Majestic Theatre history

The Chanin brothers had acquired the Klaman site in 1925.

The three theaters were all named in December 1926.

The Majestic Theatre opened on March 28, 1927, with the musical Rufus LeMaire's Affairs.

In exchange, the Shuberts sold the Century Theatre on the Upper West Side to the Chanins, who redeveloped that site with the Century apartments. For example, notable original failures in 1928 included The Patriot with John Gielgud, running 12 performances, and The Big Fight with boxer Jack Dempsey, running 31 performances.

In July 1929, the Shubert brothers bought the Chanin brothers' ownership stakes in the Majestic, Masque, and Royale theaters for a combined $1.8 million.

Lew Leslie's International Revue with Gertrude Lawrence, Harry Richman, and Jack Pearl opened in 1930 at the then-exorbitant cost of $200,000, but it closed after only three months.

The Student Prince flopped in 1931, and the Majestic remained dark for several months.

During 1933, the Majestic hosted Pardon My English; Ray Henderson and Lew Brown's Strike Me Pink; and a transfer of Earl Carroll's Murder at the Vanities.

The Shuberts were experiencing financial problems by then and, following a foreclosure proceeding, the Shuberts leased the Majestic and Masque in September 1934.

Otherwise, most of the Majestic's productions in 1935 were failures, except for Earl Carroll's Sketchbook.

The Broadway theater industry declined during the Great Depression, and the Majestic, Masque, and Royale were auctioned in November 1936 to satisfy a $2 million mortgage against the theaters.

In 1937, the Majestic saw little success with revivals of The Bat and The Cat and the Canary, but the original operetta Three Waltzes had a longer run of 122 performances.

The musical Stars in Your Eyes premiered at the Majestic in 1939, followed by a longer run of Yokel Boy the same year.

The Majestic hosted a revival of Porgy and Bess in 1942, which ran nearly 300 performances, as well as Native Son, a Black drama that Lee Shubert unsuccessfully attempted to close prematurely.

A relocation of the musical Mexican Hayride played at the Majestic in 1944.

The Shubert brothers bought the Majestic, Masque (by then renamed the John Golden), and Royale theaters from the Bankers Securities Corporation in 1945, giving the family full ownership of these theaters.

Rodgers and Hammerstein's Allegro also opened in 1947 running 315 performances despite a negative reception from theatrical critics.

By the Beautiful Sea, starring Shirley Booth, was moderately received upon its opening in 1954, staging 268 performances.

Next to open was Happy Hunting in 1956, which saw an extensive run of 412 performances.

Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe's musical Camelot opened in 1960 with Julie Andrews, Richard Burton, and Robert Goulet.

Camelot was followed by The School for Scandal in 1963, as well as several high-profile flops.

During the run of Golden Boy, the benefit concert Broadway Answers Selma was held at the Majestic on April 4, 1965, to raise funds for the civil rights movement following the Selma to Montgomery marches.

The musical Sugar, with Robert Morse, Tony Roberts, and Cyril Ritchard, opened in 1972 and had over 500 performances.

The silent film-themed musical Mack & Mabel, with Robert Preston and Bernadette Peters, managed only 65 performances in 1974.

Much more successful was The Wiz, a Black musical adapted from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, which opened at the Majestic in 1975 and transferred after two years.

First Monday in October opened in 1978, featuring Henry Fonda and Jane Alexander, and the Michael Bennett musical Ballroom opened the same year.

In 1980, the long-running musical Grease was presented at the Majestic for the last five weeks of its run, followed by Harry Blackstone Jr.'s magic show Blackstone! and a moderately successful revival of Brigadoon.

David Merrick's hit 42nd Street moved to the Majestic in 1981 and stayed there for several years.

The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) had started considering protecting the Majestic as a landmark in 1982, with discussions continuing over the next several years.

In March 1987, Shubert chairman Bernard B. Jacobs announced that the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical The Phantom of the Opera would be hosted at the Majestic, following negotiations with producer Cameron Mackintosh.

After a record advance sale of $17 million, Phantom officially opened on January 27, 1988.

The Majestic also hosted the 50th Tony Awards in 1996 on the set of Phantom.

As part of a settlement with the United States Department of Justice in 2003, the Shuberts agreed to improve disabled access at their 16 landmarked Broadway theaters, including the Majestic.

Phantom continued to be popular in the 21st century, and it became the longest-running show in Broadway history in 2006, surpassing the musical Cats.

Phantom became the first Broadway musical in history to run for 10,000 performances on February 11, 2012.

By April 2019, Phantom had been staged over 13,000 times.