Studio+54

= Studio 54 = toc Studio 54 is notoriously known for being one of the most famous nightclubs for celebrities, bought by Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager during the late 1970s. This venue actually began as a failed theatre called the Gallo Opera House, was shortly used as a television studio, and because of the Roundabout Theatre Company, still operates as a Broadway theatre today.

Early Theatre Beginnings
Originally named the Gallo Opera House, after the Italian opera entrepreneur and owner Fortune Gallo, the theatre opened in 1927 with the large scale production of the opera //La Boheme//(At This Theatre Studio 54). The theatre designed by architect Eugene DeRosa, was created to rival the Metropolitan Opera and the architectural intention was to make it seem like one was entering a lavish and glamorous palace(Inside the Studio 54 Theatre). "Patrons entered through an entrance on 54th Street that led down a hundred-foot mirror and marble walkway, taking them to their seats. There was only one balcony, but it was divided into two sections"(Broadway Scene). The Gallo Opera House did not have a strong start, in fact, when //La Boheme// premiered November 7, 1927, it failed to attract an audience and was closed after three weeks. "This was a profound blow to Gallo, who had built his reputation as someone who knew how to attract general audiences to opera performances"(At This Theatre Studio 54). It was then decided to move away from operas and the theatre opened with the play //Electra// starring Antoinette Perry, who the Tony Awards are named after, and Clarence Derwent(Roundabout Theatre Company). One of the best known disasters at this theatre was the production of //Rainbow//, The Phillip Goodman production included tension between Goodman, composer Vincent Youmans, and librettist Laurence Stallings. Director and actor Hammerstein was ill as well, a donkey relieved itself during a love scene opening night, and the theatre officially became unbookable(At This Theatre Studio 54).

CBS Transition
The theatre went through several name changes and owners. After a series of shortcomings it was sold after the stock market crash of 1929. One of the notable purchasers, was the company CBS. CBS renamed the space Studio 52 and used it for radio broadcast and tv. This included the //Johnny Carson Show//, tv game shows like //Password// and //What's My Line?.// Television production once based in New York eventually had moved west to Burbank and surrounding towns in Southern California. CBS found it had less and less use for Manhattan studios and put many of them up or sale. CBS sold the studio in 1976(At This Theatre Studio 54).

Nightclub
Late 1976 two American entrepreneur businessmen, Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager, got the idea to open a nightclub that would use only recorded music(to keep expenses down) and serve expensive drinks (to maximize profits). They found the ideal space in the old tv studio on Fifty-fourth Street, which gave the club its name, Studio 54(At This Theatre Studio 54). Rubell and Schrager invested $400,000 (the same buying power as $1,650,066.76 in 2015) to renovate the old CBS lot, meaning the stakes were high and failure was not an option(Sex, Coke, and Disco).

Design
"To renovate they pulled out boxes and painted over murals. They covered the architectural details with plywood and plaster, and installed high-tech lighting and sound equipment that required considerable modification of the old theatre's amenities. The exterior marquee was encased in metal panels, leaving only the Art Deco numerals "54". They desired a frequently changing atmosphere, so they took advantage of the original fly rails used to move theatrical sets and lights(Broadway Scene). Studio 54 boasted expansive ornate ceilings, giant crystal chandeliers and state-of-the-art lighting. "Everybody wants to be on stage, now they can be.", said Rubell at the time(Lindores). Studio 54 was highly selective in its door policy, making its guest face the terror of the velvet rope. Its legendary exclusivity made Studio 54 popular, but there was a practical reason to restrict occupancy as well. The club was not that big, having a capacity of only 700 people. The orchestra section, which had once held rows of seats, now became the main dance floor, bathed in lights from a half dozen towers of red and orange bulbs, and from strobe units distributed around periphery. The DJ was located in the mezzanine, overlooking the dance floor. The proscenium was still there, though covered. Hung with a Mylar-tinsel curtain, the stage was sometimes used for live performances but sometimes also became another level of the dancing floor(Lindores).

