Madison Square Theatre
| Daly’s, Daly’s Fifth Avenue Theatre, Fifth Avenue Hall, Fifth Avenue Opera House, Fifth Avenue Theatre, Hoyt’s Madison Square Theatre, Hoyt’s, Minnie Cumming’s Drawing-Room Theatre | |
| Address | Broadway and W. 24th St. New York, NY |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 40°44′32″N 73°59′24″W / 40.7422°N 73.9901°W |
| Owner | A.R. Eno (land), various (building) |
| Operator | George Christy, John Brougham, James Fisk, Jr., Augustin Daly, Steele MacKaye, Mallory Bros., A.M. Palmer, Charles H. Hoyt, Frank McKee, Walter N. Lawrence |
| Type | Broadway |
| Capacity | 900, +100 standees |
| Construction | |
| Opened | 1865 |
| Closed | 1908 |
| Reopened | 1877 |
| Demolished | 1908 |
| Rebuilt | 1868, 1877, 1879-80 |
| Years active | 1865-1873, 1877-1908 |
| Architect | Various/unknown |
The Madison Square Theatre was a Broadway theatre in Manhattan, on the south side of 24th Street between Sixth Avenue and Broadway (which intersects Fifth Avenue near that point.) It was built in 1863, operated as a theater from 1865 to 1908, and demolished in 1908 to make way for an office building. The Madison Square Theatre was the scene of important developments in stage technology, theatre design, and theatrical tour management. For about half its history it had other names including the Fifth Avenue Theatre, Daly’s Fifth Avenue Theatre, Hoyt’s Madison Square Theatre, and Hoyt’s Theatre.
Merchant and real estate magnate Amos R. Eno leased land next to his Fifth Avenue Hotel in 1862 to James Fisk, Jr., who built an after-hours gold trading exchange during the U.S. Civil War. The “” found the competition disruptive and soon shut down the operation. The building became a performance space, the Fifth Avenue Opera House, used by George Christy and other minstrel shows from 1865-1867 when C.H. Garland took it over as the Fifth Avenue Theatre for burlesque shows. The theatre closed at the beginning of 1868 after one minstrel show manager murdered another after attending a performance. John Brougham briefly managed it as Brougham’s Theatre in 1869, followed by building owner Fisk, who restored the Fifth Avenue name and presented French opéra bouffe.
Augustin Daly became manager later in 1869, sometimes calling it the Fifth Avenue Theatre, sometimes Daly’s Fifth Avenue or simply Daly’s Theatre. The house (seating area) during this period was described as being “plated with mirrors for the illusion of immensity,” with a palette of “blush rose, neatly framed in white, with delicate boundaries of gold.” Capacity was 900, or 1,000 with standees, and gas jets provided interior lighting. When the theatre burned to the ground after a matinee on New Year’s Day 1873, Daly moved his company and the Fifth Avenue Theatre name to an existing theatre on 28th and Broadway. The name similarities continue to cause confusion today. It was four years until a new building appeared, first called the Fifth Avenue Hall, where a magician named Heller performed for several months in 1877, then Minnie Cumming’s Drawing Room Theatre.
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