Video: Stewart F. Lane Unpacks the History of the Iconic Palace Theatre
Jan 31, 2025
Broadway-lovers know that the legendary Palace Theatre has gone through quite a transformation over the last several years. What happened at the Palace before now? Watch in this video as Lane chats with BroadwayWorld's Richard Ridge about the venue's incredible history
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0:00
Welcome to Backstage with Richard Ridge
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He's been called Mr. Broadway. Six-time Tony Award-winning producer, director, and writer, Stuart F. Lane, has just penned the glorious new book called It Happen at the Palace, a history of New York's iconic Broadway theater
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And I caught up with him here at The Legendary Sardes. Your new book, It Happened at the Palace, is absolutely stunning
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It is a book for anybody who has ever fallen in love with the theater. How proud are you of this book
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Oh, my gosh. I'm immensely proud of it because I've been involved with the theater now 45 years
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We've been partners with the Needlander Organization, hard times and good times, getting the right shows in there
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It's been a real labor of love. I love New York. I love Broadway. And this was an opportunity to have a piece of it, to have a piece of American history, New York
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history and have some real hard memories of it. So I'm very proud of the book
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It gives me a chance to give the history not only of the palace, but sort of the history
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of theater in general in the 20th century. So we start with the days of vaudeville, where Fannie Bryce and W.C. Fields and Danny
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Kay and Jack Benny would play the palace because playing the palace was the best place in the
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world to play. When you played the palace, you know you'd made it. And so that was exciting
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Then with the advent of talking pictures in the 30s, it converted into a movie house, RKO, the RKO Palace
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and the first movie to play there was Top Hat, which was, of course, an RKO movie
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Citizen Kane premiered there in the 40s, and then in the 50s it was converted back into a showcase
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for live entertainment as well as a movie house. Then, of course, the Needlander organization came in in the mid-60s, converted it from a
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voidfell house to a full-fledged Broadway theater, and the rest is history
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And then a developer came just about five, six years ago and wanted to take the, and renovate the theater
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He said, I want to take it, I'll refurbish the whole thing for you, make it a 1913 brand new theater
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and we'll redo the guts, so it's a 21st century that will have facilities for the backstage dressing rooms
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that are modern, bathroom facilities for the patrons, everything to make it a more 21st century theater
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but retaining the integrity of the interior of a 19th century. 13 Broadway Theater
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Well, let's start there. So this was built as a vaudeville house back in 1913. Yes, yes
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So you look at all these incredible stars that played there. And the nice thing was that years later, in the 70s, when the Niedelanders had it
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they brought live entertainment back in the 1970s because I spent a lot of time there
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seeing the likes of Bet Midler, Diana Ross, Shirley MacLean. Yeah, those were the days
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They were tough days because these were short-run shows. They did very well
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Mitt Middler was terrific. And Shirley Maclean was terrific. terrific. I still have record albums of the recordings of those, as you remember what a record
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album is, of them playing the Palace. But those were times where it was interesting because
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as audiences were changing in the 60s and 70s, Broadway was trying to catch up to it. So a lot
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of shows that I worked on in the Palace, the early ones, had trouble finding their audience
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When we did the Grand Tour, the Grand Tour ran like three months. And it gave me an opportunity
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to work with Jerry Herman, though. And Jerry and I had a nice relationship. So later on, when he had the liquej
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he welcomed me to help me one of the producers of the show. Later on, we did Woman of the Year
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which was another first that actually really ran for two years and generated some income
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And, of course, before that was Frankenstein, which has the dubious honor of being at the time
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the most expensive non-musical to close it one night. We then had to put down that mantle
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when on the waterfront opened up. I was there opening night of Frankenstein just so you know I was there First Row of the Mazzanine Great cast Diane Weiss John Glover you know John Caradine David Dukes John Caradine yeah
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And the guy, Brand Ferrin, who had just come off the hit movie, Altered States
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was doing the special effects. We had the original Frankenstein material from the movie
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the Jacobsville Adder, you know, the zzz thing. And it came out of the Actors' Theater of Louisville
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So there's a pedigree there. couldn't have been worse. The critics hated it across the boards
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The audiences just didn't want to see it. Yeah. Well, I want to go back to the beginning
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There's so much beautiful. The photographs and memorabilia that you put in this book is amazing
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Was there an archivist for the palace? Did you have some of this stuff? How did you find all the beautiful things
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the photos and the program covers and the pictures from shows and everything else
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This is mostly through the Museum of New York, the Lincoln Center Library
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the David Rose Library. that they have. So it was mostly doing a lot of research for the pictures. And of course
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same way with the history. The idea was not only to do the history of the vaudeville days and the
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early days of movies, but to take it from the mid-60s to today. And that's something that
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when you've lived it, it's easier to write about. Yeah. So James Niedelander took over ownership
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of the palace in 1965? Yes, yes. So, and I think the first big show to play there was, of course
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Sweet Charity. Big hit for the Niedelander. Yes. When did you get involved with the Needalanders
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I mean, for those who may not know, you are the co-owner of the iconic palace theater
