5th Avenue Theatre
The 5th Avenue Theatre is a landmark theatre located in the Skinner Building, in the downtown core of Seattle, Washington, United States. It has hosted a variety of theatre productions and motion pictures since it opened in 1926. The building and land are owned by the University of Washington and were once part of the original campus. The theatre operates as a venue for nationally touring Broadway and original shows by the non-profit 5th Avenue Theatre Association.
This article is about a Seattle theatre. For the similarly named New York theatre, see Fifth Avenue Theatre.Address
1308 5th Avenue
Seattle, Washington
98101
5th Avenue Theatre Association
2,130
1925
September 24, 1926
1 acre (0.40 ha)
Late 19th and 20th century revivals, Italian Renaissance
November 28, 1978
The 2,130-seat theatre is the resident home to the 5th Avenue Musical Theatre Company, and employs over 600 actors, musicians, directors, choreographers, designers, technicians, stage hands, box office staff, and administrators, making it the largest theatre employer in the Puget Sound region. A non-profit, the theatre company is supported by individual and corporate donations, government sources, and box office ticket sales.
The 5th's subscriber season programming includes six to seven shows per year, a mix of locally produced revivals of musical theatre classics, and premieres of bound-for-Broadway shows, and national touring musicals. The 5th Avenue Theatre has established a tradition of being a "testing ground" for new musicals before they make their debut on Broadway, launching hits such as Jekyll & Hyde, Hairspray, and The Wedding Singer. The theatre also hosts a variety of special events, and offers education and outreach programs to school-age children and adults reaching over 61,000 students, professional performers, and audiences each year.
History[edit]
Planning and construction[edit]
The president and general manager of Pacific Northwest Theatres, Inc., Harry C. Arthur, believed Seattle to be a place of growing importance in the motion picture industry in the mid-1920s, and consequently as the place to invest for the long term.[8] Arthur's company absorbed a competing chain of 40 theatres by 1926, and sought further expansion. A large holder of the theatre company's stock and debt was C. D. Stimson who sat on the board of directors of both Pacific Northwest Theatres and the Metropolitan Building Company, developer of what became known as the Metropolitan Tract. Stimson promoted the establishment of a theatre district like that which had developed around a theatre he had built in Los Angeles, California.[9] The planned Skinner Building with a theatre owned by Arthur's company would complete the Stimson development of the Metropolitan Tract.[10]
The architect, Robert Reamer, had joined the Metropolitan Building Company after World War I and as their house architect designed the building, inside and out.[7][9] In creating the 5th Avenue Theatre, Reamer was joined by his colleague, Joseph Skoog, of Reamer's office and Gustav Liljestrom, of the S. & G. Gump Company of San Francisco.[9]
Construction began in October 1925 with construction taking 11 months[10] and costing $1.5 million.[11]
The 5th Avenue Musical Theatre Company[edit]
Genesis[edit]
From the renovation in 1980 until 1985 the non-profit 5th Avenue Theatre successfully operated as a venue for touring Broadway shows. As the United States went through an economic downturn from 1985 to 1989 there was a shortage of touring shows for venues like the 5th. Consequently, many of the country's Broadway houses went unused for extended periods of time. However, the 5th remained open during these years with a reduced staff and was used for community events and local promoters.[23][27][28]
This situation forced the theatre to move beyond merely being a presenter of touring musicals. In 1989, the non-profit 5th Avenue Theatre established a resident theatre company, dubbed The 5th Avenue Musical Theatre Company, to produce musicals locally. Since the theatre company's establishment, the 5th's yearly subscriber season programming has included 6 to 7 shows: national touring musicals, locally produced revivals of musical theatre classics, and premieres of bound-for-Broadway shows. With 150 musical theater performances each fall-to-spring subscriber season which attract over 30,000 subscribers and average ticket sales of 300,000 tickets annually, the 5th ranks among the nation's largest musical theater companies.[24][29][30][31]
The musical company employs over 600 actors, musicians, directors, choreographers, designers, technicians, stage hands, box office staff, and administrators, making the 5th the largest theatre employer in the Puget Sound region.[17][30] A non-profit, the theatre company is supported by individual and corporate donations, government sources, and box office ticket sales.[29]
TUTS partnership[edit]
Frank M. Young was the first executive director of the 5th Avenue Musical Theatre Company. From 1989 to 1999 a collaborative partnership existed between the 5th and Houston's Theatre Under the Stars (TUTS) where Young also served as executive director.[31][32][33] This partnership produced 10 seasons of musical theater, including both national tours and self-produced musicals. On October 17, 1989, the first 5th Avenue/TUTS self-produced musical was presented: Mame, starring Juliet Prowse. In 1995, after premiering at the 5th, Jekyll & Hyde became the first 5th Avenue Theatre production to open on Broadway in April 1997. The show was produced in cooperation with Houston's Alley Theatre and TUTS.[11]
In August 2000 the 5th's partnership with TUTS ended as David Armstrong joined the 5th Avenue Musical Theatre Company becoming its first resident Producing Artistic Director launching a new era of collaboration with leading musical theater companies and producers across the country.[29][31]
Broadway "testing ground"[edit]
Since the creation of the 5th Avenue Musical Theatre Company in 1989, the 5th has established a tradition of being a "testing ground" for new musicals before they make their debut on Broadway. Since 2001, the 5th has premiered 17 new works, nine of which have subsequently opened on Broadway.