Harlem's Apollo Theater To Open Historic Expansion Next Year

HARLEM, NY — Harlem's most famous venue is about to get bigger for the first time in decades: the Apollo Theater is just months away from opening a new expansion on 125th Street that will include two new performance spaces and offices, the theater announced last week.

The plans will include two new theaters — seating 199 and 99 people each — located on the third and fourth floors of the Victoria Theater Redevelopment Project: a restoration and expansion of another historic theater just a few doors down from the Apollo on 125th.

First announced in 2018, the so-called "Apollo's Victoria Theater" was first slated to open this year but was delayed by the pandemic. Now, the expansion is on track to finish by March 2022, the theater said — marking the Apollo's first enlargement since 1934.

Next year's opening will begin with the three-concert series "Dreaming Zenzile," a modern jazz theater work based on the life of Miriam Makeba, the late South African singer and activist. It is written and performed by songwriter Somi Kakoma, presented along with the National Black Theatre.

Spanning 25,000 square feet, the new spaces at 233 West 125th St. will have year-round programming that celebrate Harlem's cultural heritage while allowing the Apollo to expand its educational, artistic and community programs, organizers said.

They will also host local artists and Harlem-based arts organizations, giving them the chance to develop performance work in a professional-level theater space, the Apollo said.

The Victoria Theater's redevelopment is a public-private partnership between the state and local developers. In 2015, the state began seeking local nonprofits to build out and manage the new venues, and the Apollo was selected.

Since then, the nonprofit theater has raised $3.75 million to help fund the theaters. Starting this November, the Apollo plans to offer subsidies that will allow local arts groups to rent out the theaters at a reduced cost, and also plans to make some of the office space available.

Once open, the Victoria will help remedy a lack of theater space in Upper Manhattan and bring in revenue to Harlem by attracting customers, the Apollo hopes.

"We know that artists, art collectives and organizations across the city look for accessible space, especially uptown. We hope that the Apollo’s Victoria will fill that void," said Kamilah Forbes, the Apollo's executive producer, in a statement.

"This expansion will allow the Apollo to look to the future while protecting the heritage that makes Harlem such an indispensable part of New York City and the world."