Dates
in Use:
1794-1820 (first theatre); 1822-1855 (second theatre)
Location: 6th and Chestnut streets
Major Renovations: converted to theatre in 1812, renovations in 1828, 1920, and 1971
Architect(s): John Inigo Richards (original interior), Benjamin Henry Latrobe (1800 facade), William Strickland (1822 design)
Alternate Names: The New Theatre, Old Drury
The first truly European-style theater built in the United States, the Chestnut Street Theater set a new standard for American theater architecture when it was first opened in 1794. It remained a key site for theatrical production throughout the early nineteenth century, and most major American and many major European actors performed there. After the theater burned down in 1820, plans were made to build a second theater on the same site; the new Chestnut Street Theater opened in 1822.