Jordan Roth is President of Jujamcyn Theaters, which oversees five Broadway theaters, whose current productions include The Book of Mormon, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, Jersey Boys, Kinky Boots as well as the upcoming Side Show. Read on to hear about Jordan’s favorite neighborhoods as well as an insider tip on how to navigate Times Square.
Jordan Roth, President of Jujamcyn Theaters
As President of Jujamcyn Theaters, Jordan Roth overseas five Broadway theaters, whose current productions include the Tony Award-winning Best Musicals The Book of Mormon, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, Jersey Boys and Kinky Boots, as well as the upcoming Side Show. Additionally, Jordan is the Founder and CEO of Culturalist, where you can shape, share, and debate your opinions about anything and everything through Top 10 lists.
You grew up on the Upper East Side, now live in the West Village and work in the Theater District. You have almost all of Manhattan covered! For you, what is the defining feature of each neighborhood?
I think that all of those neighborhoods have a really distinct energy. You can almost be there, close your eyes and know where you are just by feeling it. On the Upper East Side, there is something about the width of the avenues and the way you have block after block of these beautiful buildings; each one unique and stately. In the West Village, block after block of fascinating structures. Unique windows. Doorways that go into back gardens. As well as the industrial architecture that I really respond to. I love the notion of living in a space that is industrial in scale. And, in Times Square, there is such a unique heartbeat. Such a pulse. It is literally coursing through the streets. I feel very connected to all of the neighborhoods for different reasons.
Any drawbacks?
Sure. There are drawbacks in each of them. I have never found them to outweigh the benefits. And, maybe it is part of being a New Yorker, but I don’t see them. I don’t feel them. I know they are there. Maybe you will bitch about them for a second, but they don’t get inside of you.
One of the things that I love about the city is – Walk three blocks and you are somewhere else. If it’s 9pm and the Upper East Side feels a little calm, go 20 blocks that way and – Welcome!
What is you strategy for navigating the crowded streets of Times Square on a daily basis?
I remind myself daily that a very large percentage of the people who are crowding the streets are coming to the theater. And so, I say – Bless you and come on in! Also, here is a little tip. You can cross mid-block from 44th Street to 47th Street. You can start at 44th Street and go through Shubert Alley to 45th Street. Then, go through the Marriott driveway to 46th Street. Then, cut through the Edison Hotel lobby to 47th Street. So, that is a little insider tip to bypass the main thoroughfares of Broadway and 7th if you are going uptown or downtown.
If you didn’t live in the West Village, what neighborhood would you live in?
This is a tough one because I have been in the West Village since I came back from college and I have moved twice since then. Each time, I thought – I have a five block radius. I am not going anywhere.
Like every other New Yorker, I look at all of the real estate ads every weekend. I will see some fabulous space on the Upper East Side or Central Park West and fantasize about living there, but ultimately I feel like the West Village is home for us now.
I loved Kinky Boots. What an uplifting story! If you could picture Lola in New York City, where would she live?
I think Lola is a Hell’s Kitchen girl. I don’t know if that’s just because the theater is on 45th Street and so I picture her on those blocks. I think that she is in a great walk-up that she has dolled up into a den of fabulousness!
