People who enjoy the arts have long known the city of Amsterdam Holland to be a vibrant, dynamic and lively center for culture, arts and entertainment of the finest caliber. Amsterdam city center draws people from around the globe to its many cultural venues. It should be no surprise then that one of the finest theaters on Broadway carries the name of New Amsterdam NY.

The New Amsterdam Theatre is one of the oldest and most heralded of the legitimate theaters in the famed Broadway district that has brought audiences some of the finest theater presentations ever produced. The Amsterdam is among just a handful of venerable and distinguished theaters on Broadway to have survived through the many years of ups and downs in the turbulent world of Broadway productions.

Just after the turn of the century, in 1902, two successful impresarios, Abraham Erlanger and Marc Klaw, decided to hire the architectural company of Herts & Tallant to design and construct the New Amsterdam to compete with the Republic Theater. The Republic, owned and operated by the famed Oscar Hammerstein, was located just across 42nd street from where the Amsterdam NY would open its doors.

When one passes through the entrance of the New Amsterdam Theatre, they are greeted by some of the finest in Art Nouveau decor found anywhere among the New York City theaters. The Amsterdam boasts beautiful carved and painted plaster accents, stunning murals, gorgeous pieces of carved wood and carved stone, and exquisite tiles, which all combine to evoke a sense of what it must have been like to attend the theater in the height of the season back at the turn of the century when it was first built.

The first production staged at the New Amsterdam Theatre was Shakespeare’s classic “A Midsummer Nights Dream,” which opened on November 2, 1903. From 1913 until 1927, the Amsterdam was home to the “Follies” of Florenz Ziegfeld. The famous troupe presented numerous productions and revues including “The Midnight Frolic,” as well as “The Nine O’Clock Revue,” which was performed on the unique rooftop stage of the theater.

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