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The proud co-owner of the palace theater. Well, you know, I started working in the theater back in the late 70s
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And so I was involved with certain productions like the Trucadoro Dance Company that came in
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the Toller Cranston Ice Show. We were trying to get shows to fit in there. Finally, we had a revival of Oklahoma that ran nine months with Christina Andreas
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And that was actually the first time we saw some money coming out of the palace. Because it's tough being a theater owner
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Everyone talks about how wonderful it is when times are good. But when times are bad, they're bad
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Finally, we got two years with Women of the Year. And then, of course, one of my proudest moments was La Cajot-Fo Foll in 1983
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when we opened at the Palace Theater here in New York. Well, let's talk about, you know, you talked about the grand tour was there, of course
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with Jerry Herman the first time you got to work with him. And then, you know, La Cajafol came at a time when the AIDS epidemic was at the height of everything
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No one had any idea what this show was going. going to do? So, I mean, what was that whole time period like for you with bringing this show
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into New York? And what made you say, yes, I want to do this? Well, you know, it was a, it was a, it was a
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it was, where to begin with that. Certainly, people I was trying to raise money for told me this is
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a career breaker. No one's going to go see a gay musical. You're out of your mind. You just
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killed yourself in the business. I'm going, you're missing the whole point of it. It's a great
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score. It's socially important. It says something important to society today about how loving
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each other and caring for each other goes beyond just being of the same sex or not
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It's being careful and caring about people. And the score was terrific
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So you had a great score. And it's funny. So it's funny. It's a great score. It says something important socially
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And I think it's what producers like to do. You want something that's culturally acceptable, exciting, one that means something and is financially successful
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Because I think if you knew what made a hit, everybody, if they had that formula, everybody
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would have a hit show. But it has to do with passion, doesn't it? Oh, yes, you've got to do that
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And with the Lacage, everyone was really passionate about it. It was more than just a show
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It was a way of life. And certainly, even working with Arthur Lawrence was a pleasure
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So if I can say that. But, yes, there was a great team of people that we had
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People believed in what the point of the show was. And at a time, yes, you're right
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AIDS was starting to blossom. And it was becoming more and more difficult. Well, let's talk about when you got involved
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How did you get involved when you said, yes, I'm going to become co-owner of the Palace Theater
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Oh well as I said I was working several shows there I been a script reader for Jimmy for a while during my acting days And then I came back and started to work for him as an assistant house manager at the Brooks Atkinson Theater during the same time next year
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When that closed, Jack Lemon came in for six months doing tribute
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which I also worked, and then I moved over to the Neil Simon, which had Annie
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But at that time, I said, you know, I've experienced this, and this is interesting, and I respect it, but I wanted to do something more
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I said, I'd like to become a producer. How do you produce? Because I love the theater. I love New York. How do I get involved with it
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And Jimmy said, well, you know, I've got, here's a stack of scripts. You're a script reader
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Pick one of these that you like and invest in it. And you can follow me around and shadow me and you can learn the business from the Roundup
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So I went through all the scripts he had. I found one that I really enjoyed. It's called Whose Life Is It Anyway
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It was a teleplay from the BBC that had been converted into a stage play in the West End, starring Tom Conti
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I said, this is the kind of show I'd like to start with. So Mannie Azenberg was producing it
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And so I became the associate to the producer of Whose Life Is It Anyway
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And it was kind of interesting because for my first outing, we actually made back about 75% of our investment
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and we could have paid back everything, but Mani had the idea of maybe bringing in Mary Tyler Moore to play the role
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which makes perfect sense because it's about an artist who is restricted in creating his art because he's a quadriplegic
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So we brought in Mary Richards, we brought in Mary Tyler Moore
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and although she was brilliant in the role, the audiences didn't really take to seeing their favorite star in that condition
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So we did close, but we did pay back 75%. It's interesting at the time
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So I remember seeing Tom Conti and Jean Marsh in the original production that you brought over
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and then when Mary Tyler Moore took over, she shared it with James Norton. Yes
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But like you said, it's very interesting sometimes when you bring TV. People who are known for their work on TV
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they think they're going to see, like, you know, a Lucille Ball and Wildcat or Mary
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Richard's doing this, you know. And it was so outside of her, you know, wheelhouse
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No, no, no, exactly. But she did a great job with it, but the audiences just weren't prepared for it
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But that was like the first show that I started producing with. Then I started getting involved with the Grand Tour and with Frankenstein
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And, you know, you got to learn. In fact, I tell the story of Joe Allen's, you know, I say, oh, you know, Joe Allen's
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the famous theater restaurant, and they have the famous wall of flops up there
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And I go, some big names are on that wall. Hal Prince is on that wall
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David Merrick is on that wall. And yes, Stuart Lane is on that wall with Frankenstein up there
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But, you know, it's paying your dudes. They can't all, as you said earlier, they can't all be hits
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Well, Hal Prince told me that. He said when you have longevity in this business, I mean, when you look at the kind of work you do
