired Keister to design the theater 57 while either Cramp amp Company 60 or the Security Construction Company was hired as the general contractor 38 One local real estate investor wrote that the theater was to be the most important new work for the immediate future on that block of 125th Street 61 A groundbreaking ceremony occurred in January 1913 at which point it was known as Hurtig amp Seamon s New Burlesque Theater 38 Local real estate journal Harlem Magazine wrote The theatre when completed will add in no small degree to the appearance and prosperity of this locality 55 The theater hosted its first Columbia show on Dec 17 1913 62 Hurtig amp Seamon initially employed female ushers described by Variety magazine as all good looking and polite girls 63 and banned black patrons 53 64 65 Initially the theater also hosted movies during the summer when burlesque was on hiatus 66 as well as other events such as benefits and fundraisers 67 A stock burlesque company composed of numerous Broadway performers was established at the theater in 1917 68 Beginning in 1920 Hurtig amp Seamon s New Theatre faced competition from the nearby Mount Morris Theatre on 116th Street which featured shows on the American wheel a lower tier Columbia subsidiary 69 The American wheel was dissolved in 1922 and the New Theatre retained its monopoly on Columbia burlesque in Upper Manhattan 70 The growth of Harlem s black population forced many theater owners to begin admitting black patrons in the 1920s 71 though Jamaican American author Joel Augustus Rogers claimed that the New Theatre s black patrons were consistently given inferior seats 72 The New Theatre began sponsoring shows with mixed race casts in the middle of that decade 73 and Hurtig amp Seamon also planned to produce shows with all black casts 74 The theater building was sold in August 1925 to the Benenson Realty Company though Hurtig amp Seamon continued to operate the theater 75 76 That year the theater s orchestra was expanded 77 and a runway was introduced 78 As Columbia burlesque withered in 1926 Hurtig amp Seamon elected to present stock burlesque in 1927 79 then later that year switched allegiance to the Mutual Burlesque Association 78 Minsky years edit nbsp In 1928 Hurtig and Seamon s Apollo Theater was a Minsky burlesque house In May 1928 Hurtig amp Seamon leased their New Theater to the Minsky brothers and their partner Joseph Weinstock 80 81 82 who had been staging burlesque shows at a small theater above the Harlem Opera House named the Apollo 81 83 84 85 At the same time Hurtig and Seamon s former space the Harlem Music Hall was leased for one year by Henry Drake and Ethel Walker black performers and show producers Renamed the Drake and Walker Theater it was the first in the city controlled by black interests 86 Hurtig and Seamon along with I H Herk retained an interest in the New Theater As part of the agreement the New Theater was renamed Hurtig amp Seamon s Apollo 87 84 and the Harlem Opera House and the former Apollo within it were restricted from staging burlesque vaudeville musical comedy or tab shows as long as Hurtig amp Seamon s Apollo staged burlesque In exchange the latter theater could not show movies 80 88 89 Hurtig amp Seamon s Apollo reopened in August 1928 after the Minskys renovated the lobby repainted the auditorium and extended the runway at orchestra level 87 90 Variety magazine reported that Walter Reade had leased the new Apollo for 16 1 2 years 91 but Billy Minsky bought out Hurtig and Seamon s lease the next month and continued to operate the theater 92 Initially the theater still presented shows from the Mutual Circuit which Herk headed as part of an agreement with Hurtig and Seamon who also own franchises with Mutual 93 Performers typically mingled with audience members and performed for longer durations than under Hurtig and Seamon s tenure 80 Minsky and Herk split in mid 1929 94 but the theater continued to feature a mixture of stock shows and Mutual shows 95 Mutual began a decline precipitated by the Depression and Billy Minsky announced in March 1930 that he would stop presenting Mutual shows 96 97 The following month he started presenting stock shows with both black and white casts 98 Bessie Smith was among the earliest black entertainers to perform at the Apollo 80 Burlesque at the Apollo Theater began to decline in 1930 as Minsky concentrated on his new flagship theater off Times Square the Republic 80 The Minskys moved many of their shows from the Irving Place Theatre and Minsky s Brooklyn theater to the Apollo in 1931 99 For the 1931 1932 season the theater hosted Columbia burlesque 100 101 with two shows per day 102 After Billy Minsky died in 1932 his younger brother Herbert took over the theater s operation 103 That same year Herk Herbert Minsky and Weinstock agreed to showcase Columbia burlesque at the Apollo 104 105 Attendance decreased after the Apollo started presenting shows without nudity or stripteases 106 The theater briefly hosted performances from the Empire Wheel in late 1932 107 and the Apollo began to stage black vaudeville that year 34 The Apollo s operators also started serving alcoholic beverages in April 1933 108 After failing to renew its burlesque license the Apollo closed temporarily that May 109 110 and remained dark for seven months 111 112 The theater began hosting burlesque again in December 1933 with two midday shows in addition to the usual evening show 112 By then however newly elected mayor Fiorello La Guardia had begun to crack down on burlesque theaters citywide 113 Cohen and Schiffman operation edit Sidney Cohen a who owned other theaters in the area 114 took over the theater in January 1934 115 116 At the time many of Harlem s most popular black theaters were clustered around 125th Street 117 The theater was converted into a performance venue for black entertainers with an all black staff 118 119 Most vestiges of the former burlesque shows were quickly removed 118 Unlike the previous burlesque shows which had been controversial because they verged on nudity the new programming would be family friendly 120 The theater was renamed the 125th Street Apollo Theatre 121 and reopened on January 26 1934 catering to the black community of Harlem 64 122 Cohen initially employed Clarence Robinson as the Apollo Theatre s producer 115 118 121 and Morris Sussman as the manager 120 121 He also hired talent scout John Hammond to book his shows 114 Though advertised as a resort for the better people the theater quickly attracted working class unemployed and young audiences 123 The Apollo was frequented by black performers who during the early 20th century were not allowed to perform at many other venues 117 The theater was a prominent venue on the primarily black Chitlin Circuit 124 though many shows featured actors of different races 125 It featured a wide variety of musical performances including R amp B jazz blues and gospel performances 126 Early shows consisted of revues but this was quickly changed to a loosely connected format of dance comedy music and novelty acts 127 The performances resembled vaudeville shows 114 128 with six to eight acts sharing a bill 129 130 Up to seven comedians or musicians and eight singing groups would perform for a week doing as many as seven shows per day Novice performers often started off as the opening act and aspired to become the headliner of the show 131 Because the Apollo did not have wealthy backers in contrast to venues such as Carnegie Hall and the Metropolitan Opera House its income depended heavily on the success or failure of each week s show As a cost cutting measure the Apollo paid performers low salaries to which most up and coming performers readily agreed 132 The Apollo s conversion had occurred at the end of the Harlem Renaissance 65 It was held in such high regard by local black residents that according to Schiffman s son Robert it was not damaged during the Harlem riots of 1935 1943 or 1964 131 133 Nonetheless it was a source of pride for Harlem s black community and was often used as a gathering place during demonstrations 133 131 Although the Schiffmans were white Robert recalled that local residents frequently referred to the Apollo as our theater never the white man s theater or Frank Schiffman s theater 134 Over the years the format of the shows was changed 135 1930s and 1940s edit The first major performer at the Apollo jazz singer and Broadway star Adelaide Hall appeared at the Apollo in February 1934 Hall s limited