Jun 10, 2022
By Andy Johnson
It’s a first for Broadway.
A theatre on the Great Way will be named after legendary chanteuse Lena Horne.
She’ll become the first Black woman to have a theatre named after her once the Brooks Atkinson Theatre is renamed.
Horne, died in 2010, at the age of 92 after a career that included acting and singing in nightclubs, Hollywood, television and onstage. She appeared in five Broadway shows.
She was also a longtime civil rights activist and a frequent participant in protests and marches.
The Nederlander Organization, which operates nine of the 41 Broadway theatres, said the new name will go on The Atkinson, a 1,000 thousand seat venue that was built in 1926.
The name change is expected this fall. The exact date hasn’t been established