Culture
April 16, 1977 Studio 54 officially opened with a guest list of famous people including Liza Minnelli, Andy Warhol, Halston, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Deborah Harry, and Brooke Shields. "The following week the disco hosted a birthday party for celebrity Bianca Jagger, at which she made her entrance astride a white horse. The stunt helped establish the club as the last word in hedonistic excess, and it began its ascent to become the nightlife capital of the world"(At This Theatre Studio 54). The balconies were notorious for sexual encounters and drug use was rampant. During the club's first year it made seven million dollars(Nightlife Studio 54). During its prime Studio 54 played a formative role in the growth of disco music, celebrity and nightclub culture, and was one of the first night clubs to bur the distinction between "straight and "gay" nightlife. They poured four tons of glitter on the floor, a gatecrasher died in an air vent trying to get in, and Grace Jones regularly arrived naked(Lindores). With the help of the movie //Saturday Night Fever// the club broke some of the biggest records of all time. The principal DJ was Richie Kaczor, who is best remembered for launching Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive". Other tracks introduced to the world via Studio 54's soundsystem include "I Love The Nightlife (Disco Round)" by Alicia Bridges, "Lets All Chant" by Michael Zager Band, "Y.M.C.A." by Village People, "Instant Replay" by Dan Hartman, Blondie's "Heart of Glass"(which even had a video shot in Studio 54), and ironically, "Le Freak" by Chic, a track inspired by an altercation with the club's overzealous doorman(Lindores). It would be equally fair to say that the famous came to Studio 54 because it was a slice of the real world where they were highly unlikely to be hassled, and that they felt secure there, admired but at ease among the costume people, cosy among the glitter(Anthony Haden- Guest 1376).media type="youtube" key="WuFOj9HyPkU" width="398" height="296" align="right"

Decline
Studio 54 started its decline when outspoken owner Steve Rubell, who was careless and high on Quaaludes, boasted on a tv talk show about the takings in the club stating he earned "more money than the mafia" and that "what the IRS doesn't know won't hurt them"(Lindores). This led to investigation and Rubell as well as Schrager were charged with tax evasion and conspiracy in June 1979. After the $2.5 million he and Schrager had skimmed was discovered, a second investigation took place and they were sentenced to 13 months in prison for tax evasion and were forced to sell the club. "Studio 54 had been both an implosion and an explosion, the culmination o some very 1960s notion of freedom, openness, giddy display, and hope. Sex as good for you and more sex was better, and as for drugs, well, cocaine had been inhaled by Sigmund Freud and used as a punch line by Cole Porter"(Anthony Haden-Guest 3958). A farewell party on February 4,1980 heralded the end of an era. On September 12, 1981, the Studio 54 reopened by showcasing up-and-coming artists at the time, including Madonna and Duran Duran. The venue was owned by CAT Entertainment and rechristened The Ritz. It was during this time the venue began housing rock concerts(Broadway Scene). The club closed in 1986, and except for a few rock concerts in the late 1980s, a conversion to a strip club, and other ventures, the space was largely neglected until 1998 when Roundabout Theatre Company took over.

Theatre Revival
During 1998, Roundabout Theatre Company came to the venue's rescue when access to Henry Miller's Theatre was blocked by a construction accident.The revival of //Cabaret// was in the middle of its run at the Henry Miller, and to keep the musical open, the Roundabout Theatre Company transferred the show to Studio 54, and eventually purchased the venue in 2003(At This Theatre Studio 54) "The Roundabout will purchase Studio 54--which is still named for the famed discoteque which existed at that address for a few heady years in the late 70s--for $25 million" (Roundabout Theatre 2002 Article).//Cabaret// was the perfect place for this play and seemed fitting with the club's scandalous history. //Cabaret,// which is based on a book by Christopher Isherwood centered around a nightclub called the Kit Kat Club in Berlin circa 1931 as Nazis were rising to power. The opening of Cabaret was a rebirth of the theatre. With the reopening they were able to restore the original architecture from when the Gallo Opera House first opened. In 2005, Roundabout Theatre Company finally cleared out the nightclub tables that it had been utilizing since Cabaret, and put in rows of seats on risers to create the inclined seating. The marble/mirror walkway has been converted into a mini museum. Studio 54 is one of the only Broadway theatres to be returned to legitimate use in the late 20th and early 21st centuries after many years standings empty or employed for other purposes(At This Theatre Studio 54). Since 1998's //Cabaret,// Studio 54 has showcased numerous plays including Assassins, //Waiting for Godot//, //Sunday in the Park with George//, and //Cabaret// once again. Studio 54's latest production, //An Act of God//, starring Jim Parsons is currently taking place and continuing on Studio 54's theatre legacy.