The architect was William Albert Swasey, who designed the theatre in an 18th Century Georgian style.

[8] In the basement of the 44th Street Theatre, the original rathskeller, became a small nightclub named the “Little Club” during Prohibition.

[6][9] In 1940 the building was purchased by The New York Times Company, which leased it back to Lee Shubert.

When the American Theatre Wing requested the basement club as an entertainment venue for servicemen, Shubert gave them the property without charge.

A New York Times printing plant was built in its place, part of the newspaper's postwar expansion of its 229 West 43rd Street headquarters.

[1] The printing plant was later abandoned, but a plaque remains to mark the location of the Stage Door Canteen.