engagement show was highly praised by the press which helped establish the Apollo s reputation 64 Sussman hosted competitions for amateur performers on Wednesday nights as well as kiddie hours on Sundays 136 The Apollo Theatre had vigorous competition from other venues namely Leo Brecher s Harlem Opera House and Frank Schiffman s Lafayette 120 137 138 The former had been a popular vaudeville venue while the latter had previously been the neighborhood s predominant black theater 138 Cohen took out advertisements and broadcast shows on local radio stations prompting equally vigorous promotion campaigns from Schiffman and Brecher 120 Cohen Schiffman and Brecher agreed to a truce in May 1935 120 139 and Cohen leased the theater the next month to the Harlem Opera House s operator Duane Theater Corporation 28 29 Ralph Cooper was hired as the emcee the same year 140 After Cohen died in late 1935 the Opera House became a movie theater while the Apollo continued to present stage shows 114 141 142 The Apollo was rebranded as The Only Stage Show in Harlem 141 Initially the Apollo attracted blues and ragtime performers 117 as well as comedians 125 and big bands 125 143 Early shows were accompanied by a chorus line of 16 girls 115 most of whom were fair skinned 144 the chorus girls were no longer employed at the theater by the late 1930s 145 146 The New York Amsterdam News described the Apollo in 1939 as the only theatre in the country where Negro performers are predominantly featured at a time when many other venues still did not allow black performers 147 The Apollo temporarily closed in mid 1940 for upgrades 148 149 reopening that September 150 The theater began showing musical comedies for the first time in February 1941 151 152 Jazz performances 126 and bebop at the Apollo were popular in the 1940s 143 and gospel was hosted sporadically 153 The Apollo appealed to mixed race audiences in the 1940s on Sundays as much as four fifths of the audience were white 154 During World War II the theater offered 35 free tickets to members of the U S armed forces and entertainers at the Apollo performed at the nearby Harlem Defense Recreation Center on Tuesday nights 155 Schiffman closed the theater temporarily for renovations in August 1945 The project cost 45 000 and entailed new sound systems a remodeled orchestra pit women s and men s lounges a staff recreation room and modifications to decorations 39 40 After World War II the theater occasionally staged a chorus line with six acts 135 By 1946 Schiffman had announced plans to widen the theater and add an air cooling system when construction materials became available 156 The theater was sold in 1949 to the Harlem Apollo Realty Corporation although Schiffman and Brecher continued to operate the Apollo 157 That year they began experimenting with staging Broadway class shows at the Apollo 158 159 Schiffman s sons Jack and Robert began working at the theater in the late 1940s and early 1950s 130 1950s and 1960s edit As the years progressed variety shows were presented less often 114 The Apollo started staging rock music concerts when that genre became popular 135 and the big bands gave way to R amp B performances 160 161 The theater also began hosting different musical genres such as mambo 162 and gospel 161 163 164 There were often two shows a day if a headliner was performing and it showed movies at other times 135 Additionally the theater was closed for upgrades for two weeks every August 165 a large CinemaScope screen was installed during one such closure in 1955 166 By the late 1950s Variety magazine criticized the theater for allowing some of its actors to carry on with assorted vulgarisms 167 The Apollo was one of the few remaining venues for black entertainers in Harlem during that time although other venues such as the Waldorf Astoria New York and Copacabana had started allowing black performers 168 Even so many popular black artists such as Eartha Kitt and Sammy Davis Jr regularly returned for the folks who can t make it downtown 169 The 1960s the venue s most successful decade 114 saw the rising popularity of R amp B at the Apollo 126 as well as mixed genre productions 170 The theater was renovated slightly in 1960 171 and new sound amplification equipment and lighting was added during August 1961 165 During the 1964 Harlem riots the Apollo temporarily screened movies exclusively due to decreased patronage 172 173 The lobby and auditorium were renovated in 1967 174 the project was conducted almost entirely by black workers and cost 50 000 175 176 Business began to decline after the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed allowing black entertainers to perform in nightclubs and hotels 51 177 178 The Apollo was smaller than similar venues the neighborhood s economy was in decline and the Apollo was not near other popular venues 178 179 Other issues included a perception of rising crime 133 134 and a lack of parking 133 The theater s production manager Charles Coles said in 1967 that white audiences avoided the Apollo because of the 1964 riots and the rise of race integrated venues 180 The Apollo continued to decline through the late 1960s and early 1970s 181 The Schiffman family was looking to sell the Apollo to black entrepreneurs in the 1960s having rejected several purchase offers from white theatrical operators 134 There was also growing support for grassroots performances at the theater 182 During that time the Apollo continued to host variety shows every night and was often sold out during weekends 180 many of these live acts were accompanied by films 129 183 184 Robert Schiffman took over the theater s management in 1971 131 The next year a group of investors led by New York Amsterdam News editor Clarence B Jones expressed interest in buying the theater 135 185 but the deal was canceled when interest rates increased sharply 186 As late as 1973 it had between 42 and 45 weeks of live shows annually 183 and the Apollo s headliners earned as much as 50 000 per week 135 The theater had pivoted away from staging comedy and drama and were instead mostly presenting recording groups Frank Schiffman recalled that the theater s audience at the time was predominantly black and largely consisted of local residents 184 Decline and closure edit nbsp The theater as seen from the westAlthough the Apollo did host some successful shows between 1970 and 1974 the theater s offerings dropped sharply afterward Herb Boyd wrote in 2009 that Apollo lovers had to resort to memories rather than performances 181 By the 1970s the Apollo was the only remaining black vaudeville theater in the U S 179 184 other such theaters had closed because they were attracting fewer entertainers and could not compete with large venues 179 The Apollo Theater was struggling financially by early 1975 forcing its owners to lay off over 100 staff members 187 The Apollo had been forced to cut back its schedule of live shows to 20 22 weeks per year less than half of the 45 50 weeks that the theater had presented in its peak 179 Management could not raise prices even by a few cents because that would drive away the local residents who frequented the theater 132 In addition the surrounding area was deserted at night the Apollo could not afford to pay performers at the significantly higher rates that they demanded and patrons preferred to watch headliners performances instead of multi act shows 188 To raise money Robert Schiffman wanted to show first runs of films featuring black actors but faced competition from other Manhattan theaters 179 189 The Apollo s managers began running for sale advertisements in several major papers in 1975 179 The area had also become dangerous 114 for example a young patron was killed at the theater later the same year 190 191 The Apollo was used exclusively for movies and gospel shows in the mid 1970s 192 and was closed in January 1976 186 The theater had faulty stage equipment and deteriorating facilities and many of the Apollo s onetime headliners refused to perform there More obscure acts did not draw large enough crowds to make a profit and the Apollo had closed by 1977 18 Robert Schiffman considered replacing the existing theater with a new 3 000 seat venue 133 and there were also calls to renovate the Apollo or to merge it with the Victoria Theater 193 During the Apollo s closure the already dilapidated seats and decorations continued to decay and burst water pipes destroyed the stage 186 Robert Schiffman sold the Apollo in early 1978 194 