Resetting the Stage

A “cultural Mecca” for the Black community, Harlem's historic Apollo Theater is set to undergo a major renovation to keep it thriving for decades to come. Newsweek goes behind the scenes

- DAN GOODING

LIKE ANY NEW YORK CITY NEIGHBORHOOD, Harlem is in a constant state of change, wrestling with gentrification while seeking to protect its history. In among that flux has been a constant—the Apollo Theater.

First opened under a different name as a vaudeville and burlesque venue which excluded African Americans, the Apollo emerged in 1934 as a place for variety revues targeted at Harlem's growing Black population.

It became a cultural cornerstone, with artists including Ella Fitzgerald, James Brown and Sammy Davis, Jr. among the early career stars to take to its stage, which has also been graced by comedians, actors and the man who would go on to be the first Black U.S. president, then-Senator Barack Obama.

Now, the Apollo is about to close its doors, but just for a while, as it embarks on the next phase of a multimillion-dollar refurbishment and expansion, which leaders hope will help it last beyond what they say is a challenging time for the arts and Black history.

“We have lived through periods of segregation, political unrest, the pandemic. So much of the richness of what has made the Apollo what it is, is steeped in its history and legacy,” Joy Profet, chief growth officer at the Apollo, told Newsweek.

That legacy will be honored in multiple ways in the coming months and years: in the physical changes and preservations about to take place at the 91-year-old theater, a recently opened performing arts venue in the former Victoria Theater next door and in a new streaming platform with hundreds of pieces of archival footage and photos from decades past.

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