BWW Exclusive: Counting Down to Jennifer Ashley Tepper's UNTOLD STORIES OF BROADWAY Book - The Mark Hellinger Theatre

To celebrate the publication of The Untold Stories of Broadway on November 12 by Dress Circle Publishing, Jennifer Ashley Tepper will be sharing three short excerpts about each of the Broadway theaters featured in the book-countdown style! Today: The Mark Hellinger Theatre!

THE UNTOLD STORIES OF BROADWAY: Tales from the World's Most Famous Theaters, Volume 1 (Dress Circle Publishing. 350 pages, $19.99) by author and musical theater historian Jennifer Ashley Tepper is the first book to recount the backstage drama of Broadway's greatest shows at eight iconic theaters. To pre-order, click here.

Using firsthand accounts from some of the biggest names in Broadway history, the book provides a look behind the curtains of the Al Hirschfield, August Wilson, Lyceum, Mark Hellinger, Marquis, Neil Simon, Richard Rodgers, and Winter Garden Theaters.

This book is the first in a multi-volume series that will examine 40 legendary Broadway theaters in total. THE UNTOLD STORIES OF BROADWAY also includes an exclusive Broadway theater map designed by Broadway artist, Justin "Squigs" Robertson. A portion of the proceeds from the book will benefit Broadway Impact, an organization of theater artists and fans mobilized in support of marriage equality. It will be available on amazon.com and in select bookstores on November 12, in both hard copy and Kindle.

Did You Know:

Tony Award-winner Charles Strouse "waited for the girls upstairs" at the Mark Hellinger?

Charles Strouse, Writer

I miss the Hellinger, because I met my wife when she was in My Fair Lady there. I used to wait backstage to court her after the show

I first met Barbara Siman at a party thrown by a girl I used to go out with. She and Barbara were friends because they were both dancers. This girl was having a party, and I guess they were lacking a guy so she asked me to come.

I saw My Fair Lady so many times. Mostly, I would see the last part of it. The stage door man-I think his name was Jerry-would let me in because he knew Barbara and I were going together. I would always watch from the wings of the Hellinger.

Did You Know:

Broadway theaters used to operate on direct current?

Jason Kantrowitz and Ken Billington, Lighting Designers

When we first started working in old Broadway theaters, you couldn't plug your blow dryer, or anything else, into the outlets in the dressing rooms. The theaters all ran on direct current.

Direct current is very efficient in operating things like motors and lighting boards. When the theaters were built, we lived in a direct current world. Some things still run on direct current, such as the New York subway system and most elevators. Alternating current can travel longer distances and is more efficient for most other electricity needs besides operating machinery.

You used to walk into a Broadway dressing room and see a sign that said "DIRECT CURRENT, DO NOT PLUG HAIR DRYERS IN." If you were lucky, there would be one alternating current socket. You couldn't plug any appliances in at all. They would blow up!

Everything started to change beginning with My Fair Lady. Abe Feder, the lighting designer, used autotransformer dimmers, which needed alternating current. It went into the Mark Hellinger Theatre, and in order for them to use those lighting boards, they had to convert the theater to alternating current. Then, My Fair Lady moved to the Broadhurst, so that theater got alternating current. It was such a hit, that it played houses all over the country. If you wanted My Fair Lady in your theater, you had to convert to alternating current.

Did You Know:

Jule Styne once had an office at the Hellinger?

Over the years, several people had offices in the Hellinger Theatre, including Jule Styne. By the account of several people, Styne's office was dingy and often smoke-filled and one couldn't see much out the dirty old window. His piano had burn marks on it from times when he'd forgotten to put his cigar out. But it was a great, cheerful place, always filled with music and meetings.

Not only did Jule Styne have his office at the Hellinger, three of his shows played there: Two on the Aisle (1951), Hazel Flagg (1953), and Fade Out-Fade In (1964).

To pre-order, click here. Founded in 2011 by Brisa Trinchero and Roberta Pereira, Dress Circle Publishing is the only publisher dedicated solely to producing books with Broadway themes. Dress Circle Publishing is eager to discover and promote new literary voices among new or established authors who are actively working in show business. For more information on Dress Circle Publishing, click here.

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