History and architecture
The Alvin Theater survives today as one of the historic theaters that symbolize American theater for both New York and the nation. Built in 1926-27, the Alvin was one of the relatively small number of post-World War I theaters built not by the Shubert or Chanin organizations, but rather for a special client. The Alvin was designed by prolific theater architect Herbert J. Krapp to house the productions and the offices of producers Alex Aarons and Vinton Freedley, from whose abbreviated first names the acronym "Alvin" was created.
Herbert J. Krapp was the most prolific architect of the Broadway theater district. Having worked in the offices of Herts & Tallant, premier theater designers of the pre-war period, Krapp went an to design theaters for the two major builders of the post-war era, the Shubert and Chanin organizations. He was occasionally retained by independent theater builders, however, as in the case of the Alvin. For the Alvin he designed an exceptionally handsome neo-Georgian facade with Adamesque detailing. Its asymmetrical but balanced massing clearly expresses its division into auditorium and stage section.
The Alvin was built to showcase the musical comedies of Aarons and Freedley, and has had a consistently outstanding history of long-running Shows, beginning with Funny Face, featuring the young Fred Astaire. For half a century the Alvin Theater has served as home to countless numbers of the plays through which the Broadway theater has come to personify American theater. As such, it continues to help define the Broadway theater district, the largest and most famous concentration of legitimate stage theaters in the world.
Sources and further reading
This history comes from the Landmarks app’s historical catalog. Names and building uses may reflect the period described.