186 to a group of black businessmen 195 196 who became the first black owners of the theater 197 The new owners included Rich and Elmer T Morris 196 and Guy Fisher 198 The group spent 250 000 renovating the Apollo 18 195 which entailed replacing the sound system renovating backstage areas and furnishing the lobby 18 In addition the new owners hired David E McCarthy as the general manager 199 and added reserved seating 197 The theater reopened on May 6 1978 200 201 with a performance by percussionist Ralph MacDonald that was beset by technical issues 202 In the months after it reopened the Apollo hosted numerous acts and was moderately successful 18 The Internal Revenue Service raided the theater in November 1979 after finding that the new owners had failed to pay tens of thousands of dollars in taxes over the two preceding years 203 204 The theater s operators filed for bankruptcy in May 1981 205 206 after Elmer Morris s arrest on drug charges 207 Sutton operation edit Inner City Broadcasting a firm owned by Percy E Sutton agreed in late 1981 to buy the theater 208 209 he paid either 220 000 34 43 207 or 225 000 177 Inner City had beat out a competing bid from the Bible of Deliverance Evangelist Church 210 Sutton recalled that there were roaches dead rats swimming rats in the flooded basement 211 Inner City acquired an 81 percent stake in the theater s legal owner the Apollo Theatre Investor Group 212 213 while Sutton owned the remaining 19 percent of the group 213 According to Sutton the purchase price was the cheapest part of bringing the Apollo back since the theater needed extensive renovations 207 The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission LPC started to consider designating the Apollo Theater as a city landmark in early 1982 214 and it hosted hearings for the theater s landmark status during the middle of that year 215 216 That July state officials also proposed listing the theater on the National Register of Historic Places NRHP after nonprofit New York Landmarks Conservancy had conducted a report of the theater 217 The Apollo s facade and interior were designated as New York City landmarks in June 1983 218 219 The theater was added to the NRHP in November 1983 220 the NRHP listing became official in June 1984 220 45 Initial renovation edit nbsp The upper facade and marquee of the ApolloSutton initially intended to spend 5 7 million on renovating the Apollo 177 221 and he intended to host and broadcast live shows from the theater 208 222 The Apollo Entertainment TV Network was formed in mid 1982 to broadcast programs from the theater s studios 223 224 The Harlem Urban Development Corporation HUDC announced a 1 million grant for the theater in May 1982 225 226 The original reopening date of July 1982 was postponed due to the complexity of the project 227 and the state government expressed concerns that Sutton could not afford to pay for increasing renovation costs 228 That September the U S federal government gave a 1 5 million Urban Development Action Grant 229 230 to the city government which lent the money to the Apollo s operators 231 The city s Industrial Development Agency also issued 2 8 million in bonds to fund the construction of a recording studio 227 Percy Sutton and his brother Oliver wished to raise the rest of the 6 8 million cost by themselves 231 The Suttons announced in December 1982 that they would withdraw from the project after the New York State Mortgage Agency rejected the Suttons request for insurance assistance 232 233 234 Despite this mayor Ed Koch expressed optimism that the renovation would continue 235 The renovation was restarted in May 1983 after the state UDC agreed to give the theater 2 5 million 236 237 without this funding the Apollo Theatre Investor Group would have canceled the project entirely 238 Sutton transferred the theater building and underlying land to the New York state government as he wished to receive a 9 million state grant 177 He then leased the theater for 99 years 239 Sutton ultimately obtained 10 million from a consortium of lenders 221 240 The renovation experienced more delays and a construction management firm incurred nearly 800 000 in charges before work had even started 177 The renovated theater included a production studio for TV broadcasts and video productions 45 46 as well as a new hall of fame with memorabilia from the theater s history 131 241 Air conditioning and an elevator were added 15 242 and the theater also received new lights sound systems and dressing rooms and a restored interior 15 By late 1983 and early 1984 the Apollo was expected to open in late 1984 243 244 To advertise the Apollo s return Sutton briefly reopened the theater for several events during its renovation 245 These included the AUDELCO awards in November 1983 246 247 an Amateur Night that December 248 249 and a revue in June 1984 250 251 Sutton estimated that it cost 72 000 just to operate the theater once a month 249 At the end of 1984 the State Mortgage Agency agreed to insure three fourths of a 2 9 million mortgage that the Manufacturers Hanover Corporation had placed on the theater 252 253 that bank had provided 6 million in total funding 31 254 The first phase cost 5 5 million in total 255 Local residents hoped that the Apollo s renovation would spur a revival of the neighboring stretch of 125th Street 131 Reopening and late 1980s edit The first shows at the refurbished theater were hosted on May 22 1985 239 256 At the time of the rededication the recording studio was not complete 242 Sutton had intended to stage a wide variety of genres on different evenings 30 for example the Apollo hosted jazz and rock on Friday and Saturday nights gospel on Sunday mornings and Amateur Nights on Wednesday nights 257 The revived theater also had a mixed race dance company which according to Sutton was intended to send a message that everyone is welcome here 240 By October 1985 the theater had closed temporarily to accommodate the construction of the recording studio 258 the New York Amsterdam News reported two months later that the work would last until late 1986 15 Showtime at the Apollo a TV series showcasing Amateur Night performers was launched in 1987 43 259 The facilities were not all complete until mid 1988 213 260 and the renovation ended up costing 20 million 221 261 262 Sutton s lenders allowed him to defer payments on the loans until 1992 while he tried to make a profit 213 To raise money Sutton sold recordings of shows on a pay per view basis and tried to create syndicated TV programs at the theater 177 221 He also planned to earn money from Showtime at the Apollo the Apollo Theater Records label and licensing agreements 213 260 262 but the theater remained unprofitable 245 Advertising firm Saatchi amp Saatchi signed a contract in 1989 for the exclusive use of the Apollo s broadcast studios 48 but only one syndicated program was created through 1991 177 The theater was also being used only 50 percent of the time while the studio s uptime was 30 percent 263 The Apollo was losing 2 4 million a year by 1990 264 265 and was predicted to lose 2 1 million over the next year 46 245 Sutton had expected to earn 1 7 million from videos and pay 1 3 million in salaries in 1990 but he ended up earning 280 000 and paying 1 8 million 177 The theater still faced competition from larger venues and was affected by perceptions of high crime 177 221 The Apollo Theatre Investor Group was delinquent on payments to the UDC by early 1991 266 Newsday reported in 1991 that the group had never kept a formal ledger which may have worsened its financial issues 261 Sutton announced in April 1991 that he would shutter the theater on June 1 unless his lenders restructured the loans 265 After Sutton made a payment of 36 000 later that month 212 the Manufacturers Hanover Corporation agreed to waive further loan payments for six months 264 267 Sutton considered transferring the theater s operation to a new nonprofit organization which would cost him 6 million 177 He asked entertainers such as Bill Cosby to perform at the Apollo to raise money 221 263 A network TV special benefit performances and film screenings were organized to raise money and numerous celebrities formed an organization called Save the Apollo Film Committee 268 Three hundred churches with black congregations also donated to the Apollo 269 and State Assembly member Geraldine L Daniels asked the Recording Academy to consider hosting the Grammy Awards there 270 By July 1991 the Apollo