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you're going to have hits, you're going to have flops, you're going to have hits. You're going to have, you know. So it's the big picture you look at
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And I think it's a badge of honor. to have a poster of yours at Joe Allen, right
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It is. It is a badge of honor. And writing the book about the palace, I'll just say also that it was an important book
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because I think the history of what the palace represents is resilience of Broadway
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from the fabulous invalid days to shows that run decades now. And it's an amazing transformation
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Now, let's talk about the renovation of the palace because when you and Jimmy Needle-Lander sat down
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you wanted to do more than just a renovation. what you've done to the palace is stunning
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So how long did it take? Well, he closed the deal in 2015
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started building in 2018, and took about six years to get the show, you know, to get it open
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And all during the pandemic, we used to go by there still to make sure things were going done
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And picking the, you know, we picked out everything involved with it, the sconces on the wall, the wallpaper
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even the type of decoration you get on the escalator going up
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You know, just to make the whole experience of going from a mom, modern box office modern lobby to a traditional 1913 Broadway theater Because you walk in there new amenities there with dressing rooms and new bathrooms and everything else but when you walk into the theater itself
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so the first time you walked in to the new version of the palace, the new beautifully done palace
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what went through your mind? Because we were there that day, Broadway World, we were there when you cut the ribbon with Jimmy Niedelander
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Talk about how you felt that day when you looked at the new theater. Oh, God. It was an amazing time
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because, you know, a theater is more than just a building. It's not, this is a place
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where people come to commune. It's a communication center. It's a place where people come to
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experience a group effort. So there's a certain spirit and enchantment about having the palace
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and to see it as it was with this beautiful chandelier that we put up there, the sconces
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and the craftsmanship, let it be known that the craftsmanship and pride in their work
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is well and alive in New York because the place was just really well done by these artisans
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So I was extremely proud that we not only accomplished the theater, but again, brought it into the 21st century
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Plenty of leg room, plenty of facilities for the patrons, and new dressing rooms for the actors and the musicians and all the other people that work that make the theater happen
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In the theater right now on the second floor, you have some memorabilia. Yes
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Talk about the second floor of the memorabilia that you have at the palace. Well, this is actually given some credit here
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We actually have some playbills and artifacts from that period. So we actually have a top hat from the top hat movie
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And we have Judy Garland's program there. We have Danny Kaye in there as well
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And W.C. Fields is mentioned in that as one of the vaudeville performers. All in that class case on the second floor
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So anyone who comes to visit the palace and see our next show, make sure you visit us on the second floor
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You know, you and your wonderful wife, Bonnie Conley, who's also a wonderful producer, you created Broadway HD
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Loving the theater and loving New York. And we've been both producing for you
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years. Bonnie's got three Tony Awards. I've got six. We've been doing it. I'm older than she is
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so I've been doing it a little longer than her. But we want to share Broadway with the rest of the
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world. And the question was, how do you monetize it so that people get to see it to make it
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affordable and make it accessible? All those people out there who can't afford to come to New York
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and if they do, they can't afford a ticket to see a Broadway show. So the idea was to come up with a way
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of showing them how to do it. And as technology started to evolve from a VCR to
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a CD, to a DVD, to a Blu-ray. Bonnie and I saw that the future was going to be in streaming
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That was where it was going to go. Let's get there first. So we started to work on that
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And then 2015, we launched Broadway HD. So you cracked the code
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I mean, I remember when I first started in this business, people were talking about this and saying
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it's never going to happen, it's never going to happen, it's never going to work. Broadway HD is so popular all around the world
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People can watch hundreds and hundreds of theater programs from Broadway, the West End, concerts and everything else
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in the company of their own home, anywhere, and you two did it. That's right. You get to watch it when you want to, what you want to
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And that's the idea. That's what we saw audiences wanted to do today, especially young audiences
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Since the pandemic, there's been a doubling of that. The older people who don't want to come to New York
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or again, can't physically come to New York, get to watch Broadway shows on Broadway HD
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and young people can afford to watch it on our website. We're $20 a month to subscribe
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So it works out really well. So what's next for the palace now that it's beautifully all glammed up and everything else
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Oh, well, I think we've just announced that we're going to be getting Glenn Gary, Glenn Ross
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with an all-star cast coming in. And, you know, it's one of David Mamet's best plays ever written
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And it's a huge cast, just, you know, wonderfully exciting group of people that they have to be part of it
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And it's kind of a show that can fill the palace. You know, those are names, the big names for a big theater
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Well, Stuart, I thank you very, very much. that this is a wonderful book for everybody to get their hands on
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It's always a pleasure to sit with you, my friend. You too. Long overdue
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