James Earl Jones Theatre
The James Earl Jones Theatre, originally the Cort Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 138 West 48th Street, between Seventh Avenue and Sixth Avenue, in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. It was built in 1912 and designed by architect Thomas W. Lamb for impresario John Cort. An annex west of the original theater, built between 2021 and 2022, was designed by Kostow Greenwood Architects. The Jones has 1,092 seats across three levels and is operated by the Shubert Organization. Both the facade and interior of the theater are New York City designated landmarks.
The theater maintains much of its original neoclassical design. Its 48th Street facade has a glass-and-metal marquee shielding the entrances, as well as a colonnade with an additional story above. The lobby has marble paneling and a coved ceiling. The auditorium contains a ground-level orchestra and two overhanging balconies with boxes. The auditorium's proscenium arch is designed with "art glass" that can illuminate during performances, and its ceiling is coved. The western annex contains lounges, restrooms, and backstage areas.
John Cort received the rights to operate the theater in January 1912, and the Cort Theatre opened on December 20, 1912. Despite being regarded by the theatrical community as being on the "wrong side" of Broadway, the Cort hosted numerous hit productions during its early years. The Shubert Organization purchased the theater in 1927, two years before Cort's death. Though the theater was used as a television studio for The Merv Griffin Show from 1969 to 1972, it has mostly remained in theatrical use through the years. The Cort closed temporarily in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic and was renovated during that time. In 2022, the theater was renamed after actor James Earl Jones, becoming the second Broadway venue named after a Black theatrical personality.
Site
The James Earl Jones Theatre is a Broadway theater on 138 West 48th Street, on the south sidewalk between Seventh Avenue and Sixth Avenue, in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S. The rectangular land lot covers, with a frontage of on 48th Street and a depth of. Nearby buildings include Hard Rock Hotel New York and 745 Seventh Avenue to the north, 1221 Avenue of the Americas to the northeast, 1211 Avenue of the Americas to the east, the Church of St. Mary the Virgin to the south, the Palace Theatre and TSX Broadway to the southwest, and 20 Times Square to the west.Design
The James Earl Jones Theatre, designed by Thomas W. Lamb in the neoclassical style for impresario John Cort, was constructed in 1912. The venue is one of Lamb's few remaining theater buildings. Although Edward B. Corey was frequently credited as the architect, Lamb was the architect of record. and William Crawford was the general contractor for the project. An annex directly to the west was designed by Kostow Greenwood Architects and was built between 2021 and 2022.Facade
Original theater
The main elevation of the Jones's facade faces north on 48th Street and is made of marble, with a layer of stone underlying it. The original two-story theater facade is split into a central pavilion with a colonnade of three bays; the central colonnade is flanked by one additional bay to either side. The facade was modeled on the Petit Trianon, an 18th-century neoclassical chateau at Versailles. A contemporary New-York Tribune article characterized the main facade elevation as being designed in the Louis XVI style.The central pavilion contains four fluted engaged columns with Corinthian-style capitals. At ground level, each of the three center bays contains a set of double doors made of glass and aluminum, above which is a marquee. The original marquee had three Art Nouveau arches, but it was replaced in the 20th century with a boxy structure with signs on either side. A new marquee, similar in design to the original, was installed in 2021; it contains three arches framed by metal shield decorations, as well as four spherical lamps hanging from the marquee. Above the marquee are arches topped by bracket-shaped keystones. A transom bar runs horizontally above the keystones, above which are slightly recessed pairs of windows, flanked by bellflowers.
The outer bays contain aluminum double doors, with display boxes on either side of and above the doors. The doorways contain eared architraves and are topped by cornices. Above the cornices are round-arched panels, with keystones flanked by laurel leaves. The outer bays contain carved panels, rather than windows, on the upper story. The northwest and northeast corners of the theater's facade are curved. Each end of the north elevation contains a Corinthian pilaster, and the northern ends of the west and east elevations also contain a pilaster. An entablature runs above the upper story of the facade, wrapping around the curved corners to the northwest and northeast. Atop the central columns, the entablature has an inscription with the original "Cort Theatre" name. A neon sign with the "Cort" name had been installed in front of the frieze in 1937; it was removed during the 2021 renovation. Above the entablature is a parapet with modillions and a blind balustrade.