Theatre Investor Group was creating a nonprofit to take over the theater s operation 271 Apollo Theater Foundation operation edit In September 1991 the New York State Urban Development Corporation UDC bought the Apollo and assigned its operation to the nonprofit Apollo Theater Foundation ATF As part of the deal Manufacturers Hanover agreed to forgive 2 9 million in unpaid mortgage payments 271 272 273 In addition the state UDC agreed to restructure a 7 67 million grant 273 although it was unwilling to forgive the entire debt which totaled 11 4 million 271 Performers such as Natalie Cole continued to host shows to raise money for the Apollo 274 Sutton remained involved with the theater as an unpaid consultant and Inner City provided 500 000 per year in radio advertising for the Apollo 211 In addition Inner City Theater Group licensed the Apollo s name and the rights to use the theater for five years 275 1990s edit The ATF took over the theater in September 1992 276 277 A plaque celebrating the Apollo s listing on the National Register of Historic Places was added to the theater the same month 276 277 although the plaque was stolen in 1996 278 Leon Denmark was appointed as the foundation s director 279 The foundation sought to attract notable black performers and to reduce the theater s debts 280 During its first operating season in 1993 1994 the ATF subsidized performances at the main auditorium and a smaller auditorium and it launched the Community Arts Program to attract less experienced entertainers 281 In addition local TV station WPIX began broadcasting events from the Apollo 211 The ATF also created a public museum and held events to pay for maintenance 279 The revitalization of the Apollo Theater led to increased pedestrian traffic along West 125th Street 282 while the theater itself had 12 events per month attracting 17 000 guests 283 Grace Blake became the ATF s director in 1996 279 The next year the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation allocated funding for a gift shop next to the theater 284 The Apollo was mostly empty by 1998 except on Amateur Nights and it was physically deteriorating 51 47 The only other major show at the theater was Showtime at the Apollo and the Apollo was rented out for other events for the rest of the time 178 Many black performers shunned the theater because of its small size and because larger venues were no longer segregated 47 The ATF began raising 30 million for the theater in the late 1990s 178 47 but the city and state governments refused to issue 750 000 in grants unless the foundation could provide financial statements 47 285 At the time there was a dispute over how much Inner City owed the ATF for the use of the Apollo s name 275 286 In 1998 the Attorney General of New York s office began investigating whether Inner City was underpaying ATF 287 288 Then attorney general Dennis Vacco accused the foundation s board of directors of mismanagement and sued the six black members of the 10 member board including chairman Charles Rangel 289 290 Vacco also unsuccessfully requested that a judge place the theater into receivership 291 292 Rangel and Sutton denied Vacco s accusations 51 and Vacco s successor Eliot Spitzer calculated that Inner City owed the ATF only 1 million 293 By early 1999 Time Warner was considering taking over the Apollo s board 294 and the state government was willing to drop the lawsuits if Time Warner took over the board and ousted Rangel as chairman 295 That August Time Warner donated 500 000 and expanded the ATF s board to 19 members 296 297 the agreement would go into force when Rangel resigned as chairman 298 Rangel initially refused to step down 299 300 but Ossie Davis was ultimately appointed as the new chairman that September 301 Spitzer dropped his office s lawsuits in late 1999 302 303 and governor George Pataki approved a 750 000 grant for the Apollo 304 305 Time Warner planned to host events such as TV specials pay per view shows and concerts there 306 2000s edit nbsp Seen in 2006By 2000 Time Warner planned to fully renovate the Apollo but this was delayed by internal disputes over whether Time Warner should replace Blake as the ATF s director The ATF s board hired Caples Jefferson Architects to design the renovation and the New York Landmarks Conservancy created a report on the theater s condition 293 Time Warner executive Derek Q Johnson was appointed as the ATF s president in early 2001 307 308 when annual patronage totaled 115 000 309 Plans for the renovation were announced that May with a tentative budget of 6 million 310 311 or 6 5 million 53 312 The ATF also wished to lease the neighboring Victoria Theater for 99 years and expand into the Victoria 312 313 although this was expected to inflate the cost of the renovation to almost 200 million 312 314 The Coca Cola Company signed a ten year sponsorship agreement with the ATF that August 315 and the Dance Theatre of Harlem also partnered with the Apollo that year 316 Between 2001 and 2003 the theater s annual budget increased from 3 million to 10 million 317 and the theater began to host events such as musicals galas and fundraisers 318 23 The first phase of renovation involved restoration of the facade and marquee 319 which was underway by 2002 and was expected to cost 12 million 320 That July the ATF announced that it planned to close the theater for eight months 318 319 Davis Brody Bond and Beyer Blinder Belle were hired as restoration architects while local firms Bordy Lawson Associates and Jack Travis Architect designed other parts of the renovation 318 Johnson resigned in September 2002 after the ATF s board canceled plans to lease the Victoria and approved a smaller renovation project costing 53 54 million 317 320 Jonelle Procope was named as the Apollo s director in 2003 317 321 The ATF was involved in another proposal to renovate the Victoria in the mid 2000s 322 but this proposal was unsuccessful 323 The ATF launched an annual spring benefit in 2005 to raise money 324 325 The renovation of the facade was finished that December 10 11 and the ATF installed wider seats in early 2006 35 19 The first phase of the renovation also included replacing the stage and dressing rooms 19 By then the theater had 1 3 million annual visitors 326 many tourists visited the theater just to tour it or learn its history but the Apollo still hosted events and performances and it remained an important gathering space for Harlem s residents 327 The ceilings walls and other interior decorations were to be restored in the second phase of renovations 19 As part of the Apollo Rising Capital Campaign 328 by the beginning of 2008 the ATF had raised 51 5 million for the project s first phase and was planning to raise another 44 5 million for the second phase The lobby would be expanded by 4 000 square feet 370 m2 which would have required that the theater be closed for several months in 2009 41 329 330 The work also entailed recladding the lobby restoring the auditorium s decorations and adding a walk of fame 41 331 In addition a multi purpose space would have been established on the second floor 41 The ATF delayed the interior renovation and paused its capital campaign in 2009 309 332 Although the Apollo was receiving many grassroots donations Procope had decided to focus on expanding the theater s programming 332 it sold 400 000 tickets per year at the time 309 2010s edit In the early 2010s the Apollo was used primarily for TV shows benefit parties special events and Amateur Nights 129 These included the Dining with the Divas luncheon which started in 2011 333 as well as the Apollo Theater Spring Gala 334 A walk of fame was dedicated outside the theater in May 2010 recognizing performers in the Apollo Legends Hall of Fame 335 336 That year the ATF decided to expand its board to 27 members 337 By 2011 the ATF was looking to expand into the site of the neighboring Showman s Cafe club which had been vacant for 35 years and was looking to raise 12 million for the project 338 The foundation revamped the Amateur Nights website placed advertisements in the subway system developed a mobile app for Amateur Nights and invited a more diverse slate of performers 339 340 The ATF launched the 21st Century Apollo Campaign in 2014 seeking to raise 20 million at the time it had raised 10 million 341 342 Three fourths of this amount was to be used to expand programming 4 million would be raised for a reserve fund and 1 million would be raised for smaller improvements 343 