New York City is an internationally renowned home of theatre, with Broadway shows drawing the attention of fans from across the globe. In 2022, delayed from a scheduled 2020 opening by the Covid pandemic, the Museum of Broadway opened to shine a light on the rich history of one of the most famous theatre districts in the world. Located on West 45th Street, near to Times Square, I was lucky enough to visit the museum to get a closer look at how Broadway came to be the home of American theatre.
The experience began with the Hall of Playbills, a small room featuring Playbills for all of the shows currently playing in Broadway’s theatres, before a short presentation on the history of the theatre buildings and Broadway itself. It was fascinating to see how much depth and history there is in the relatively young theatres themselves, let alone the productions they were destined to contain. The museum then took us through an immersive timeline of the various shows Broadway has imagined, with reconstructed set pieces and photo opportunities throughout. From Ziegfeld Follies, Showboat, and Cabaret, to Annie, Avenue Q and The Phantom of the Opera, having such extensive set reconstructions, costumes and props was brilliant to see the types of shows and how far technical capabilities have transformed with Broadway.
Following the walkthrough of Broadway history, we then progressed into the prop room, containing a huge collection of all sorts of props imaginable (and a few unimaginable!). The original props and those from various revivals included a rain hat and Atlantic cod from Come From Away, the earrings of each of the SIX queens and Lola’s Price & Son’s boots from Kinky Boots. This section of the museum also contained two mini models, accurate scale replicas of the Broadway stages and sets of Moulin Rouge! and Wicked, complete with tiny human figurines! The final area in this hall was retired costumes from current and recently closed productions, including Boleyn from SIX and Beetlejuice. The Boleyn costume was particularly stunning (but I’m still partial to Howard’s outfit!).
The final area of the museum was a special exhibit reconstructing several backstage and behind the scenes areas, fully allowing us to immerse ourselves in the perspectives of all people who put on Broadway shows. We were treated to developmental costume drawings, light and sound desks and prototype items from during the early staging of some of our favourite theatre classics. On the way out, we passed a display paying tribute to Chicago, as well as a map of where various touring productions, such as SIX, Tina and Frozen were playing in the U.S. that day. And on the way out through the gift shop, I managed to pick up a few pin badges, including an exclusive ‘Museum of Broadway’ pin!
The Museum of Broadway is a fantastic opportunity to take a step through Broadway’s history and follow its development from a few old picture houses to the giant of theatre that it is to this day. If you ever get the chance to visit New York City, I’d definitely recommend taking a look around at everything this experience has to offer
Rating: ★★★★☆
The Museum of Broadway is located on West 45th Street in New York City
