In 1918, a small but revolutionary event took place in the heart of Greenwich Village, forever changing the landscape of American theater. The Provincetown Playhouse, a humble venue at 133 MacDougal Street, hosted its first performance, marking the beginning of an artistic movement that would shape the future of modern theatre in the United States. […]
Village Preservation kicked off its campaign to honor, document, and seek landmark designation for the South Village and its remarkable immigrant and artistic histories in December 2006, and completed the effort in December 2016 with designation of the third and final phase of our proposed South Village Historic District, the largest expansion of landmark protections in the neighborhood since 1969. […]
In the heart of Greenwich Village, a historic theater emerged as a cradle of creativity and a crucible for groundbreaking theatrical experiments—the Provincetown Playhouse. Established in 1915 in Provincetown, Massachusetts as the Provincetown Players, this group of creatives moved to New York in 1916 and opened what became the permanent home for the Playhouse at […]
On November 22, 1918, the first performances were staged at the Provincetown Playhouse’s new home at 133 MacDougal Street. Founded in Massachusetts three years prior as the Provincetown Players, the theater company moved its performances to an apartment at 139 MacDougal Street in Greenwich Village in 1916. Seeking more space, they leased a 19th-century former stable and […]
This is one in a series of posts discussing the role that Greenwich Village played in the development of Modern American Theatre. Click here to read more. Why is the name Susan Glaspell so rarely invoked when discussing the birth of modern American Drama? Or American letters? In fact, she was quite well known in her […]
The roots of LGBTQ+ life in our neighborhoods are deeper than we even know. In the documentary PS. Burn This Letter Please, which premiered at the 2021 Tribeca Film Festival and was presented at one of Village Preservation’s Pride programs, gay historian George Chauncey spoke about using police records and newspaper articles because personal papers […]
On June 8th, 2004, 127, 129, and 131 MacDougal Street, three 1829 Federal Style houses, were landmarked — the first three of thirteen Village Preservation and the NY Landmarks Conservancy jointly proposed and campaigned for landmark designation. On December 17, 2013, they were landmarked again as part of the South Village Historic District following a decade of advocacy by Village Preservation. While all three […]
Fifth Avenue, one of New York’s defining thoroughfares, stretches from Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village, kicked off (or terminated, depending upon your perspective) by Washington Square Arch. It stretches all the way to West 143rd Street in Harlem, and boasts some of New York’s as well as the country’s most significant architecture, and captures […]
On January 6, 1918, a young Kenneth Burke (May 5, 1897 – November 19, 1993) wrote a letter to his friend, the emerging writer Malcolm Cowley. In the letter, Burke announced that he had decided to drop out of school at Columbia. The decision was motivated not by a desire to end his education, however; […]
Village Preservation is always working hard to document, celebrate, and protect the historic character of our neighborhoods, including the great buildings that make Greenwich Village, NoHo and East Village such wonderful places to live, work and shop. Of course, we’re not always able to save every historic building from demolition, and some disappeared long before […]
On Columbus Day in 2012 ( which was on October 8th), Village Preservation launched its “Save the South Village” video campaign. Columbus Day is traditionally a time to celebrate the contributions made by Italian-Americans to our country. Our “Save the South Village” video campaign began as an effort to highlight the incredible history (Italian-American and […]
We all know that New York University has an enormous presence in Greenwich Village and the East Village — one that has grown tremendously in recent decades, and is continuing to grow with the construction of their “NYU 2031” expanded campus on the Washington Square Village and Silver Towers superblocks south of Washington Square. The […]
On January 23, 1917, poet Gertrude Drick, painters John Sloan and Marcel Duchamp, and actors Russell Mann, Betty Turner, and Charles Ellis climbed to the top of Washington Square Arch. Drick read a declaration of independence for the “Free and Independent Republic of Washington Square” with the intent of having a neighborhood free from mainstream convention.
On November 3, 1916, the Provincetown Players performed their first production in their new home in Greenwich Village. The theater company performed King Arthur’s Socks by Floyd Dell, The Game by Louise Bryant, and Bound East for Cardiff by a young, relatively unknown Eugene O’Neill. Referred to as “the birthplace of modern drama”, the Provincetown Playhouse staged the works […]
On this day in 1888, Eugene Gladstone O’Neill was born, and the course of American theater would change forever. O’Neill became the first American dramatist to regard the stage as a literary medium and he remains the only U.S. playwright to capture the Nobel Prize for Literature.