Annex
The western annex, measuring wide, was built between 2021 and 2022. The annex is about tall, with five stories; the elevator shaft in the annex rises to. A recessed brown-granite bay at the end of the alley connects the annex and original theater. The annex's elevator shaft is about 30 feet above the roof of the original theater. Unlike the original facade, it has a modern design with cream-colored terracotta facade panels interspersed with polished brownstone pieces. There are glass display boxes at ground level, as well as a glazed window at the eastern corner of the annex's upper stories. There is also an LED sign on the exterior of the annex's upper stories.Interior
The Jones's interior design is credited to Arthur Brunet, according to a promotional booklet from the theater's opening. While the interior was not similar to that of the Petit Trianon, the design features are from the same era, the 17th century. The interior color scheme was described in the booklet as having "a blending of old rose and gold" and plaster decoration "in colors of champagne and sienna".Lobby
The entrance lobby is a rectangular space accessed from 48th Street. The lobby is laid in white Pavanozza marble with plasterwork panels. Tiffany Studios was credited with the design of the lobby. The walls of the lobby contain a dado of Pavanozza marble, which surrounds the entire room. The north doors lead to the street, while three doors on the south wall connect to the auditorium. The south doors are surrounded by plaster frames, above which are entablatures and pediments with cartouches. There is a niche on the east wall, which contains a pedestal with a bust of Marie Antoinette. The west wall has box-office windows with marble frames. The box office's metalwork originally was made of bronze with gold and enamel reliefs. The lobby has a coved ceiling with raised-plaster motifs and a central medallion with a chandelier made of bronze and crystal. There is no accessible restroom in the original lobby.Auditorium
The auditorium has an orchestra level, two balconies, boxes, and a stage behind the proscenium arch. The auditorium is square in layout and is designed with plaster decorations in high relief. The Jones's operator The Shubert Organization cites the auditorium as having 1,092 seats; meanwhile, The Broadway League cites a figure of 1,084 seats and Playbill gives a figure of 1,049. These are divided into 502 seats in the orchestra, 264 on the first balcony, and 263 on the second balcony, as well as 24 box seats and 19 standing-only spots. The Cort was originally a 999-seat venue when it opened in 1912.Seating areas
The rear end of the orchestra contains a promenade, which has doorways with eared architraves on the rear wall, as well as plain doorways on the side walls. The orchestra has a raked floor and wainscoted walls, with paneling above the wainscoting. Staircases with iron railings lead from the orchestra to the balconies. The orchestra level is wheelchair-accessible via the main doors, but the balcony levels could only be accessed by steps prior to the annex's construction. The rears of the balconies have promenades with standing rails. The balcony levels have doorways with eared architraves on the side walls. The second balcony's walls are topped by friezes with swags and cameo panels. The balconies have floral moldings on the fronts of their undersides, with crystal light fixtures underneath. Air conditioning grilles are placed below the balconies.On either side of the stage is a wall section with two boxes each at the first and second balcony level. Each wall section is flanked by Adam-style panels. The boxes themselves are curved and contain latticework and cameo decorations on the front railings. Under each box is a molding and a medallion holding a chandelier. Above each pair of second-balcony boxes, there is an eared architrave, as well as a latticework panel that depicts female figures flanking swags and a cartouche. Originally, the auditorium had twelve boxes, but the boxes at orchestra level were removed. Instead of an orchestra pit, there was a Wurlitzer organ that a single musician could operate. The organ was an Opus 20 model with three manuals and thirteen ranks.
Other design features
The proscenium arch measures high and wide. It consists of latticed plasterwork with art glass beneath it. The art glass was capable of illumination, but the illumination was then turned off until the theater was renovated in 2021. The sides of the arch have swags and medallions. Above the center of the arch, and within the spandrels, there are depictions of putti and muses entangled in vines. There is a cornice with modillions and dentils above the arch. The sounding board curves onto the ceiling above the proscenium arch and is divided into three sections. The sounding board depicts a minuet that, according to the New-York Tribune, had been made "during the period made famous in Antoine Watteau's drawings of French court life at Versailles". The depth of the auditorium to the proscenium is, while the depth to the front of the stage is.The ceiling is divided into three rectangular sections, which are recessed coves. The ribs of the ceiling, which separate the coves, are decorated with swags and wreaths. The center section contains a circular dome, which has a frieze extending outward, as well as an overhanging bronze and crystal chandelier at the center. Three additional panels, similar in design, hang over the second balcony.