'The Big Gay Jamboree' packs it in early

Photos by Steven 

That's all for "The Big Gay Jamboree" at the classic Orpheum Theatre on Second Avenue. 

The production, described as "a new comedy trapped inside of a musical," started previews on Sept. 14 ... with an announced run through Jan. 19. 

However, the Off-Broadway show ended after Sunday's performance. (There were 15 previews and 88 performances in total.) The crew removed the "Jamboree" equipment yesterday.

We heard good things about the musical, which features a book, music and lyrics by the lead, Marla Mindelle. The show was produced by Margot Robbie's LuckyChap, which also presented Greta Gerwig's blockbuster "Barbie." 

The post-"Stomp" life of the Orpheum has included shows by Rachel Bloom and Eddie Izzard, which saw the theater return to its roots in the 1980s and early 1990s when it hosted Off-Broadway productions like Sandra Bernhard's "Without You I'm Nothing," Eric Bogosian's "Sex, Drugs, Rock & Roll" and John Leguizamo's "Mambo Mouth." 

In 2023, the burlesque "Star Wars" parody "The Empire Strips Back" also closed a month early.

Wednesday's parting ahot

Photo by Steven 

Workers today were removing some of the signage outside the Orpheum Theatre on Second Avenue between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place ... after the one-month run of Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winner Rachel Bloom's "Death, Let Me Do My Show." (The production ran from Dec. 7 to this past Saturday.)

No word on what might be next for the venue.

As noted... "Stomp" ended its 29-year run at the Orpheum early in January 2023. The first post-"Stomp" production, the burlesque "Star Wars" parody "The Empire Strips Back," closed back on July 20 — one month earlier than planned.

"Death" seemed like a throwback to the theater's days in the 1980s, when the Orpheum was well-known for Off-Broadway productions such as Sandra Bernhard's "Without You I'm Nothing," Eric Bogosian's "Sex, Drugs, Rock & Roll" and John Leguizamo's "Mambo Mouth" (not to mention "Little Shop of Horrors").  

'Death' becomes her?: Rachel Bloom is up next at the Orpheum Theatre on 2nd Avenue

The post-"Stomp" life continues on at the Orpheum Theatre on Second Avenue between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place.

Signage is up now for the next production — Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winner Rachel Bloom's "Death, Let Me Do My Show" ...

The musical had a successful run earlier this fall off-Broadway at the Lucille Lortel Theatre. The show is in the EV from Dec. 7 through Jan. 6. You can find tickets here.

Bloom might be best know as the star (and co-creator) of the CW musical dramedy, "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" (2015-2019). 

"Stomp" ended its 29-year run at the Orpheum in early January. The first post-"Stomp" production, the burlesque "Star Wars" parody "The Empire Strips Back," closed on July 20 — one month earlier than planned.

"Death" seems like a throwback to the theater's days in the 1980s, when the Orpheum was well-known for Off-Broadway productions such as Sandra Bernhard's "Without You I'm Nothing," Eric Bogosian's "Sex, Drugs, Rock & Roll" and John Leguizamo's "Mambo Mouth" (not to mention "Little Shop of Horrors").   

Celebrating 25 years of Stomp

[EVG photo from yesterday]

In case you missed Stomp Day NYC this past Wednesday ... Stomp is throwing "a very special celebratory performance" tonight in honor of its 500th 25th anniversary at the Orpheum on Second Avenue between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place... the event will be on Facebook Live at 6:50 this evening...

Today in discarded 'Stomp' props

Workers at the Orpheum on Second Avenue were taking out the trash today — some banged-up garbage cans belonging to cast members of "Stomp," now in its 25th year here between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place...





Thanks to Steven for the photos!

A milestone for 'Stomp'

[Photo of the new marquee from last week]

Today, "Stomp" celebrates 10,000 performances at the Orpheum Theatre on Second Avenue between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place.

"Stomp" — created in 1991 by Steve McNicholas and Luke Cresswell in England — began its run at the Orpheum in February 1994.