By the mid 2010s the ATF s finances had stabilized with an annual operating budget of 13 2 million and the organization had 30 trustees six more than in 2009 A growing number of tourists were visiting the Apollo as well for instance Amateur Nights had attracted 60 000 viewers in 2013 of which nearly half were tourists 343 The ATF recorded surpluses in its budget for several consecutive years in the 2010s 344 The foundation announced in 2018 that it would build two auditoriums one with 199 seats and another with 99 seats on the third and fourth stories of the Victoria Theater 345 344 The new stages the first major expansion of the Apollo since 1934 would host works by rising artists and would also allow the ATF to produce a wider variety of content 344 2020s expansion edit Due to the COVID 19 pandemic in New York City the Apollo Theater was temporarily closed in March 2020 346 347 and did not reopen until August 2021 348 349 The ATF announced in late 2021 that they would open the auditoriums in the Victoria Theater the next year 350 The expansion into the Victoria Theater which also included office space operated by the ATF occurred amid increased interest in tourism in Harlem 351 ATF officials announced in October 2022 that they would renovate the original theater in early 2024 which would require that the main auditorium be closed for six months The project included a restoration of the facade expansion of the lobby and upgrades to the seating lighting sound systems restrooms and soundstage 352 353 The theater had raised 63 million for its capital campaign 352 354 and was planned to be renamed the Apollo Performing Arts Center when the renovations were completed 355 Procope announced in late 2022 that she would step down as the Apollo s director the following June 354 356 The 99 seat performance space in the Apollo Victoria Theater was renamed after Procope in early 2023 357 358 That June Michelle Ebanks was appointed as the Apollo s director 26 359 Programming and governance editThe Apollo Theater Foundation a 501 c 3 nonprofit organization established in 1991 272 273 controls the theater As of 2023 update Jonelle Procope is listed as the president and CEO of the Apollo Theater Foundation 360 361 For the fiscal year that ended in June 2023 the organization recorded 4 507 683 in revenue and 9 935 823 in expenses 360 The ATF hosts programs such as Amateur Night as well as events like concerts 281 The theater s audience was often mixed in the 1940s it was estimated that during the week about 40 of the audience was white which would go up to 75 for weekend shows 114 Some performers such as Elvis Presley Mick Jagger and the Beatles members sat in the audience 131 Bill Clinton visited the Apollo in 2005 after the end of his presidency 33 while Jamaican prime minister P J Patterson was the first Caribbean head of state to visit the theater in 2002 362 Amateur Night at the Apollo edit Amateur Night redirects here For the 2016 film see Amateur Night film nbsp Marquee for Amateur Night at the ApolloAmateur Night was first hosted in 1934 281 363 or 1935 32 242 and has been hosted nearly continuously since then except from the 1970s to 1985 23 364 Schiffman had introduced an amateur night at the Lafayette Theater where Ralph Cooper had hosted Harlem Amateur Hour 34 Cooper hosted the event at the Apollo for fifty years 365 366 At the Apollo Amateur Nights were held every Wednesday evening 17 363 and broadcast on the radio over WMCA and eleven affiliate stations 114 367 The shows attracted audiences of all races 368 Until the 1990s Amateur Nights often ran for up to four hours and hosted as many as 30 performers After the ATF took over the Apollo it shortened Amateur Nights to about 12 performers per night 363 A mobile app for Amateur Nights was launched in 2011 340 and auditions were hosted virtually for the first time in 2020 during the COVID 19 pandemic 369 370 Amateur Nights performances were showcased in the TV series Showtime at the Apollo which ran from 1987 to 2008 and was relaunched in 2018 371 372 Traditionally many contestants would rub a stump on the stage for good luck 129 373 this stump known as the Tree of Hope was originally planted in the median of Seventh Avenue in Harlem 374 309 A winner and three runners up are selected after each show 32 242 363 First place winners were given money and invited to return to the Apollo 242 the contests have sometimes ended in a tie 375 376 Early winners of Amateur Nights were invited to perform at the Apollo the following week 37 by the late 20th century winners were invited to participate in monthly Show Off shows and annual Top Dog competitions 363 368 377 The executioner holding a broom would sweep Amateur Night performers off the stage if they were performing poorly 378 The executioner might also use other objects such as a chair balls gavels or weapon props 339 Vaudeville tap dancer Sandman Sims played the role from the 1950s to 2000 114 while C P Lacey also served as executioner for over 20 years starting in the 1980s 339 The performer might also be chased offstage with a cap pistol accompanied by the sound of a siren 114 367 According to Showtime at the Apollo presenter Steve Harvey some musicians were informally off limits and contestants were booed off the stage if they missed a single note while performing these musicians songs 373 Luther Vandross was booed off stage four times before he won 47 363 37 and James Brown was also unsuccessful in his first performance in 1952 309 Amateur Night performers came from across the U S 367 The vast majority of Amateur Nights performers have historically been young black performers although there have also been older or white performers 367 363 The Amateur Nights events helped popularize young or obscure artists 367 Winners have included Pearl Bailey 368 37 Thelma Carpenter 379 Ella Fitzgerald 199 380 The Jackson 5 381 Sarah Vaughan 37 382 Frankie Lymon King Curtis Wilson Pickett Ruth Brown Gladys Knight Smokey Robinson 37 The Ronettes The Isley Brothers Stephanie Mills 368 Leslie Uggams The Teenagers 32 368 Sammy Davis Jr Billie Holiday and Dionne Warwick 363 One author wrote in 2010 that if there had been no Apollo Theater many of these stars would never have been given their first chance 37 Apollo Legends Hall of Fame edit The Apollo Legends Hall of Fame was created in 1985 131 241 The Hall of Fame initially consisted of the names of 25 performers who debuted at the Apollo before 1955 383 as well as memorabilia representing the theater s history 131 Every year thereafter up to ten people have been inducted into the Hall of Fame Nominees for the Hall of Fame are required to have either performed at the Apollo or have created a show or other artistic work inspired by those who performed at the Apollo 241 Some of the Hall of Fame s inductees are honored in the Walk of Fame created in 2010 The walk consists of bronze plaques inset into the sidewalk 335 336 Commissioned work and educational programs edit The theater s educational programs over the years have included lectures such as a 1974 lecture by blues musician B B King 384 The ATF formed a partnership with the Verizon Foundation in 2007 to teach local students about the theater s history 385 and it began hosting the Master Class Series for performers in 2012 386 Before the COVID 19 pandemic the ATF curated numerous education programs that taught 20 000 children annually 354 In late 2022 the ATF created the Apollo Apprenticeship program which provides internships in event management technical production technical direction management and project creation 387 In 2010 playwright Keith Josef Adkins launched New Black Fest at the Apollo 388 an annual event that showcases theatrical works by black playwrights 389 The ATF launched the Apollo New Works program in 2020 after receiving 3 million in grants from the Andrew W Mellon Foundation and Ford Foundation 390 Apollo New Works is intended to showcase musical theatrical or dance performances by black artists a set of artists in residence is selected every year 390 391 The ATF and the United Talent Agency signed an agreement in 2021 to allow the UTA to promote films TV shows and other shows produced at the Apollo 372 392 As of 2023 update the Apollo presents both remote and in person workshops and programs to over 20 000 people per year 393 In partnership with the Columbia Center for Oral History Research in 2008 the ATF assembled an archive of historical documents photographs and other media and