Circle In The Square

Inside the
Circle In The Square
Theatre

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Tanya Braganti

Located at 1633 Broadway

About the Theater

Started as a nonprofit theater company in Greenwich Village, the Circle in the Square moved to its current home in 1972, when the theater was built.

The theater was designed by Allen Sayles with a thrust stage and a U-shaped seating arrangement in which no audience member was more than eight rows from the stage, thus retaining the intimate feel that the company had in its downtown location. However, the new theater was much more technically sophisticated and included a unique lighting plan created by noted designer Jules Fisher. Originally founded in 1951 by a group of actors led by Theodore Mann and Jose Quintero, in 1963, Paul Libin joined forces with Mann to run the company, which eventually became a for-profit venture in 1998. The new Circle in the Square Theatre opened on November 15, 1972, with Mourning Becomes Electra, featuring Colleen Dewhurst. Mike Nichols directed George C. Scott, Lillian Gish, and Julie Christie in Uncle Vanya, and Nathan Lane made his Broadway debut there in Present Laughter. Recent productions include True West and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.

Tanya Braganti

Tanya Braganti

Located at 1633 Broadway

Theater Architect

Theater Architect

Alan Sayles

Alan Sayles received a bachelor of architecture from the Pratt Institute in 1961. Sayles is an associate professor at the New York Institute of Technology's School of Architecture and Design, where he has been teaching since 1973.

He has also lectured at the Pratt Architectural Club, the Museum of Modern Art, and the City University of New York. Sayles belongs to many professional organizations, including Architects/Designers/Planners for Social Responsibility, the American Institute of Architects, and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. He has received a Lumen Award nomination for his work on the Circle in the Square Theater and a Municipal Art Society Certificate of Merit for Cinema One and Cinema Two.

Tanya Braganti

Tanya Braganti

Theater Architecture

Tanya Braganti

Tanya Braganti

Theater Architecture

Joan Marcus

Joan Marcus

Featured Shows

Broadway Debut 2005

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

Playbill

Playbill

Featured Shows

Broadway Debut 1987

Coastal Disturbances

Mary Ellen Mark

Mary Ellen Mark

Featured Shows

Broadway Debut 1973

Uncle Vanya

Photofest

Photofest

Featured Shows

Broadway Debut 1982

Present Laughter