Clifford Odets, one of America’s greatest playwrights, passed away on this day in 1963 at the age of 57. Odets grew up in the Bronx but migrated downtown as soon as he could in order to be around the artists, musicians, actors and writers who inhabited the Village. He began his career as an […]
This is an updated reposting of a blog by former staffer, Lauren Snetiker, July 28th, 2015 Today marks what would have been Marcel Duchamp’s 130th Birthday. Duchamp was born in France on July 28, 1887, trained as a painter in Paris until 1905, and spent much of his adult life living in Paris and New […]
The classic Beatles album Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, considered by many the greatest and most influential rock album of all time, was released on May 26, 1967 in the U.K., and June 2, 1967 in the U.S. The lasting influence of “the first concept album” is undeniable, but so too is the Village’s […]
Although Paul Robeson is most strongly associated with the Harlem Renaissance, this dynamic public figure cut his teeth on the Greenwich Village theater circuit and fully embraced the bohemian, progressive, and activist lifestyle that made the neighborhood so famous. A college football star, lawyer, actor, and activist, Robeson was even the subject of a great sculpture […]
On November 11th, 2003, GVSHP launched our campaign to protect the South Village. GVSHP partnered with the Preservation League of New York State, elected officials, other community groups, neighborhood residents, and Our Lady of Pompeii Church to study and consider proposing a South Village Historic District. For many of us, it is hard to believe that […]
It’s no secret that the Village has changed. However, due to rising demand for real estate, hyper-gentrification threatens the unique and special fabric of our neighborhoods. It’s not just small and independent businesses and cultural institutions that are being lost, but the livelihoods of many Village residents. These were the places they worked, places they shopped, […]
Charles Busch is the quintessential Villager. A prolific playwright and actor, he has lived in the West Village for most of his adult life. This reporter has been a life-long fan of Charles and so on this, his ??? birthday, I caught up with him amidst his busy schedule to ask him for his thoughts […]
Some things never change about New York City life; New Yorkers’ social lives have seemingly always hinged on the restaurants and bars in their neighborhoods. Aside from the very lucky few, most of our apartments are too small to serve as gathering spaces. In fact, many New York apartments don’t have living rooms or common […]
John Lequizamo, arguably one of the Village’s funniest residents, was not always a preservationist. As he remarked in a recent interview in the New York Times, his therapist recommended that he “get a hobby.” The entertainment business is notoriously rife with stress, and Mr. Leguizamo has been in the business of show for quite a […]
Greenwich Village has been a hot-bed for creative theatrical minds since at least the beginnings of the 20th century. In fact, among the most important of the movements in American theater were nurtured right in the heart of the Village.
Marvel Duchamp was born in France on July 28, 1887, trained as a painter in Paris until 1905, and spent much of his adult life living in Paris and New York City. His early work was Post-Impressionist, but in 1914, Duchamp introduced his readymades. These common objects, sometimes altered, presented as works of art, had […]
(This post is part of a series called Village People: A Who’s Who of Greenwich Village, which will explore some of this intern’s favorite Village people and stories.) Djuna Barnes was born in 1892, to a polygamist family at Storm King Mountain, New York. Her father made little effort to support his children, and Djuna’s grandmother […]
Today marks William Shakespeare’s 450th birthday, although some sources say his exact date of birth is unknown. He never set foot in the Village – he lived before it was developed by European settlers – but Shakespeare would likely be pleased with the neighborhood’s vibrant literary history. How many other places can celebrate such a […]
Over the past several weeks, we’ve been highlighting the recent designation of the South Village Historic District, which GVSHP fought ten years to achieve, as well as the treasure trove of information found in the newly-available designation report for the district, which in several cases cites research and materials provided by GVSHP. The South Village’s […]
An amazing resource that we have featured here and there on Off the Grid is the theater drawings of Anthony F. Dumas. From the Jewish Rialto along lower Second Avenue to the little gems hidden in the nooks and crannies of the Village’s quirky streets, Dumas seemingly covered it all. And while many of these […]
On this day, July 9th, back in 1962, Bob Dylan recorded his song, “Blowin’ in the Wind.” There are many, many connections between Bob Dylan, this song, and the Village, and you can read about some them in this Off the Grid post from two years ago. Some of the places where Dylan wrote and […]
With the important vote on the Hudson Square rezoning by the City Council’s Zoning Subcommittee this Wednesday, we will find out if the City Council will approve or deny the rezoning, and very importantly, if the City will commit to long-promised landmark protections for the South Village. Without landmark protections, the South Village will be […]
From The Villager Newspaper, February 14, 2013 Op-Ed: Quinn Holds the Cards on Hudson Square Rezoning and South Village Landmarking http://www.thevillager.com/?p=10221 By Andrew Berman, Katy Bordonaro, Zack Winestine, Micki McGee, Richard Blodgett, Carl Rosenstein and Silvia Beam The Hudson Square rezoning currently before the City Council presents a rare case where a win-win is possible. Done […]
Ninety-six years ago today a group of artists gathered at the top of the Washington Square Arch. Poet Gertrude Drick, painters John Sloan (who drew the etching above) and Marcel Duchamp, and Provincetown Playhouse actors Russell Mann, Betty Turner, and Charles Ellis got into the arch and up the spiral staircase through an unlocked door. […]
On November 22, 1918, the first performances were staged at the Village’s renowned Provincetown Playhouse in the theater company’s permanent home. Founded in 1915 in Massachusetts as the Provincetown Players by a group of writers and actors, the theater company moved its performances to an apartment at 139 MacDougal Street in Greenwich Village in 1916. […]
In 2008 NYU planned to demolish the Provincetown Playhouse to make way for a new law school building. Located at 133-139 MacDougal Street the Provincetown Playhouse was an incredibly significant site in the history of American theater. The theater was a launching pad for works of Eugene O’Neill, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Edward Albee, Sam […]
We are thrilled to share with you the news that GVSHP successfully nominated the South Village to the Preservation League of New York State’s “Seven to Save” list — their bi-annual list of the seven most significant, endangered historic sites in New York State. The announcement was made yesterday morning by the League’s president, Jay […]
Columbus Day has traditionally served as an opportunity to honor the contributions of Italian-Americans to our country. The South Village is one of New York’s great immigrant neighborhoods from the last great wave of immigration to New York and the United States at the turn of the last century. Thousands of immigrants, mostly but not […]
We love receiving research queries here at GVSHP, but never more so than when the person asking the question has something to tell us. So we were quite pleased to receive an inquiry from a curator at the Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas at Austin, who wanted to know the history of […]
On July 9, 1962, Bob Dylan recorded “Blowin’ In the Wind,” a song destined to become an anthem for a generation, and for the transformative civil rights and peace movements. Dylan is said to have written “Blowin’ In the Wind” at the Fat Black Pussycat Theater on Minetta Street, and first performed it at Gerde’s […]