launched an oral history project 394 395 Dozens of performers including Smokey Robinson Leslie Uggams and Fred Wesley gave interviews for the project 394 The archive includes a 100 foot long 30 m plywood wall that thousands of mourners signed after Michael Jackson s death 396 Notable performances and performers editMusic edit Among the earliest acts to play the Apollo were blues performers Bessie Smith 117 and Lead Belly Ledbetter 117 397 During the theater s first decade numerous prominent jazz and big band musicians played at the Apollo Most of them were black such as Count Basie Cab Calloway Duke Ellington Ella Fitzgerald Earl Hines Erskine Hawkins Andy Kirk Jimmie Lunceford and Fats Waller but there were also some white performers such as Charlie Barnet Louis Prima and Harry James 128 In the 1940s the Apollo attracted big band performers such as Buddy Johnson 398 Lionel Hampton 399 and Cootie Williams 400 and it hosted other performers like Dinah Washington and Sammy Davis Jr 401 402 Other jazz acts included Sarah Vaughan Billie Holiday Nat King Cole Art Blakey Horace Silver 114 402 Cannonball Adderley Betty Carter Ornette Coleman Dizzy Gillespie Louis Jordan Max Roach 117 403 John Coltrane Miles Davis and Thelonious Monk 401 403 White jazz musicians like Dave Brubeck Maynard Ferguson Stan Getz and Buddy Rich also sometimes performed at the Apollo 404 as did Latin American big band musicians like Mario Bauza Juan Tizol and Ralph Escudero 405 The early 1950s were marked by performances from such musicians as Little Esther 406 Josephine Baker 407 Anita O Day 408 and B B King 409 In the mid 1950s the theater started hosting mambo performances 162 after Machito s Afro Cubans performed at the Apollo 13 times in 13 years 410 The theater s first gospel acts were the Five Blind Boys of Mississippi the Pilgrim Travelers and Alex Bradford in 1955 164 411 while other gospel musicians at the Apollo included Lou Rawls 184 Clara Ward 412 The Dixie Hummingbirds Shirley Caesar 401 the Staple Singers Mahalia Jackson The Clark Sisters Sister Rosetta Tharpe and Sam Cooke with the Soul Stirrers 114 The theater also hosted rock and roll performers like the Billy Williams Quartet 413 Tommy Smalls 414 Alan Freed 415 The Four Aces Bobby Darin Jerry Lee Lewis Jimmy Cavallo and Buddy Holly 416 Funk performer James Brown frequented the Apollo in the 1960s 417 playing nearly 300 nights annually 418 Soul performers such as Otis Redding Aretha Franklin Wilson Pickett Joe Tex and Sam amp Dave also appeared at the theater in the 1960s 401 Numerous DJs also headed shows in the Apollo 170 such as Fred Barr Frankie Crocker Jocko Henderson Symphony Sid 419 Gary Byrd Don Cornelius Vy Higginsen and Eddie O Jay 117 Bands such as Parliament Funkadelic T Connection Sister Sledge and War performed at the Apollo when it briefly reopened in the late 1970s 401 The theater seldom hosted Latin music after it opened except for special occasions such as a 1983 tribute to Machito 420 After the Apollo was renovated in the 1980s it hosted such diverse acts as the New York Philharmonic 421 rock and soul band Hall amp Oates 422 and pop musician Prince 423 During the 2000s the Apollo also attempted to launch a Latin music series 420 424 and hosted performers such as the band Gorillaz 425 Additionally the Apollo partnered with Opera Philadelphia to create several operas based on black culture 426 Several rappers have performed at the Apollo in the late 20th and the 21st centuries including Ice Cube 427 Drake 428 and Lil Wayne 429 The Apollo s musical offerings have also included competitions such as an R amp B contest in the 1960s 430 and a gospel competition in the 2010s 431 Concerts edit Some of the theater s concerts have attracted particular notice For instance Aretha Franklin played to sold out crowds in 1971 432 433 and Bob Marley and The Wailers performed there for their Survival Tour in 1979 434 Pop star Michael Jackson played a free concert at the Apollo in 2002 raising 2 5 million for the U S Democratic Party 435 this was his last ever performance at the Apollo 432 The theater has hosted numerous benefit concerts throughout its history These included a fundraiser for the Scottsboro Boys in 1937 397 a concert for Attica Prison riot victims families in 1971 436 as well as a gospel concert that Shirley Caesar and The Clark Sisters performed for the United Negro College Fund in 1986 437 Starting in 1993 the theater also hosted concerts to raise money for its Hall of Fame 438 439 Dance edit The theater also featured tap dancers such as the Berry Brothers Nicholas Brothers Buck and Bubbles and Bojangles Robinson 401 402 The theater hosted dancers such as Bunny Briggs and Babe Lawrence during the mid 20th century 401 as well as Cholly Atkins Bill Bailey Honi Coles The Four Step Brothers and Tip Tap and Toe 402 440 Other dancers appearing at the Apollo have included Carmen De Lavallade and Geoffrey Holder 114 The theater hosted the Les Ballets Africains the national dance company of Guinea for several years starting in 1970 441 Dancing continued to feature at the Apollo in later years such as in 1990 when the Apollo held a tap dancing festival 442 Starting in 2011 the Ballet Hispanico performed at the Apollo regularly 443 Revues and legitimate theatre edit The Apollo has hosted numerous revues and legitimate theatrical productions These included a popular revue with white and black performers during the 1930s 444 a pageant honoring black soldiers during World War II 445 446 and separate revues led by boxer Ray Robinson 447 comedian Timmie Rogers 448 and actress Pearl Bailey 449 The Apollo s first musical comedy Tan Manhattan was staged in 1941 151 152 The Apollo also hosted plays such as Anna Lucasta 1949 158 159 The Respectful Prostitute 1950 450 and The Detective Story 1951 451 The theater started staging R amp B revues in 1955 452 with each bill featuring up to a dozen performers 401 The Jewel Box Revue a show featuring female impersonators 432 was first presented at the Apollo in 1959 453 and was staged several times through at least the 1970s 454 The Motortown Revue was staged at the theater in 1962 455 featuring artists such as Smokey Robinson the Supremes the Temptations and Stevie Wonder 432 Other revues in the 1960s and 1970s included the musical drama Listen My Brother 456 and an all black production of the drama Jazztime 457 Harlem Song a revue about Harlem s history opened at the Apollo in 2002 becoming the Apollo s first open ended show with no definite end date 458 459 The theater has also hosted other plays musicals and revues in the 21st century such as The Jackie Wilson Story in 2003 460 and Apollo Club Harlem in 2013 461 as well as James Brown Get on the Good Foot also in 2013 462 James Brown Get on the Good Foot was also the first show ever produced by the Apollo that went on tour internationally 343 Comedy edit Comic acts have also appeared on the Apollo stage In the theater s early years these included Butterbeans and Susie Moms Mabley Dewey Pigmeat Markham Redd Foxx Dick Gregory Richard Pryor Nipsey Russell Slappy White Flip Wilson 117 402 Godfrey Cambridge 117 Timmie Rogers 463 and Stump and Stumpy 401 Among the theater s most popular comedy acts in the mid 20th century were Mabley who satirized Jim Crow laws in her shows and Rogers who performed song and dance routines Russell White and Foxx also focused on social commentary in their shows 464 By the 1960s the theater hosted younger comedians including George Kirby Godfrey Cambridge and Scoey Mitchell 465 Bill Cosby made his debut at the theater in 1968 465 466 and Pryor and Wilson also made frequent appearances in the 1960s 467 Later on Chris Rock taped a comedy show at the Apollo in 1999 468 Other events editFilms edit The Apollo has screened some films throughout its history In the theater s heyday as a venue for black artists it hosted Take My Life in 1943 469 Sepia Cinderella in 1947 470 Prince of Foxes in 1950 471 and a musical film called Rockin the Blues in 1956 472 As part of a pilot program that launched in 1965 a local community group screened films to teach local teenagers about cinema 473 474 During the same decade the Apollo also hosted gospel films 475 and a summertime film festival with films such as What Ever Happened to Aunt Alice 476 The Apollo hosted the documentary Save the Children in 1973 477 and first runs of the films Cleopatra Jones and the Casino of Gold in 1975 and The Bingo Long Traveling All Stars amp Motor Kings in 1976 