Circle in the Square Theatre

Fun Home, and the venue, are nothing short of perfect and perfectly matched. I honestly can’t remember a better night at the theater (except maybe Rent). Kudos to the cast and crew for a wonderful job.
Please note: there’s no intermission for this show, so pee first and don’t be like the rude folks distracting the cast and audience getting up and down. It’s an intimate venue and all movements are noticed.

It’s clearly a medium-​sized venue. Not «small and intimate».
What’s my criteria? When I’m seated in Row K and it’s taxing my brand new prescription in my glasses, it’s not intimate.
Seeing shows in the winter becomes a feat of where to put your warm yet ridiculous coat. Circle in the Square sadly does not have a coat check. And if I had an actual experience with the restrooms one more level down, this may have resulted in a 3 star review. But the seats are roomy enough to sit on your coat and I went before I came. Problem solved.
There’s good leg room as well, but you refuse to stand when people need to get by you to sit, don’t get pissy if your feet get stepped on and your program gets knocked off your lap. But more on etiquette later.
The sound was excellent and for a theater-​in-​the-​round type experience, the sight lines were great. I was seated directly in front of the sound booth though, so your results may vary.
The theater attendants were plentiful and helpful. You will get plenty of warning about the no intermission and no returning to your seat during the play policy. Plenty.
Now… Why would an attendant need to tell people to not put their feet on the furniture??? Did you not just watch Fun Home? Did the stress of living in a highly polished home not impress itself upon you in the slightest? Were you in fact raised in a barn? Rule of thumb for civilized living… if other people sit there, your dirty shoes shouldn’t be on it. Thanks.

I was looking forward to seeing Fun Home, but the theatre itself made the experience better than I could have imagined! Not a bad seat in the house, and the stadium style made for a familial atmosphere. Great space!

Amazing theater with wonderful hidden treasures below the baseboard and stage. FUN Home was a moving dramatic biopic about one of my favorite lesbian cartoonists.
The seats were made for real people of my size so I was so comfortable throughout the performance. The sound was terrific. These was creative and dynamic and the action with the set was spellbinding.
The bathrooms are on the lower level with no elevator and would be hard for people with disabilities, of which I saw a few in wheelchairs.
The escalator down to the theater level was so helpful as were the ushers.
It was hard fetching a cab afterwards in the 51^st street side of the complex.

I saw Fun Home here, and the theatre could not have been cooler.
First off, it’s right next to the Gershwin. If you ever are in a two-​show day kind of mood, hit up Fun Home and Wicked.
The fact that it’s round is so cool. There are basically no obstructed seats. Every seat has a different perspective. There are ALWAYS at least 2 things going on at the same time.
I sat in the 200 section, Row G, Seat 248. Great view, but the Standing Room people being right behind you is annoying. Also, I felt like the main action was normally was happening towards the other side. I mean, the grass IS always greener. My recommendation is the 200 odd section, opposite of where I sat. If you can’t get that section, do the 200 evens.
Please enjoy this beautiful, interesting theater!

I love seeing Musicals and plays in NYC but I usually dislike the physical space. This theatre is the opposite — I loved the actual theatre.
It is a round theatre that was built when modern people with larger bodies roamed the earth. I was very comfortable, I was so happy I was all set to love the play even more.
I came here by myself as my friends had already seen Fun Home. I was able to score a front row seat, one seat just for me. I had terrific leg room, the seat was ample and I could see the stage and everyone on it.
The only thing wrong with this theatre is that for some bizarre reason they decided to build the bathrooms in the basement, down a long flight of stairs with scandalously few stalls.
This theatre gets that people are no longer miniature. Maybe one day they will also realize we also drink liquids and the resulting anatomical reaction.

I absolutely adore this theatre! It is certainly the most intimate theatre experience on Broadway and usually houses good productions. I have been here twice. The first time The River with Hugh Jackman and the second time the powerhouse musical Fun Home. Both times I had terrific views and good legroom. For The River I sat in the special «Riverbank» seats for the show in the 100s (second row) and it was an out of this world great view, and I sat center 200s Row G for Fun Home and that was also an amazing view. For Fun Home I would recommend the 200s due to some set pieces sometimes blocking views in the 100s and the actors backs look like they are turned to you a lot in the 400s. Can’t wait to come again!

This is a really cool theatre. It’s not big or flashy like a lot of the other Broadway theatres, but I think that adds to its intimacy. There’s something to be said about theatre in the round; it doesn’t always work, but when it does, it works really well.
I saw Fun Home the other night, and it’s definitely a show that works well in the round. What the other reviews have said is true; there isn’t a bad seat in the house. However, if you can avoid sitting in the 400s, I would suggest it. You’re sitting right behind the orchestra, and the majority of the songs are more focused on the opposite direction. (I was a little disappointed to watch Sydney Lucas’ back perform Ring of Keys.) Even so, it’s a great theatre, and you’ll enjoy your experience regardless of where you sit.
The ushers in this theatre seem to have seating down to a science, but I almost wonder if it’s too much. I had to go through four different ushers just to get a playbill and sit down, even though I knew exactly where it was because I had looked it up in advance. I understand that a lot of people don’t do that, but it did feel a little excessive.
Just a warning, if you plan on using the bathroom, get there right when they open the lobby (half an hour before the show). I went down around 7:35 and had to wait behind maybe ten people, but by the time I came out the line was all the way up the stairs. Then you’re trying to fight to get up the open half of the stairway while men are trying to get down to their shorter line.
All in all, this was a nice theatre, and I hope I will be able to attend more shows here in the future.

