José Quintero Theatre

The José Quintero Theatre was an off-off-Broadway theatre venue located in New York City's Hell's Kitchen. The 93-seat theatre existed inside a former brownstone residential housing building that was constructed in 1887.[1] In 1923 the building was converted from residential housing into a nightclub, the Sleepy Owl Club, which operated until 1954.[1] The theatre was used as a comedy venue during the 1960s and 1970s.[1] In 1980 it was purchased by Linda Gelman and Paul Zuckerman of the improvisational theatre company Chicago City Limits, and opened as the Chicago City Limits Theatre in the summer of 1980.[2][3]

José Quintero Theatre
Martin R. Kaufman Theatre; The Seven Sisters; Chicago City Limits Theatre; Sleepy Owl Club
Address534 West 42nd Street
New York City
United States
Coordinates40°45′36.3″N 73°59′49.4″W
OwnerAngelina Fiordellisi
TypeOff-off-Broadway
Capacity93
Construction
Demolished2006
Years active1923-2006

Producer Martin R. Kaufman purchased the theatre in 1987, and the theatre operated under the name the Martin R. Kaufman Theatre until Kaufman's death in 1996.[4] The Kaufman Theatre opened with a celebrated revival of Cole Porter's Gay Divorce in March 1987; a production which earned actor Joaquin Romaguera a nomination for the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical.[5] The Kaufman Theatre was host to several plays, musicals, and cabaret events; including performances featuring Kaye Ballard, Tallulah Bankhead, Wesla Whitfield, Julie Wilson, Steve Ross, and Jo Sullivan Loesser.[1]

In September 1998 the theatre was purchased by actress and producer Angelina Fiordellisi who rechristened the theatre as The Seven Sisters.[1] After the death of Circle in the Square Theatre founder José Quintero, the theatre was renamed the José Quintero Theatre in his honor on May 2, 2000.[6] In 2006 the theatre was demolished and replaced by a new neo-brutalist residential building.[7]

References
  1. Kenneth Jones (November 6, 1998). "Cherry Lane Owner Fiordellisi Buys OB Kaufman Theatre With Plan for New Voices". Playbill.
  2. Chicago City Limits Theatre. New York. September 8, 1980. p. 90.
  3. Andrew Fans (December 14, 2004). "Founding Chicago City Limits Cast Members to Return for New Year's Eve Shows".
  4. "Martin R. Kaufman, Theater Producer, 35". The New York Times. April 13, 1996.
  5. Dan Dietz (2010). Off Broadway Musicals, 1910-2007: Casts, Credits, Songs, Critical Reception and Performance Data of More Than 1,800 Shows. McFarland & Company.
  6. Sheila Hickey Garvey (2020). Circle in the Square Theatre: A Comprehensive History. McFarland & Company. p. 346.
  7. Michael Minn. Martin R. Kaufman Theater / Jose Quintero Theater. Retrieved March 17, 2021.
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