The Broadway Theatre is one of a select few legitimate theaters that was originally built as a movie house. Its seating capacity of 1,765 made it ideal for the changeover to musical theater in 1930.

Theater is an overwhelmingly white industry, and all of New York City's 41 Broadway theaters are owned and operated by white people, according to the Asian American Performers Action Coalition.

The St. James Theatre in New York on Saturday became the first Broadway theater to open its doors since the coronavirus pandemic shut down performance venues more than a year ago.

James Earl Jones and Cicely Tyson during the Broadway opening night performance curtain call for "The Gin Game" at the John Golden Theatre in New York City on Oct. 14, 2015.