Walter Kerr Theatre
219 West 48th Street, New York, NY 10019
Directions & Box Office
- Directions: By Subway, take the C/E to 50th Street, walk south on Eight Avenue and then turn left onto 48th Street. Or take the 1 to 50th Street, walk south on Broadway and then make a right onto 48th Street.
- Entrance: 48th Street, between 8th Ave and Broadway. North side of the street. The Walter Kerr Theatre is located on 48th Street, between Broadway and Eighth Avenue.
- Box Office Hours:
- Monday - Saturday:
- 10am - 8pm
- Sunday:
- 12pm - 6pm
Best Seats In The House
- Seats: 947
The mid-center section of the orchestra is ideal for seeing all manner of shows at this theatre.
The mezzanine has a very steep rake, so most of the seats offer a clear view, but the rear section feels quite far away from the action. There is also a third tier, where two rows of seats in the front are sold. These seats at sold at a huge discount, so these seats are perfect for the cash-strapped, but keep in mind that the reason they're so cheap is that they offer a better view of the theater's ceiling than of the stage.
Walter Kerr Theatre Seating Chart
Gallery
Parking for Walter Kerr Theatre
The closest parking garages for Walter Kerr Theatre are located at:
- Central Parking System
- 155 West 48th Street
New York, NY 10036 - 212-354-8904
- ICON Clarity 47 Parking
- 145-155 W 47th Street
New York, NY 10019 - 212-869-5479
The closest parking is not always the best as it often takes longer to park and retrieve your vehicle as fellow theatre goers have the same idea. A better choice of parking may be the second choice or further away by a couple of Avenues.
Additional Notes
Landlord: Jujamcyn Theaters
Official Ticketer: Telecharge
Notes:
Named for the beloved New York theater critic.Elevator: No
Escalator: No
Disabled Access Notes:
The Orchestra level is almost entirely comprised of wheelchair accessible seating, with the exception of rows R and S.
Now Playing Hadestown
- Previews Began: March 22, 2019
- Opens: April 17, 2019
- Show Closes: Open ended
Get Tickets
Previous Shows
The Crucible
- Opened: March 31, 2016
- Show Closed: July 17, 2016
A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder
- Opened: November 17, 2013
- Show Closed: January 17, 2016
Walter Kerr Theatre History
When it first opened in 1921, the Walter Kerr Theatre was called the Ritz Theatre and housed plenty of hit plays, some notable revivals, and even a few productions from the Federal Theatre Project during the Great Depression, but few of the shows that debuted at the Ritz in those early days are well-remembered today.
Identity Crisis
From the late '30s and on into the '70s, the theater went through an identity crisis, being used alternately as a radio and TV studio, a performance space, and, at one point, a movie house named the Robert F. Kennedy Children's Theatre. Since becoming the Walter Kerr in 1990, this theater has delivered some of our greatest contemporary dramas.
Renamed Walter Kerr Theatre
The Walter Kerr Theatre received its current name in 1990 named after New York Times drama critic.
Notable Performances At This Theatre
Four of the plays in August Wilson's ambitious 10-play cycle have been here: The Piano Lesson, Two Trains Running, Seven Guitars, and most recently the final installment, Gem of the Ocean. Acclaimed works like Love! Valour! Compassion!, The Beauty Queen of Leenane, and Take Me Out were all produced here, as well as Pulitzer Prize winners Proof and Doubt.
The Walter Kerr Theatre's crown jewel has undoubtedly been Tony Kushner's Angels in America, the epic two-part drama which for a year ran in repertory here to great success.
Theatre Is Perfect For Larger Plays
With just over 900 seats, the Walter Kerr Theatre is one of the smaller spaces on Broadway and over the years has almost exclusively shown plays, such as Dance of Death, No Sex, Please, We're British, The Piano Lesson, I Hate Hamlet, Angels in America: Millennium Approaches, Angels in America: Perestroika, Love! Valour! Compassion!, The Beauty Queen of Leenane, The Weir, Proof, Take Me Out, Doubt, and Grey Gardens.
The Walter Kerr Theatre has also proven to be a suitable space for specialty programs, like The Flying Karamazov Brothers, Ian McKellen Acting Shakespeare, and Patti Lupone On Broadway.
Walter Kerr Theatre Design
Architect Herbert J. Krapp designed the Walter Kerr Theatre (then the Ritz) in the Italian Renaissance style. When Jujamcyn bought the theater in the early 1980s, they put it through two major refurbishments, not only re-making it into a legitimate Broadway house but also restoring the gorgeous interior, which has sumptuous colors, captivating designs, and moody lighting that creates a candle-lit effect inside the theater.
The men's and women's restrooms, which are adequate (containing a decent number of stalls), are inconveniently situated on opposite landings between the orchestra and mezzanine levels. Outside, there are two cheesy yet charming marquees proclaiming in colorful lights that this is indeed the Walter Kerr Theatre.