People magazine noted the number of props the cast of the dance/percussion show has used at the Orpheum:

• 19,000 wood-handled brooms (glued, coated with marine epoxy, and covered with nylon strapping tape).
• 5,900 metal trash bins (three varieties of bins are used in the show — two imported from the UK, the third manufactured in the U.S.).
• 2,100 sheets of Masonite
• 600 wooden poles

For awhile, it looked as if "Stomp" wouldn't be holding any milestones here. In April 2015, the owners of the Orpheum were suing the producers of "Stomp" to prevent them from leaving the theater. However, a Manhattan judge ruled that the production was allowed to discontinue its contract and move on to a new theater in Midtown.

But! An arbitrator later ruled that the show must stay put after it tried to relocate to a competing playhouse uptown.

Here's some history of the Orpheum Theatre via Cinema Treasures:

The site on which the Orpheum stands is alleged to have been a concert garden as early as the 1880s and, as such, to be one of the oldest continuously operating places of gathering for entertainment events in New York City.

A 1904 NY Times article describes a visit to the Orpheum as an evening which began with entertainment from a Hungarian orchestra, continued with dinner in the 7 o'clock hour, and concluded with a three-hour stage show by a Viennese theatre company.

The theatre was part of the exploding Second Avenue Yiddish theatre scene in the early decades of the 20th century but was exhibiting motion pictures by at least 1921. By 1926 it was operated by the Meyer & Schneider circuit. Additional references indicate that it continued to do so through the mid-1950s.

Week in Grieview

[Photo in Tompkins Square Park by Derek Berg]

Stories posted on EVG this past week included...

RIP Kenny Kendra (Wednesday)

Remembering Elizabeth Lee (Monday)

Haveli Banjara Indian Restaurant said to be closing and relocating early next year (Tuesday)

NYPD searching for driver involved in deadly Union Square hit and run (Wednesday)

East Village resident arrested in hockey-stick assault (Monday)

Annual New York Cares coat drive underway (Thursday)

Speaking out against a 'Silicon Alley' in this neighborhood (Thursday)

Out and About with Ronald Rayford (Wednesday)

New at Ray's Candy Store: chicken and waffles (Monday)

Former Angelica Kitchen space will yield to a Chinese noodle shop on 12th Street (Thursday)

Le Village is closed for now on 7th Street (Wednesday)

Construction watch: 619 E. 6th St. (Tuesday)

Odessa breaks out the Thanksgiving Special signage (Friday)

BarBacon looking at expanding to Avenue A (Friday)

About the Bowery Social Justice Short Film Festival (Monday)

Catching up with the hardcore matinee crowd (Thursday)

7th Street storefront to be modified for piercing studio (Thursday)

A look at Icon Realty's 9th Street building where the rentals are $30k a month (Monday)

Sales underway for Ben Shaoul's Liberty Toye — at the 'crossroads that cradled the Culture of Cool' (Thursday)

More about 29B, a new teahouse at 29 Avenue B (Wednesday)

Lizzie Fortunato for the holidays on 7th Street (Tuesday)

Kellogg’s NYC, will be slinging cereal at an all-day breakfast café on Union Square next month (Tuesday)

Construction watch: 809 Broadway (Friday)

... and I meant to note this in last week's Week in Review... the new-look Stomp marquee at the Orpheum on Second Avenue...



...looked like this for years...



Bonus! Here's a photo from 1991 via Cinema Treasures showing the marquee here for John Leguizamo's "Mambo Mouth" ...



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Garbage cans spared from further Stomping

Workers were moving out some old props today at the Orpheum on Second Avenue... where "Stomp" is entering its 22nd season. (Auditions are happening June 13 — FYI.)

An arbitrator recently ruled that the dance/percussion show must stay in its longtime home here between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place after its producers tried to relocate to a playhouse uptown.

