Second phase leaves the Rem Koolhaas-designed Off Broadway theater
Theater in the second phasea leading nonprofit that presents work by living American writers both on and off Broadway is giving up its Rem Koolhaas-designed Off Broadway home in a former bank near Times Square because the rent was too high and the lease had unfavorable terms .
The theater company, which has produced multiple Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning shows over the years, until recently operated three theaters: the Hayes Theater on Broadway, an Off Off Broadway space on the Upper West Side and an Off Broadway theater, the Tony Kiser Theater, in a former bank building on the corner of West 43rd Street and Eighth Avenue.
Last year, Second Stage terminated the lease on its Off Off Broadway space. Now it is also getting rid of the Kiser Theater, a 296-seat theater space where it has presented plays and musicals since 1999. The Broadway house has not been affected by the changes. The company said it was committed to continuing to produce work Off Broadway and was looking for a new place to do so.
Second Stage is the Kiser’s release at a time of great pressure on nonprofit theaters around the world, and at a time of transition for the organization. Carole Rothman, one of the company’s founders and now president and artistic director, is leaving the organization this summer after a 45-year tenure; the board is looking for her successor.
Second Stage’s board had agreed to an eight-year lease extension for the West 43rd Street building in 2021, but decided late last year to exercise a one-time option that would allow it to exit the lease at the end of this year.
Lisa Lawer Post, the company’s executive director, cited financial concerns in explaining the organization’s board’s decision to terminate the lease on the West 43rd Street building, where the company presented early productions of shows including ” Dear Evan Hansen,” “Next to Normal” and “Between Riverside and Crazy.”
She said the building’s infrastructure was aging and the terms of the lease required the resident to be responsible for repairs and maintenance, which would be difficult to finance given the relatively short term of the lease. She said the company concluded the rent was about twice the market rate, and there were concerns because the landlord could end the lease at any time with 18 months’ notice.
“It was a very precarious situation, so the board decided to terminate, and we are actively in discussions to find a more permanent home for the theater,” Post said.
Asked about the overall financial health of the company, Post said: “I would say we are in a strong position as we have just come out of Covid-19, and we have been fortunate to have had a very strong season that certainly helped us.”
The company said it currently has an annual budget of $23.5 million and 45 full-time employees.
Second Stage is having a good winter because its current Broadway show “Appropriate,” a drama about a Southern family with disturbing secrets, is a hit. It is the first Broadway production of a play written by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, an acclaimed American playwright whose work grapples with serious social issues. And with Sarah Paulson as star, the film sells so strongly that a group of commercial producers do the same moving it to a for-profit Broadway home after the second phase ends next month.
The landlord of the theater could not be reached for comment. There are reports that developers are eyeing the block, which includes several low-rise buildings along Eighth Avenue, for possible redevelopment. According to a 2022 report in Crain’s New YorkTrans World Equities has built several holdings along Eighth Avenue, which, the release said, “could be an indication of Trans World’s plans to put together a major development package.”
Second Stage currently presents “The Apiary” at the Kiser. Next, the company plans to present a new work by Paula Vogel, “Mother Play,” on Broadway starting in April, and then an off-Broadway play called “Breaking the Story,” opening at the Kiser in May.