On the surface, this seems like a typical Midtown real estate sale: 359 West 48th Street (between Eighth and Ninth Avenues), a seven-story building that until recently served as dormitory space for Bank of China employees, has been sold for $12.5 million to developer King Capital Associates, which plans to renovate the site into market-rate housing.
However, the building in Hell's Kitchen Really Just a building? As is often the case, there's something more beyond the walls. It's hard to believe that the unassuming building at 359 W 48th Street was once a church and a famous theater complete with Kevin Bacon lookalike.
Built in 1873 by architects D&J Jardine, 359 W48th served as various houses of worship, including Faith Chapel from 1896 to 1941 and St. Nicholas Albanian Orthodox Church from 1941 to 1970 (Wikimapia, Crain's New York Business). When St. Nicholas Church moved to Jamaica, Queens, the building was converted into a 499-seat Playhouse Theatre, known for producing a wide range of shows from classics to contemporary shows (Doll House1971) to obscure (Don't bother me, I can't cope1972 (Broadway World).
Enter Kevin Bacon. By the early 1980s, the young actorAnimal House And in advanceFootloose — was already a veteran of the New York theater world, having attended the Circle in the Square drama school and played a sex worker in a stage play that received critical acclaim and won an Obie Award. Forty-Deuce (Bacon reprised the role in a later film adaptation.) In 1983, Bacon made his Broadway debut in John Byrne's The Musical, starring alongside Sean Penn and Val Kilmer. Slavic BoysThe first in a trilogy detailing the life of a Scottish carpet designer.
Slavic Boys “It was a great experience,” Bacon said. GQ In the interview, he reflected on his long career. “I'd done heaps of theatre. My heart was really in it,” he added. “I was working with Sean Penn, Val Kilmer, Jackie Earle Healy, Brian Benben. We were doing a Scottish play, and one odd weekend, I had to do this.” Footloose Audition screen test…”
Footloose The play would change the trajectory of Bacon's career, but what's less known is that he was just one of a string of already-famous or soon-to-be-famous actors to appear on the stage of the Playhouse (which, after it was sold in 1983, was also known as the Jack Lawrence Theatre), with everyone from Bacon, Penn and Kilmer to actors like Christopher Walken (who won an Obie Award for his role in 1970's “Star Wars”) performing with the company. Lemon Sky); James Earl Jones and Maria Tucci (1980s) Aloe's Lesson); Orange is the New Black Lori Tan Chin (1979) GR Points); Stockard Channing, Jeff Daniels, Eileen Worth (1984) Golden age), Tom Wopat (1978 CNR Bistro Car) played at this venue in its heyday with John Lithgow. secret Serviceis listed alongside a performer named Arthur Miller, but appears to be a separate artist from the legendary playwright.
The curtain came down in 1987 when owner Jack Lawrence sold the theater to commercial developer Alan Sackman. “My competition became Minetta Lane and the Promenade,” Lawrence told The New York Times of his decision to sell, noting that he hadn't been able to get the same union concessions as other theaters of his size. “I struggled for years.”
Sackman converted the performance space into an apartment building, successfully preserving some of the building's original design elements from its time as a church. In 1992, Sackman sold the site for $3.3 million to the Bank of China, a state-owned financial institution whose Midtown headquarters was then at 410 Madison Avenue and which still has several branches in New York today.
The building was used as housing for bank employees, according to Crain's, but the bank did not respond to requests for more details. Jeffrey Znaty of developer Kings Capital told the paper that the bank gutted the building before the pandemic but has not completed any further renovations. The Kings Capital team previously renovated the nearby 356 W 48th Street into units costing about $4,000 to $6,300 per month.
Those who move to 359 W48th will likely face similarly high rent prices, but at least they'll be able to savor the illustrious origins of their new home: There's always a bit more history behind the walls of the modest Hell's Kitchen building, as other hidden real estate gems in Hell's Kitchen make clear: Dustin Hoffman's days at St. Clements, Meryl Streep's tenure at the late Cubiccolo Theatre, and Bruce Willis's bartending stint at 10th Avenue.