Only certain plays can work here, and they have to be directed at all sides of the audience. The plus is a very close proximity to the cast, the minus is that you don’t get 100% of the action directed to you directly. Thankfully I have seen Metamorphosis and Fun Home, both of which worked very well! Horrible bathroom situation with long lines to the basement that get so crowded that nobody can come back up the stairs without shoving everyone aside. The building is not updated or fancy, but fortunately the old bottle holds fine wine.

Saw Fun Home here last weekend and the theater is great! The seats surround the stage in a circle (hence the name), so there are really no bad seats in the theater. Keep that in mind when you’re buying tickets, because there are probably only 10 – 12 rows in the entire place.

Saw Fun Home here the night before the Tony Awards. The seats went all around the theater in an arena like fashion. This is a relatively small theater and more modern theater compared to the other more historical venues mentioned in another review. That said, the intimate seating really added to the experience.
Sure, you’re not going to get the crazy concessions and souvenirs like at the neighboring theater (Wicked) but you feel closer to the show and actors. This was definitely a no frills type of experience where there is no bad seat in the house and you leave feeling the show’s impact. It might not be everyone’s cup of tea (the minimalist atmosphere, the intense and thought provoking subject matter), but you will leave a changed person if you come in with an open mind.

Beautiful venue! Went for The River with Hugh Jackman and I loved the way the seats are all around the stage.
The only thing is that I went with my mother in law who has a hard time walking and we had to go outside and around the corner to take the service elevator and then we had to walk some more to get to the lower level of the venue. Really not easy access for handicapped or people with limited walking capacities… There should be an handicapped access within the venue to facilitate the process.

Not my favorite Broadway theater. It lacks the opulence of the theater-​going experience at most of the other historic houses in the area. Instead, you find yourself in a dim basement with an in-​the-​round setting that feels more akin to a regional theater.
Of course, there are always exceptions to the typical Circle in the Square experience — but this is only when a production goes out of the way to prove there’s a *reason* they’re in the unorthodox venue. The transformation of the space for «Lady Day,» for instance, was magical and totally fitting.
Overall, a visit to Circle in the Square is worth it for a strong or compelling production, but don’t expect the traditional «Broadway» vibe for your ticket price.

What’s great about this theatre is, there are no bad seats. It’s smaller and intimate, we had a great view of the stage when we saw Sweeney Todd.
What’s great about the round theatre and being so close to the stage is, you have a different view of the stage and the performance.
It’s close to the actors and you’ll be able to see play from a unique perspective

My husband and I came here to see the River and it was a very intimate experience. The seats form a U shape around the stage with most of the seating staged in the first five rows. We sat in row C and we felt very close to the stage, with the actors’ faces clearly visible. The seats are also positioned so people’s heads are never in your way, a huge plus since I always end up sitting behind a tall person with some ridiculous hat blocking my view. The only downside: the staff got upset when I took a picture of myself about 10 minutes before the show started. Wasn’t aware this was frowned upon in the theatre scene and thought their reprimand was a bit over the top. Otherwise, this is an amazing place to see a straight play!

The theater: It’s on the smaller side & intimate so even towards the back seats you are not far from the stage.
The show: I saw The River here about a month ago with Hugh Jackman. Not one of my favorite things he has done, it was a bit slow and the story line was bit odd and left a lot of ‘???’ at the end… but like I say it’s Hugh Jackman, the man could stand on stage and pick his nose & I would still go see him! LOL

A small, intimate theater. The husband and I went to go watch The River. The experience was so much better because it was such an intimate theater. The staff that we encountered were all polite and friendly. I would love to watch other shows at this theater in the future.

It’s literally a basement! I mean, put up some wood paneling and drop me off in an Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser and it’s practically suburban Baltimore circa 1982! This place would be a deathtrap in the event of an emergency.
The whole «basement death trap» thing aside, it’s a pretty decent space to see a show. I saw «Lombardi» here and I was so close I could practically see Judith Light spitting on Dan Lauria when she talked.
Recently, I saw Hugh Jackman in «The River», and while the play itself was totally whack, the performers were great and the intimacy of the space really made you feel connected to what was happening on the stage that juts into the U-​shaped seating area.
If someone you like is performing here, go check it out because you will totally be up close and personal.

My wife and I just saw Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill at Circle in the Square Theatre which was sad but very enjoyable. The theater itself is very clean, seems relatively new and kind of small and it seems to me that there are almost no bad seats there. I just wanted to make note of that so when you’re at say TKTS ordering tickets you can confidently ask for the cheapest seats and you wouldn’t be disappointed even if you got the very top row seating.

This is probably one of my favorite theatres for a Broadway show. No, it does not have the historic charm that I love in the other theatres, but this theatre is so unique.
The name of the theatre (Circle in the Square) describes this theatre to a T. This is an extremely intimate theatre with the circular (oval) stage completely surrounded by the audience. I’m sure this creates a challenge for the stage company in that they have no backdrops and have to find creative ways to get larger props on the stage. But this is one reason why I love this theatre. There are no more than 10 rows on any side of the stage. You are right up close and personal with the actors and the story being told. It feels like you are present in the scene.
I have seen two shows here (Lombardi and Bronx Bombers). I was in the first row for Lombardi. Completely amazing! I could see the spit and the sweat dripping off of Dan Lauria and Judith Light’s faces. I was in the third row for Bronx Bombers and I felt like I was in Yogi’s dining room with all the Yankees legends.