Hosted by Emmy Award-winning journalist Frank DiLella and directed, produced, and written by Cody Williams, Playing the Palace is a feature documentary chronicling the history and recent transformation of Broadway’s Palace Theatre, which will premiere May 13, 2025, at 6 pm ET on ALL ARTS. From its vaudeville roots to its present-day renovation, the Palace has served as a stage for generations of legendary performers, including Judy Garland, Bob Hope, Lauren Bacall, and Liza Minnelli.

Co-owners James L. Nederlander and Stewart F. Lane, along with performers and creatives including Bernadette Peters, Joel Grey, Heather Headley, Ben Platt, and Ethan Slater, discuss the Palace Theatre’s legacy in exclusive interviews featured throughout the film. Archival performance footage and commentary from Broadway insiders follow the landmarked theater’s evolution and its $2.5 billion redevelopment project, which preserved the historic venue and raised the entire building 30 feet above Times Square.

Playing the Palace has been the dream of many performers since the theatre opened in 1913. For many years the Palace Theatre was the preeminent vaudeville theatre in the country and an engagement in this theatre meant that a performer had “made it.” The who’s who of entertainment royalty have performed on this stage, including Ethel Barrymore, Harry Houdini, Will Rogers, Ethel Merman, Judy Garland, Jerry Lewis, Harry Belafonte, Bette Midler, Shirley MacLaine, and Diana Ross.

In 1965, James M. Nederlander turned it into a legitimate theatre for the opening of Sweet Charity starring Gwen Verdon. Since then, it has housed star-studded hits including Lauren Bacall in Applause and Woman of the Year, Richard Kiley in Man of La Mancha, George Hearn in La Cage aux Folles, and Keith Carradine in The Will Rogers Follies. In 1994, the theatre was transformed to house Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, which was followed by their musical, Aida. Glengarry Glen Ross is currently playing at the Palace Theatre.

Catch it On-Demand on AllArts.org!

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