The prestigious British actor Johnston Forbes-Robertson opened the theatre with his repertory company, presenting productions in 1913 of
Hamlet,
The Merchant of Venice,
Othello and others.
In its early years, the Shubert played home to both plays and musicals. Some of the more significant plays to appear were
The Copperhead (1918) starring Lionel Barrymore,
The Blue Flame (1920),
Dodsworth (1934),
Love on the Dole (1936),
The Philadelphia Story (1939) featuring Katharine Hepburn and Shirley Booth,
Othello (1943), Mae West’s
Catherine Was Great (1944),
Anne of the Thousand Days (1948) with Rex Harrison, Checkhov’s
Ivanov (1966) starring John Gielgud and Vivien Leigh, and
The Constant Wife (1975) featuring Ingrid Bergman.
As for musicals, a truly impresssive roster has called the Shubert home. Five Sigmund Romberg shows premiered here, including
Maytime (1917), one of the Shubert brothers’ most successful operettas, as well as
The Magic Melody (1919),
Marjorie (1924),
My Princess (1927), and
My Romance (1948). The playhouse showcased many revues like the popular
Greenwich Village Follies (1921, 1922, 1924, and 1926), and
Artists and Models (1923).
Five Rodgers and Hart musicals debuted here as well, including
Babes in Arms (1937) which introduced the standards “My Funny Valentine” and “The Lady is a Tramp”, and
Pal Joey (1941), which featured Gene Kelly and the premiere of “Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered.” Rodgers returned with his new collaborator, Hammerstein, to present
Pipe Dream (1955). Cole Porter had two hits at the Shubert:
Kiss Me Kate (1948), and
Can-Can (1952) starring Gwen Verdon, while Comden and Green collaborated with Jule Styne to create Judy Holliday’s star vehicle
Bells Are Ringing (1956).
The 1960s and 1970s offered quintessential musicals of this era. Barbra Streisand marked her Broadway debut in
I Can Get It for You Wholesale (1962). Anthony Newley had two successes:
Stop the World, I Want to Get Off (1962) and
The Roar of the Greasepaint, the Smell of the Crowd (1965). Neil Simon and Burt Bacharach’s
Promises, Promises opened in 1968, and Stephen Sondheim’s
A Little Night Music (1973) gave the world “Send in the Clowns.” Then, on October 19, 1975,
A Chorus Line, the Off-Broadway hit from the Public Theatre, opened uptown at the Shubert. This “singular sensation” would remain for a record-breaking fifteen years (6,137 performances), before closing on April 28, 1990.
Following
A Chorus Line's legendary run were the “new” Gershwin musical
Crazy for You (1992), and a revival of Kander and Ebb’s
Chicago (1996). After
Chicago transferred to the Ambassador, Bernadette Peters starred in a revival of the backstage classic
Gypsy (2003). More recently, the Shubert was the home to the Tony award-winning Best Musical
Spamalot (2005), a revival of
Blithe Spirit (2009) with Angela Lansbury, Best Musical
Memphis (2009),
Matilda the Musical (2013) and the Tony Award-winning revival of
Hello, Dolly! (2017) starring Bette Midler.
Visit the Internet Broadway Database for a complete list.