HISTORY
The Shuberts built the Ambassador Theatre in 1921, one of four theatres they constructed on 48th and 49th Streets as part of their post-World War I rapid expansion. None of the other three (the Ritz, now the Walter Kerr; the Forrest, now the Eugene O’Neill; and the 49th St, now demolished) are currently operated by the Shubert Organization.
ARCHITECTURE
The plot of land for the Ambassador required that the auditorium be placed diagonally on its relatively small lot. This resulted in a lack of stage-wing space, and a uniquely shaped hexagonal auditorium. The exterior of the building is simple, with little ornamentation other than some brick patterning. The interiors, designed by architect Herbert Krapp, employ more elaborate Adam-style plasterwork in the decoration of the walls, ceiling, boxes, doorways and arches. The design motif was a favorite of Krapp’s.
Spotlight on Broadway: Ambassador Theatre from Spotlight on Broadway on Vimeo.
Details on the Ambassador Theatre's Accessibility
Access Information
Theatre is not completely wheelchair accessible. There are two small steps into theatre from the main entrance from the sidewalk. The side entrance has no steps from the sidewalk, please alert Box Office upon arrival. Please be advised that where there are steps either into or within the theatre, we are unable to provide assistance.
Shubert Audience Services
The Ambassador Theatre provides accommodations for patrons who are blind, deaf, partially sighted, and/or have hearing loss. The theatre provides infrared assistive listening devices for every performance at the theatre. In addition, beginning four weeks after a show’s official opening night performance, hand-held audio description devices, hand-held captioning devices, and unlimited access to downloadable audio description and/or captioning for personal mobile devices are all available free of charge. Prior thereto, we offer live-caption via CART using a hand-held device, upon request with two-weeks’ advance notice. For assistance, or If you have questions, contact Shubert Audience Services at 212-944-3700 or audienceservices@shubertorg.com. There is also a representative at the Shubert Audience Services kiosk at every performance to assist any patron with any of our devices, software, or technology. Hand-held devices are limited, although additional devices can be obtained with at least twenty-four hours’ notice.
Accessibility by Seating Section
Orchestra: Seating is accessible to all parts of the Orchestra without steps. Wheelchair seating is located in the Orchestra only.
Mezzanine(second level): 2 flights of stairs up 38 steps. Please note, once on the Mezzanine level there are approximately 2 steps per row. Entrance to Front Mezzanine is behind row E. Entrance to Rear Mezzanine is in front of row A.
Handrails: Available at the end of every stepped seat row in the Mezzanine.
Wheelchair | Companion Seat Locations:
Orchestra: J30 | L24 -28; K29 | K23 - 27; L30 | L24 - 28; M23 | M17 - 21; N101 | N102 - 104; O16 | O14, N16 - 18; O22 | O20, N20 - 22
Aisle Seat with Folding Armrest | Companion Locations:
Orchestra: G28 | G26; H29 | H27; M101 | M102; M114 | M113; N23 | N21; N26 | N24
Elevator/Escalator
None available.
Restroom
There is a wheelchair accessible restroom.
Theatre Policies
The use of cameras, recording devices, cell phones, beepers, and other electronic devices during the performance is prohibited, except as permitted for accessibility services. Everyone attending a performance must have a ticket. Latecomers will be seated at the discretion of management. Wheelchair and mobility-impaired seating is intended for patrons with mobility disabilities. Children under the age of four years will not be admitted. No outside food or beverage permitted, unless medically necessary. No weapons permitted on the premises.
NOW PLAYING
Chicago
A true New York City institution, Chicago has everything that makes Broadway great: a universal tale of fame, fortune, and all that jazz; one show-stopping song after another; and the most astonishing dancing you’ve ever seen. No wonder Chicago has been honored with six Tony Awards®, 2 Olivier Awards, a Grammy® and thousands of standing ovations.
It’s also no surprise that Chicago has wowed audiences all around the world, from Mexico City to Moscow, São Paulo to South Africa, since 1996.
