A dynamic scene at a rooftop theater reveals changes in Gilded Age society

Going to the theater has always been a beloved New York City pastime. But theater became even more thrilling with the advent of open-air rooftop gardens—which hit the scene in the late 1880s with the opening of the rooftop theater at the Casino on Broadway and 39th Street.

It wasn’t just the cool breezes that appealed to New Yorkers. “Only at the turn of the century did amusements of this sort become acceptable places for respectable women,” explains the Whitney Museum of American Art, which has this painting, by William Glackens, in its collection.

“Hammerstein’s Roof Garden,” from 1901, depicts theater magnate Oscar Hammerstein’s semi-outdoor Palace Roof Garden at Seventh Avenue and 42nd Street. While men and women sit side by side at tables configured to encourage socializing, performers entertain the well-heeled crowd.

As an Ashcan artist, Glackens wasn’t just interested in capturing a lively scene. “The arena into which they gaze is lit by a filigreed tangle of electric lights, a recent invention that had made nighttime theater possible,” states the Whitney.

“In this painting, Glackens portrays not simply a night at the theater, but the changing mores of post-Victorian society and the impact of new technology on everyday life.”

Tags: Hammerstein' Roof Garden Broadway Theater, Hammerstein's Roof Garden Glackens, Oscar Hammerstein Theater NYC, Paintings of Rooftop Theaters NYC, Roof Garden Theater Gilded Age New York City, Theater in 19th Century New York City, William Glackens GIlded Age NYC