478 though the Apollo was not as successful in attracting other films at the time 179 The documentary The Liberators Fighting on Two Fronts in World War II was also screened at the theater in 1992 479 Recordings and tapings edit Over the years there have been recordings of numerous performances at the Apollo Theater A Night at the Apollo a track released in 1957 consisted of samples of performances at the theater 480 James Brown recorded a show at the theater in 1962 this became the album Live at the Apollo 481 482 which spent 66 weeks on the Billboard pop albums chart 432 Brown went on to record the albums Live at the Apollo Volume II 1967 Revolution of the Mind 1971 481 483 and Live at the Apollo 1995 as well as the 1968 television special James Brown Man to Man at the theater 484 Gospel recording artist Byron Cage played at the Apollo for his album Live at the Apollo The Proclamation in 2007 485 Bruno Mars recorded a concert titled Bruno Mars 24K Magic Live at the Apollo in 2017 486 and Guns N Roses released Live at the Apollo 2017 the same year after visiting the theater during their Not in This Lifetime Tour 487 488 Some of the Apollo s shows have also been filmed for specific purposes For example in April 1976 Fred and Felicidad Dukes and Rafee Kamaal produced two 60 minute television specials with Group W Productions to help revitalize the theater 489 490 A TV special called Motown Returns to the Apollo was taped in May 1985 491 492 to celebrate the Apollo s reopening 493 NBC filmed the show A Hot Night in Harlem in 2004 to raise money for the theater s ongoing renovation 494 495 Non performance events editWhen Schiffman operated the Apollo he frequently rented the theater for meetings on topics concerning black Americans including discussions of civil rights and employment 173 496 Civil rights leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr A Philip Randolph and Bayard Rustin as well as organizations like the NAACP and the Congress of Racial Equality hosted speeches at the Apollo during the 1950s and 1960s 497 Between 20 and 25 civil rights related events took place at the Apollo each year between 1966 and 1971 496 There have been some religious services such as sermons by Jesse Jackson in 1969 498 Fela Kuti s sermon and musical performance in 1991 499 and Suzan Johnson Cook s worship series in 2008 500 nbsp The exterior of the Apollo as seen after Michael Jackson diedThe Apollo has hosted memorial services including those of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr in 1972 501 James Brown in 2007 and Michael Jackson in 2009 502 381 Similarly the theater has hosted tribute shows such as a tribute to Bob Marley in 1984 503 Swing into Spring A Harlem Tribute to Lionel Hampton in 1996 53 and a benefit honoring Ossie Davis in 2004 504 Several awards ceremonies have been held at the Apollo including the Caribbean Music Awards 505 and the Rhythm and Blues Foundation s Pioneer Awards 506 The theater hosted a poetry recital in 1994 507 as well as the first professional boxing match in the theater s history a card pitting Lou Savarese against David Izonritei in 1997 508 509 The theater hosted a debate between Al Gore and Bill Bradley during the 2000 Democratic Party presidential primaries 510 and then U S senator Barack Obama campaigned at the theater during his 2008 presidential campaign 33 Events in the 21st century have included a fashion show at the Apollo in 2004 511 a commencement ceremony for Wagner Graduate School of Public Service graduates 512 as well as an annual skipping rope competition called the Double Dutch Holiday Classic 513 Impact editThe Los Angeles Sentinel wrote in 1982 that the Apollo has had a significant impact on the careers of virtually every black performer who has played there 117 and the New York Amsterdam News said the next year that the theater led the way in the presentation of swing bebop rhythm and blues modern jazz commercially produced gospel soul and funk 514 The Wall Street Journal wrote in 2011 You d be hard pressed to find a major African American entertainer singer bandleader dancer or comic who didn t appear there 129 Record producer Quincy Jones said in 2004 The influence of the Apollo reaches beyond the shores of this country it is truly the premiere platform for world music 495 Works about the theater edit The Apollo was showcased in a 90 minute episode of the David Frost Show in 1969 515 The Apollo It Was Just Like Magic a musical dramatization of the theater s history was produced off off Broadway in 1981 516 The theater s history was chronicled in the 1976 television special Apollo 517 the 1980 NBC special Uptown 518 519 and the 2019 documentary The Apollo 520 521 Lee Daniels also considered directing a documentary called The Apollo Theater Film Project in the mid 2010s 522 523 Several books have been written about the theater These include Showtime at the Apollo The Story of Harlem s World Famous Theater by Ted Fox published in 1983 514 524 and republished in 2003 495 A graphic novel of the same name was published in 2019 525 The theater was also the subject of Ain t Nothing Like the Real Thing a 2011 exhibit at the Museum of the City of New York 502 129 as well as a traveling exhibition at the National Museum of American History in 2010 309 See also editAfrican Americans in New York City List of New York City Designated Landmarks in Manhattan above 110th Street National Register of Historic Places listings in Manhattan above 110th Street Category Albums recorded at the Apollo TheaterReferences editNotes edit Also spelled Sydney 28 29 Citations edit National Register Information System 83004059 National Register of Historic Places National Park Service January 23 2007 a b c New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission Dolkart Andrew S Postal Matthew A 2009 Postal Matthew A ed Guide to New York City Landmarks 4th ed New York John Wiley amp Sons p 202 ISBN 978 0 470 28963 1 a b Diamonstein Spielvogel Barbaralee 2011 The Landmarks of New York Albany New York State University of New York Press p 522 ISBN 978 1 4384 3769 9 a b c White Norval Willensky Elliot Leadon Fran 2010 AIA Guide to New York City 5th ed New York Oxford University Press pp 528 529 ISBN 978 0 19538 386 7 a b 253 West 125 Street 10027 New York City Department of City Planning Archived from the original on September 28 2023 Retrieved March 25 2021 Manhattan Bus Map PDF Metropolitan Transportation Authority July 2019 Retrieved December 1 2020 Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983 pp 3 4 a b c d e Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983 p 8 National Park Service 1983 p 2 a b Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983 p 8 a b c Coleman Chrisena December 15 2005 Showtime for Apollo Facade New York Daily News p 109 Archived from the original on September 28 2023 Retrieved September 18 2023 via newspapers com a b c d e f Pogrebin Robin December 15 2005 At Historic Apollo Theater Restored Facade Is the Star of the Day The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on September 28 2023 Retrieved September 18 2023 Schiffman 1971 p 12 a b Landmarks Preservation Commission Interior 1983 p 8 National Park Service 1983 p 2 a b c d e f g h i j Landmarks Preservation Commission Interior 1983 p 8 a b c d Goodman Barak December 14 1985 Apollo Hall of Fame preserves yesterday New 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Burlesque Rumors and Counter Rumors Concerning Houses and Shows The Billboard Vol 40 no 9 March 3 1928 p 34 ProQuest 1031854931 Minsky Brothers Get Theatre The New York Times May 2 1928 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on September 28 2023 Retrieved September 18 2023 a b Burlesque Herk Hurtig amp Seamon Merge With Minsky The Billboard Vol 40 no 18 May 5 1928 p 31 ProQuest 1031876059 Cullen F Hackman F McNeilly D 2007 Vaudeville old amp new an encyclopedia of variety performances in America Vaudeville Old amp New An Encyclopedia of Variety Performers in America Routledge p 643 ISBN 978 0 415 93853 2 Archived from the original on September 28 2023 Retrieved September 29 2023 Stage Reviews Drake and Walker open own theater Famous musical comedy team lease former Apollo playhouse Afro American October 13 1928 p 8 a b Burlesque Billy Minsky s Burlesque at Apollo Theater Sets New Standard for Stock Company Shows The Billboard Vol 40 no 36 September 5 1928 p 44 ProQuest 1031890238 Burlesque Apollo Theater Closes The Billboard Vol 40 no 28 July 14 1928 