Studio 54

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The original Studio 54 logo.

Studio 54 was a legendary New York City disco located at 254 West 54th Street in Manhattan. It opened on April 26, 1977 and closed in March 1986. It currently serves as a venue for the Roundabout Theatre Company, with a 900 seat theatre equipped with two full service bars. Studio 54 was operated by the flamboyant, publicly visible Steve Rubell and retiring silent partner Ian Schrager. Hedonistic Rubell was known for hand selecting guests from the always huge crowds outside, mixing beautiful "nobodies" with glamorous celebrities in the same venue.

A successor club, Studio 54, Las Vegas opened its doors in December 1997.

1 History
2 Studio 54, Las Vegas
3 Studio 54, Berlin
4 Studio 54, Vienna
5 Cultural impact
6 Celebrity regulars
7 External links

[edit] History

[edit] Early years

The theatre originated as the Gallo Opera House in 1927, and over the course of the next decade changed its name several times. It became known as the New Yorker Theatre in 1930, the Casino de Paris in 1933, the Palladium Theatre in 1936 and the Federal Music Theatre in 1937. Later in 1937, the name was changed back to the New Yorker Theatre. This name would remain until CBS purchased the facility in the 1950s, renaming it Studio 52.

From the 1950s to the mid-1970s, CBS used the location as a radio and TV stage that housed such shows as What's My Line?, The $64,000 Question, Password, Beat the Clock, The Jack Benny Show, I've Got a Secret, and Captain Kangaroo. The soap opera Love of Life was produced there until 1975.

In 1976, CBS concentrated most of its New York broadcast functions around the corner to its storied Ed Sullivan Theater (CBS-TV Studio 50) or west to the CBS Broadcast Center, and sold Studio 52. The Ed Sullivan Theater once had access to Studio 54 through an access door which was cinder-blocked during the Theater's Letterman Renovation [1]. The building was purchased and renamed for its street address, 254 West 54th Street, a location already noted for another tenant in the building, famed disco record label West End Records.

[edit] Years of operation

The infamous "man in the moon with a spoon"

Studio 54 was operated by the flamboyant, publicly visible Steve Rubell and retiring silent partner Ian Schrager. Hedonistic Rubell was known for hand selecting guests from the always huge crowds outside, mixing beautiful "nobodies" with glamorous celebrities in the same venue. "Studio", as it came to be called, was notorious for the hedonism that went on within; the balconies were known for sexual encounters, and drug use was rampant. Its dance floor was decorated with a depiction of a Man in the Moon that included an animated cocaine spoon.

In 1979, Rubell and Schrager were arrested for skimming $2.5 million, and the club was closed with one final party called "The End of Modern-day Gomorrah," on February 4, 1980. New York lawyer Gary Naftalis successfully represented Schrager in the ensuing tax evasion prosecution. After the club's closing, cocaine and money were found in its walls.

The club reopened on September 12, 1981, when it was bought for $4.75 million by restaurant and nightclub owner Mark Fleischman. Celebrities continued to frequent the club, though the level of sensationalism was far toned down from its original levels. This second incarnation closed down in March, 1986, due to changing tastes.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the venue was known as The Ritz, and hosted rock concerts. In 1994, after becoming a strip club for a few years, the club finally reopened with much fanfare with a live concert by disco stars Gloria Gaynor, Vicki Sue Robinson, and Sister Sledge. The club again went into bankruptcy the following year until 1998, when it was acquired by the Roundabout Theater Company and renamed The Roundabout Theater at Studio 54.

[edit] Roundabout Theater at Studio 54

Main article: Roundabout Theatre Company

In 1998, Roundabout staged a revival of the Broadway musical Cabaret (musical), which played at the theater until 2004. Later, the theater hosted revivals of the Stephen Sondheim musicals Assassins and Pacific Overtures. In 2005, the Roundabout housed a revival of Tennessee Williams' immortal drama A Streetcar Named Desire starring John C. Reilly and Natasha Richardson. 2006 welcomed a revival of Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht's Threepenny Opera starring Alan Cumming and Cyndi Lauper. The Apple Tree, starring Kristin Chenoweth, and 110 in the Shade, starring Audra McDonald will be revived here in 2007.

The second floor of the theater is still used as a nightclub on weeks when plays are not being staged; when it does so it operates under the name Upstairs at Studio 54. In recent years, singers such as Gloria Estefan have performed there as a tour stop. There have also been huge, and very popular, "disco parties" held there. The most notable of these well attended nights were held in 2004 and 2005.

[edit] Studio 54, Las Vegas

The logo for Studio 54, Las Vegas.

After the New York club closed down in 1995, Studio 54 moved to Las Vegas, located at the MGM Grand. Designed to be a replica of the original club, it has most of the original elements and equipment, including the "Man in the Moon" and the spoon - however the two are never displayed together. The club was visited on opening night by Elton John, one of the most frequent guests at the original location.

It has since become one of Las Vegas' most popular dance clubs, with a reputation for a strict door policy, but not as strict as the original's. However, the newer site is cause for contention amongst fans of the original location, who have charged that the Las Vegas venue is nothing more than Studio 54 in name only.

The venue is mentioned in the songs "Vegas Two Times" by the Stereophonics and "New York City Boy" by Pet Shop Boys.

[edit] Studio 54, Berlin

In January 2005, MGM announced that they were scouting for the proper location in Berlin, Germany to open Studio 54 Berlin. The project is lead by Joseph Jackson, father of Michael and Janet.[2]

The plans for a second continuously-operating Studio 54 has caused fans of the original to charge that MGM is only interested in the commercialization and franchising of the Studio 54 name, and that these clubs will be nothing more than regular discotheques with the Studio 54 name.

[edit] Studio 54, Vienna

A disco using the Studio 54 name also exists in Vienna, Austria.[3] This locality, which has no connection to the Las Vegas establishment it shares its name and logo with, opened in December 2004.[4]

[edit] Cultural impact

During its heyday it played a formative role in the growth of disco music and nightclub culture in general.

The disco was depicted in the 1998 film 54 and was the model for the club featured in the movie, The Last Days of Disco. It was parodied in the 2002 movie Austin Powers in Goldmember as Studio 69.

[edit] Celebrity regulars

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Peformers:

[edit] External links

Broadway Theatre Guide with full show details for the Studio 54
Official website for Roundabout Theater at Studio 54
Official website for Studio 54, Las Vegas
The complete Studio 54 website, Dutch
Fansite of Studio 54
Studio 54 History
Photo Gallery of the Opening of the German Studio 54 in Berlin
Studio 54 Belgium (Antwerp)
Studio 54 Vienna
"Studio 54 Goes German", Deutsche Welle, January 24, 2005
Studio 54 at the Internet Broadway Database
Ian Schrager

Broadway theatres

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