Shimmie Horn, Washington Jefferson Hotel

Studio 54 A New York Landmark

Studio 54 in 1977

Studio 54, located at 254 West 54th Street, is just a five minute walk from Shimmie Horn’s Washington Jefferson Hotel. This theater has a fascinating history which in many ways tells the story of New York’s ever evolving entertainment world.

In 1927 what is now Studio 54 was originally opened as the Gallo Opera House. It was transformed into the New Yorker Theater in 1930, until it was bought by CBS in 1942. The theater then became the home of the original late night talk show, “The Johnny Carson Show.” At the end of the 1970s, after the studio was sold by CBS, the TV studio became the most iconic nightclubs of the disco-era and took the name Studio 54. In 1986 the club closed and became a place for rock concerts for a few years until it finally closed down all together at the end of the 80s. The space went unused and empty until 1998, when the Roundabout Theater Company moved in and produced the famous re-make of Cabaret.

Today Roundabout is still in the premises with a new production in the works. Due to open on May 18, a limited engagement of the Pulitzer Prize-winning comedy Harvey will be performed until August 5, 2012.