However, certain major architectural elements and structures were protected under landmark status these were carefully removed from the buildings, stored, and incorporated into the new theatre. In 1996, the theatres were leased by Livent and demolished. They were among the 42nd Street theatres repossessed by the City and State of New York in 1990, and fell under the protection of the New 42nd Street organization in 1992. A brief return to use as a legitimate theatre in the late 1970s proved unsuccessful, and the venue ended its existence as a nightclub.īy the early 1990s, after being neglected and falling into serious disrepair, both theatres were condemned. The Apollo, constructed in 1920 by the Selwyn Brothers to a design by Eugene De Rosa, housed the Gershwin musicals Strike Up the Band and George White’s Scandals, among other works, but was also turned into a film venue by the early 1930s.

The original Lyric was built in 1903 and hosted Shakespeare plays and such notable new shows as Cole Porter’s Fifty Million Frenchmen, until it was converted to a movie theatre in 1934. Built in 1996-97 on the site of the former Apollo and Lyric Theatres.

Casino movie theater new york