Theatre 80 St. Marks

80 St. Marks Place,
New York, NY 10003

Unfavorite 10 people favorited this theater

Related Websites

Theatre 80 St. Marks (Official)

Additional Info

Architects: Millard Bresin

Functions: Live Performances, Live Theater, Playhouse

Previous Names: Theatre 80

Phone Numbers: Box Office: 212.388.0388

Nearby Theaters

Theatre 80 St. Marks

Located in a former Prohibition speakeasy club named Scheib’s Place. This was a Lower East Side landmark as one of the city’s oldest revival theatres. It had rear projection 16mm and played double bills of Hollywood classics. Long before the Angelika and other trendy theatres were serving coffee and brownies, you could get them here. It was designed by the owner Howard Otway, who employed architect Millard Bresin to draw up the plans.

Upon the death of Howard Otway, the theatre was leased out for live theatre, and was managed by the Otway family trust. The original mini marquee is still there.

Home of the Pearl Theatre Company for many years, in the Summer of 2009, they announced they would be leaving the building and a new theatrical tenant was being sought. In November 2009, it was announced that the Theatre 80 St. Marks would be reopening as a movie theatre with some live theatre use. Films would be projected digitally. The new operator is Lorcan Otway, the son of the original owner of the theatre, the late Howard Otway.

Contributed by RobertR, Lorcan Otway

Recent comments (view all 74 comments)

cblanc10708
cblanc10708 on April 10, 2013 at 11:50 am

Does anyone have any old film programs from Theater 80 when they were running films. Would gladly pay for any copies or even if it can be scanned. thanks. Charles, Westchester NY

cblanc10708
cblanc10708 on April 10, 2013 at 11:53 am

I attended a screening from the Take Two Film Festival at Theater 80 this past weekend. I had not been there since 1994 when they stopped showing films. It was like no time had passed at all. What a splendid evening. Please show more films if possible.

cblanc10708
cblanc10708 on April 10, 2013 at 6:45 pm

Digital projection. not sure if its from behind the screen..

Ben Davis
Ben Davis on February 18, 2015 at 6:37 pm

I’m writing a book on the revival/repertory movie theaters in NY in the 60s-90s, including Theatre 80. iisentaku, I would love to hear from you. My email is

Ben Davis
Ben Davis on March 24, 2017 at 2:17 pm

My book, “Repertory Movie Theaters of New York City: Havens for Revivals, Indies and the Avant-Garde, 1960-1994,” was recently published. It’s listed on Amazon and www.mcfarlandpub.com.

artpf
artpf on January 6, 2019 at 2:34 pm

I used to go to this theatre all the time in the 80’s. I loved it even tho it wasn’t a great venue for seeing a movie. First of all, it was 16 mm REAR screen projection. Because the space was so small, all the seat were way too close to the screen.

Still I loved going.

I also vaguely remember there were Sid Grahman-esque hand prints outside the place in cement. I seem to recall Joan Crawford as one.

Mike (saps)
Mike (saps) on January 6, 2019 at 9:11 pm

10 years ago they announced they were returning to film, with some live performances. What is the exact status of the place now?

zoetmb
zoetmb on July 6, 2021 at 1:12 am

As of July, 2021 (and probably long before) they are NOT showing movies.

Comfortably Cool
Comfortably Cool on December 30, 2021 at 2:19 pm

Facing closure, according to a recent article in The New York Times linked here

DavidZornig
DavidZornig on April 28, 2023 at 9:43 pm

Campaign to save Theatre 80 St. Marks.

https://p2a.co/8sgaifn?fbclid=IwAR3_Deg7YnOxbkBAR8X29VXmNri5yQeFm9mBTb7oTy8dzyaMeY3wBvPdjdM

You must login before making a comment.

New Comment

Subscribe Want to be emailed when a new comment is posted about this theater?
Just login to your account and subscribe to this theater.