Whether you’re looking for your first Broadway musical, whether you’ve seen the Academy Award®-winning film and want to experience the show live onstage, or whether you’ve seen it before and want to recapture the magic, Chicago always delivers.
PAST PRODUCTIONS
In its inaugural decade, the Ambassador was primarily a home to operettas and musical comedies. It’s first production was The Rose Girl (1921), followed the same year by Sigmund Romberg and Dorothy Donnelly’s Blossom Time (1921), which became one of the theatre’s greatest hits of the time (592 performances), and one of the most successful Shubert operettas. Other early shows include The Lady in Ermine (1922), Queen High (1926), Angela (1928), Owen Davis’s adaptation of The Great Gatsby (1926), The Racket (1927) and Leo Tolstoy’s Redemption (1928).
The 1930s and 1940s saw few theatrical productions at the Ambassador. Two of note include Ayn Rand’s Night of January 16 (1935) and Danny Kaye’s Broadway debut in The Straw Hat Revue (1939). From 1936 through 1945, the theatre served primarily as a venue for radio broadcasts and motion-picture exhibition. From 1945 to 1950 it was used exclusively as a movie house, and in the 1950s was leased to the fledgling Dumont Television Network.
In 1956 J.J. Shubert reclaimed and refurbished the Ambassador for legitimate theatre, reopening with a production of The Loud Red Patrick (1956) starring Arthur Kennedy and David Wayne. Other shows of the time include Lawrence and Lee’s The Gang’s All Here (1959) with E.G. Marshall, Melvyn Douglas, and Arthur Hill; A Passage to India (1962) featuring Gladys Cooper and Donald Moffatt; Calculated Risk (1962) starring Joseph Cotten; Absence of a Cello (1964) with Ruth White and Charles Grodin; and The Lion in Winter (1966) featuring Robert Preston, Rosemary Harris, and Christopher Walken. One of the Ambassador’s biggest successes of the 1960s was You Know I Can’t Hear You When the Water’s Running (1967), starring George Grizzard, Eileen Heckart, Matin Balsam, and Melinda Dillon, which was followed by Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt’s Celebration (1969).
The 1970s were a slow time for the playhouse. Jim Dale played in a revival of Moliére’s Scapino (1974), Linda Hopkins starred in Me and Bessie (1976), and Gregory Hines reached stardom in Eubie! (1978). Other productions from the 1970s and 1980s include Godspell (1977), Miss Margarida’s Way (1977), the gospel musical Your Arms Too Short to Box with God (1980), A View from the Bridge (1983), a revival of Dreamgirls (1987) with Lilias White, the Shubert-produced Ain’t Misbehavin’ revival (1988) starring Nell Carter, and the revival of You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown (1999), featuring Roger Bart and Kristin Chenoweth. Recent shows include the Pulitzer-prize winning Topdog/Underdog (2002) by Suzan-Lori Parks, and the revival of Kander and Ebb’s Chicago (2003), which moved here from the Shubert Theatre.
THEATRE SPECS
Ambassador Theatre
219 West 49th Street (between Broadway and 8th Avenue)
New York, NY 10019
| Year Built |
|
1921 |
| |
| Seating Capacity |
|
|
| Orchestra |
|
573 |
| Front Mezzanine |
|
264 |
| Rear Mezzanine |
|
250 |
| Boxes |
|
8 |
| Standing Room |
|
19 |
| |
|
|
| Total |
|
1114 |
| |
|
|
| Included in Numbers Above: |
|
|
| Orchestra Pit |
|
41 |
| Wheelchairs |
|
7 |
| Aisle Transfer Arm |
|
11 |
| |
| Theatre Dimensions |
|
| Proscenium Opening: |
44' 11" |
| Height of Proscenium: |
25' 3" |
| Depth to proscenium: |
28' 4" |
| Depth to front of stage: |
31' 2" |
| Stage Type: |
Proscenium |
| |
SEATING CHART