p 33 ProQuest 1031854931 Vaude Burlesque Mixed Stock and Reg Burlesque on 125th St Variety Vol 91 no 13 July 11 1928 p 34 ProQuest 1475890165 American Theatre Planned for Paris New York Daily News August 24 1928 p 106 Archived from the original on September 28 2023 Retrieved September 18 2023 via newspapers com Burlesque Rollo Takes Over Apollo on 125th Street Variety Vol 92 no 12 October 3 1928 p 38 ProQuest 1475761171 Burlesque Hurtig amp Seamon Exit From Harlem The Billboard Vol 40 no 42 October 20 1928 p 34 ProQuest 1031881331 Burlesque Winter Garden Out Due To Wheel s Zone Ruling Variety Vol 96 no 3 July 31 1929 p 44 ProQuest 1505688614 Minsky Splits With I H Herk Krause Returns The Billboard Vol 41 no 34 August 24 1929 p 3 ProQuest 1031910974 Burlesque Herk Harmonizes Circuit Conditions The Billboard Vol 41 no 36 September 7 1929 p 44 ProQuest 1031911901 Burlesque Vaude Mutual s Season Closing Early New Ideas and Methods to Come Variety Vol 98 no 8 March 5 1930 p 43 ProQuest 1505714244 Burlesque Minsky s Apollo Theater Preparing Policy Change The Billboard Vol 42 no 9 March 1 1930 p 34 ProQuest 1031925134 Burlesque Apollo Theater Stock Black and White Burlesque The Billboard Vol 42 no 14 April 5 1930 p 34 ProQuest 1031944938 Burlesque Herk Breaks With Minsky The Billboard Vol 43 no 42 October 17 1931 p 13 ProQuest 1031979707 Burlesque Katz Bid Up Minskys To 156 000 Yearly at Central for Burlesk The Billboard Vol 103 no 6 July 21 1931 p 39 ProQuest 1529391782 Apollo Burlesque New York Herald Tribune August 23 1931 p G4 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1114140822 Vaudeville Burlesque Apollo Gets Two a Day Grind Policy for Central The Billboard Vol 43 no 36 September 5 1931 p 15 ProQuest 1031979272 Billy Minsky Dies Producer Of Burlesque New York Herald Tribune June 13 1932 p 15 ISSN 1941 0646 ProQuest 1114522458 Burlesque Vaude Minsky Weinstock Alliance Gives Columbia Four New York Stands Variety Vol 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pp 39 40 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Felber Garrett Apollo Theater in Jackson Kenneth T ed 2010 The Encyclopedia of New York City 2nd ed New Haven Yale University Press ISBN 978 0 300 11465 2 pp 46 47 a b c Vaudeville Colored Vaudfilm for Apollo Harlem Variety Vol 113 no 6 January 23 1934 p 41 ProQuest 1475860306 Apollo Opens In New Dress Extensive Alterations and New Policy at Local Harlem House New York Amsterdam News January 24 1934 p 7 ProQuest 226163024 a b c d e f g h i j Reed Claude Jr February 25 1982 The Apollo Theatre Springboard for Black Stardom Los Angeles Sentinel p 8 ProQuest 565459293 a b c Apollo Joins Other Houses Another Theatre on 125th Street to Play Negro Acts and Revues New York Amsterdam News January 17 1934 p 7 ProQuest 226243463 Calvin Floyd J March 23 1935 Apollo Theatre Gives Success Formula At End Of First Year The Pittsburgh Courier p 18 ProQuest 202019399 a b c d e Fletcher 2009 p 40 a b c New Vaudeville House to Open on 125th Street The New York Age January 27 1934 p 6 Archived from the original on September 1 2023 Retrieved September 1 2023 via newspapers com Apollo Opens In Fine Start Hasty Opening Leaves Much To Be Desired Although It Gives Promise New York Amsterdam News January 31 1934 p 8 ProQuest 226281389 Carlin amp Conwill 2010 p 53 Carlin amp Conwill 2010 p 128 a b c Cohen Joe January 23 1974 Miscellany Frank Schiffman Dies Pioneered Mixed Audiences In Harlem Variety Vol 273 no 11 pp 2 56 ProQuest 1032473337 a b c Holsey Steve April 8 2009 Apollo Theater Michigan Chronicle p D1 ProQuest 2405055007 Carlin amp Conwill 2010 p 54 a b Apollo Theatre Stands Alone in Field Its Vaude Shows Consistently Successful Apollo Headliners for this Week s Revue New York Amsterdam News June 29 1940 p 31 ProQuest 226102041 a b c d e f Friedwald Will April 4 2011 Cultural History No Myth The Apollo s Power Wall Street Journal ISSN 0099 9660 Archived from the original on September 28 2023 Retrieved September 18 2023 a b Carlin amp Conwill 2010 p 168 a b c d e f g h i Colford Paul D May 14 1985 Showtime Again On 125th Street The Apollo Is Back In Orbit Newsday p C1 ISSN 2574 5298 ProQuest 1469979749 a b Carlin amp Conwill 2010 pp 200 201 a b c d e Hamill Pete March 4 1977 A Dirge for the Lost Soul of Harlem New York Daily News pp 4 48 Archived from the original on September 28 2023 Retrieved September 18 2023 via newspapers com a b c Carlin amp Conwill 2010 p 169 a b c d e f Personal Appearances Harlem s Apollo Theatre Near Sale To Black Group Owning Amsterdam News Variety Vol 268 no 10 October 18 1972 p 50 ProQuest 1032466607 Apollo Theatre Inaugurates New Feature Stage Broadcast of Amateur Nite and Kiddies Hour The Pittsburgh Courier November 10 1934 p A8 ProQuest 201986065 Landmarks Preservation Commission 1983 pp 5 6 a b Schiffman 1971 pp 47 48 Hatchet Buried Between Theatre Managers Apollo and Harlem Opera House Merge Bitterness Apparently Wiped Out in Effort to Save the Local Situation New York Amsterdam News May 18 1935 p 10 ProQuest 226200373 Ralph Cooper Who Found Stars At Apollo s Amateur Nights Dies The New York Times August 6 1992 ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on January 25 2020 Retrieved September 1 2023 a b Fletcher 2009 pp 40 41 Schiffman 1971 p 49 a b Carlin amp Conwill 2010 p 143 Carlin amp Conwill 2010 p 124 Day Sherri November 26 2000 City Lore Chorus Girls of Harlem Challenge Father Time The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on September 28 2023 Retrieved September 18 2023 Carlin amp Conwill 2010 p 127 Frank Schiffman Pro and Con His Apollo Theatre Stands as a Bulwark Between Performers and Crackup of Local Showlife Records Some Other Spring New York Amsterdam News August 5 1939 p 17 ProQuest 226123934 Burley Dan July 27 1940 Apollo Theatre Closes Down Showfolk Left in Pretty Pickle as Schiffman Decides To Transfer Streamlined Shows to Harlem Opera House New York Amsterdam News p 21 ProQuest 226213640 Rowe Billy July 27 1940 Vaudeville at the Apollo Ends This Week House Closing to Check Trend Plan New Entertainment Pittsburgh Courier p 20 ProQuest 202082311 Smith Isadora September 7 1940 Apollo Theatre Reopens New Glamour and Glitter Adds Another Page to Harlem s Joy Reopening of Apollo Theater Glamorized in Harlem Pittsburgh Courier p 21 ProQuest 202063791 a b Smith Isadora February 8 1941 Harlem First Nighters Set For Tan Manhattan Flournoy Miller and Nina Mae McKinney to Head Big Revue At Apollo Show Being Readied For Kleigh Lights Premiere Pittsburgh Courier p 20 ProQuest 202095038 a b Burley Dan February 22 1941 Up Harlem Way Comes to Apollo New Entertainment Policy at 125th St House Based on Campaign We Waged Last Summer for Better Entertainment Values for Harlemites New York Amsterdam News p 20 ProQuest 226129389 Carlin amp Conwill 2010 pp 158 159 Schiffman 1971 pp 49 50 Service Men Sorry Apollo Theatre Is Closed for Summer The New York Age July 25 1942 p 10 Archived from the original on September 1 2023 Retrieved 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Vol 235 no 9 July 22 1964 pp 1 78 ProQuest 1014824591 Apollo Theater To Reopen Next Week New York Amsterdam News August 12 1967 p 19 ProQuest 226809516 Black Workers Give Theatre A New Look New York Amsterdam News August 26 1967 p 1 ProQuest 226720589 Apollo renovation was a black affair Afro American September 16 1967 p 11 ProQuest 532192871 a b c d e f g h i j Shipp E R May 31 1991 Harlem s Apollo Fights to Keep the Lights On The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on September 28 2023 Retrieved September 18 2023 a b c d Carter Chelsea J November 30 1998 Show Goes on at the Apollo Theatre Network Journal Vol 6 no 2 p 5 ProQuest 222637371 a b c d e f g Fraser C Gerald April 15 1975 Apollo Finds It Hard for the Show to Go On The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on September 28 2023 Retrieved September 18 2023 a b Caldwell Earl November 9 1967 Fewer Whites Are Taking A Train to Harlem s Night spots Nightlife Scene Manes in Harlem The New York 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com Goodnough Abby August 4 1998 New York State To Investigate Apollo Contract The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on September 28 2023 Retrieved September 18 2023 Wong Henry July 29 1998 Apollo Theater The Center Of Controversy New York Voice Inc Harlem USA p 1 ProQuest 367935985 span, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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