Best Buy Theater

Best Buy Theater

Location	New York City, New York
Type	Indoor theater
Opened	2005
Owner	Anschutz Entertainment Group
Former name(s)	Nokia Theater
Website	bestbuytheater.com

The Best Buy Theater^[1] (formerly known as the Nokia Theater) in Times Square is an indoor theatre, owned and managed by Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG), located on 1515 Broadway, at the corner of Broadway and 44th street. It was designed by architect David Rockwell and opened in September 2005. The venue has a large standing room orchestra section, combined with a large area of seating towards the rear of the auditorium. ^[2] In September 2010, it was announced that Best Buy had purchased the naming rights to the venue following Nokia's decision not to renew its contract with AEG.^[3]

At the time of its construction, it replaced the historic Astor Plaza movie theater, which closed in August 2004.^[4] The estimated total cost of the transformation was $21 million.^[5]

Features

The venue seats 2,100 and features an 85-foot-long (26 m) LED high-definition screen that is one of the largest marquees on Broadway. The venue also is capable of presenting live footage from the stage or anywhere else in the theater. The theater's marquee sign is directly connected to MTV Studios and allows for live footage to be displayed there as well.^[6][2]

The theatre lounge features interactive and downloadable content for phones and other media devices. The building itself includes two private mezzanines, several dressing rooms, and a green room for up to 30 people.^[5] The theater hosts concerts, event parties, live television, web broadcasts, and award shows,^[2] including the Heisman Trophy Ceremony, which has taken place at this venue since 2005.^[7]

Joe Jonas cut loose from his brothers on October 6th, 2011 and performed at the venue on his solo tour promoting Fastlife. == Notes ==

1. ^ Best Buy Theater Lights Up Times Square (Press Release)
2. ^ ^{a b c} http://nokiatheatrenyc.com/about.php
3. ^ The New York Times: Best Buy Takes Its Brand to a Times Square Theater
4. ^ http://cinematreasures.org/theater/309/
5. ^ ^{a b} http://www.allbusiness.com/retail-trade/miscellaneous-retail-retail-stores-not/4379406-1.html
6. ^ http://www.goldstar.com/venues/new-york-city-ny/nokia-theatre-times-square.html
7. ^ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heisman_Trophy#Venue

External links

• Best Buy Theater

Coordinates: 40°45′28″N 73°59′11″W / 40.75778°N 73.98639°W / 40.75778; -73.98639