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Friday, September 02, 2022
Shubert Organization to unveil James Earl Jones Theatre on Sept. 12
Broadway News: The theater, formerly known as the Cort, will be officially named in a ceremony on 48th Street that will include tours of the venue, special performances and the reveal of the new marquee. The event will be open to invited guests and members of the press.
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2 comments:
I feel like its really important for representation to be shown in theater. So naming this amazing known broadway theater after a BIPOC legend I think is really important to not only the theatre community, but as the overall country. Also the fact that they have updated this theater is really important. I love going to Broadway shows and seeing the different theaters are one of my favorite things. I think it is really important that this theater is being restored for not only representation but just to bring the theater alive again. Instead of tearing it down or redoing a historic theater but restoring it is so important. All of these theaters have this history to them but I think it is important to remember that even though its history the world is ever changing. So restoring theaters or anything in general is important to represent the changing world around us.
Renaming the Cort to the James Earl Jones Theatre is a lovely gesture. I hope it prompts people who are unfamiliar with Jones’s contributions to industry to inquire and learn more about him (though I’m sure they will have a fancy dedication in the lobby). It’s also nice to see this accompanied by a building renovation, which many of those old theatres could use. While this change is a solid choice, I hope the Shubert Organization is continuing DE&I efforts in a variety of manners. This massive company is in charge of many of the Broadway houses, and probably more aspects of the industry I am aware of. While I know the original Shuberts produced some positive changes to the industry (when the unions didn’t exist yet), I also know they too became controversial figures in the commercial production of theatre. Broadway is commercial and I assume it will always be, but I hope these organizations find ways to still be equitable.
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