Photo by Steven

The show will go on with 'Stomp' in the East Village

[Photo in April 2015 by Derek Berg]

In April 2015, the owners of the Orpheum Theater were suing the producers of "Stomp" to prevent the long-running show from leaving its home on Second Avenue between St. Mark's Place and Seventh Street. However, a Manhattan judge ruled that the production is allowed to discontinue its contract and move on to a new theater in Midtown.

But!

According to a report today in the Post:

[A]n arbitrator ruled that the dance/percussion show must stay in its longtime home at the Orpheum Theater after it tried to relocate to a competing playhouse uptown.

The arbitrator also said its producers also should have to cough up a whopping $2.2 million in legal fees for trying to wriggle out of a contract that barred the show from leaving the Orpheum for a competitor, New World Stages.

Stomp began its run at the Orpheum in February 1994.

In October 1995, the cast appeared on an episode of "Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood." You will want to watch this here.

Previously on EV Grieve:
Reports: 'Stomp' will be leaving the East Village (21 comments)

Why 'Stomp' might be leaving the East Village after 21 years (25 comments)

Reports: 'Stomp' will be leaving the East Village

[Photo by Derek Berg]

Following up on the reports from yesterday in which the owners of the Orpheum Theater were suing the producers of "Stomp" to prevent the 21-year-old show from leaving the neighborhood.

However, a Manhattan judge ruled yesterday that the production is allowed to discontinue its contract and move on to a new theater in Midtown.

Why the seemingly sudden departure? Per the Daily News:

Glenn Spiegel, a lawyer for 'Stomp''s producers, said the show has been a 'cash cow' milked for years by Orpheum’s owners who have refused to maintain the historic theater for years.

"'Stomp' did not want to move,” but 'it smells like sewage' in the lobby, the carpets are in a state of disrepair and there are signs in the rest rooms asking people to dispose of soiled toilet paper in the waste basket, not the toilets, Spiegel said.

The lawyer also said patrons have complained about rats, which have been seen in larger numbers in the neighborhood since a gas explosion two doors down on Second Ave. leveled three buildings and killed two people on March 26.

"The show decided we can’t function like this any more," he said.

However, Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Jeffrey Oing told "Stomp"'s lawyers "that he will hold the production liable for damages — and will undo its contract with the new theater — if an arbitrator rules that 'Stomp' had no right to move.

As for the Orpheum, reps argued that they had been in the process of making the repairs and that the "Stomp" producers should allow the theater some more time before their departure. Their primary concern is that the venue will suffer financially without the show, according to an article in Playbill.

As for when "Stomp" might leave for New World Stages, a multi-theater complex on West 50th Street, the News mentioned it would happen as of June 15.

We just checked the "Stomp" website and found tickets available at the Orpheum through Jan. 3, 2016.

Why 'Stomp' might be leaving the East Village after 21 years

Let's head to the Daily News for the story:

Owners of The Orpheum Theater, where STOMP has played for 21 years, say the producers of the show are violating a licensing agreement requiring them to give the landlord more notice and valid reasons if they want to relocate.

STOMP’s producers notified Orpheum “out of the blue” last week that they plan to move out as of June 15, according to court papers.

They have arranged to go to a rival off-Broadway theater, New World Stages, a multi-theater complex on West 50th St.

The producers said they are leaving because the air conditioning system at the historic Orpheum Theater has been inoperable for 72 straight hours — triggering their opt-out clause.

For their part, an attorney for the Orpheum on Second Avenue between St. Mark's Place and East Seventh Street says that such a sudden move will cause "serious and irreparable harm" to the theater. The Orpheum says that they do not any other productions in the pipeline.

Per the News: "The theater is asking the court to issue an emergency order blocking STOMP from making the move and forcing the producers to arbitration as required by the license."

The News has updated their story here.

Stomp and go

For a moment the other night, I thought perhaps Stomp had ended it's 178-year run at the Orpheum on Second Avenue near St. Mark's Place...



Nope -- just a little work being done on the marquee.