Due to a lack of space, the wings on each side of the proscenium arch are smaller than mandated by city building codes.

The site occupies the west side of Broadway, between 45th and 46th Streets, in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City.

[2] The theater was included as part of a deal between Portman and the New York City Board of Estimate to increase the size of the hotel, which was completed in 1985.

[4][10] The auditorium was originally designed with a rose-and-burgundy color scheme, as well as light-colored wood and white plaster.

[17][18] The plans entailed the demolition of five theaters: the original Helen Hayes, the Morosco, the Bijou, and remnants of the Astor and the Gaiety.

[22] The Times Square Hotel Company, which was developing the Marriott Marquis, wanted any potential operator to pay $3.6 million a year.

"[24] The Nederlander Organization won the rights to operate the hotel's theater in November 1984[23][25] and signed a lease the following year.

[28] The plans for the theater were released in January 1985, the design features were highly criticized, especially by the Shuberts, who had supported the hotel.

[33][34] Architectural critic Herbert Muschamp wrote that the overall design "is not a theater environment but that of a hotel, of homogenized 'hospitality', better suited to a convention than a chorus line.

Additionally, the hotel's sewer system had an exterior vent that was near the auditorium's air intake, causing widespread reports of nausea.

This prompted Marriott to spend $500,000 on a dedicated heating, ventilation, and plumbing system for the Marquis Theatre in January 1988.

[46][47] The production starred Philip Casnoff, who was hospitalized after being hit by debris during a preview,[48][49] and Shogun ultimately flopped.

While it played host to the critically acclaimed Thoroughly Modern Millie from 2002 to 2004,[72][73] its following two shows, La Cage aux Folles in 2004[74][75] and The Woman in White in 2005, had abbreviated runs due to poor box office returns.

[80][81] Chaperone was slightly modified for its run at the Marquis, wherein the Man In Chair remarks that the production within the show originally played the Morosco Theatre, but "it was torn down in 1982, and replaced with an enormous hotel.

[92] During 2010, the Marquis hosted the Jimmy Awards for high school students,[93] as well as the productions Come Fly Away[94][95] and Donny & Marie: A Broadway Christmas.

[108] As part of a settlement with the United States Department of Justice in 2014, the Nederlanders agreed to improve disabled access at their nine Broadway theaters, including the Marquis.

[109][110] The theater hosted only one production in 2014, The Illusionists' Witness the Impossible magic show,[111][112] which made a profit on its limited run.

[124][125] In September 2018, Vornado acquired full ownership of the Marquis Theatre and the hotel's retail space for $442 million.

[126][127] The following year, Vornado sold almost half of its stake to a group of investors that included Crown Acquisitions and the Qatar Investment Authority.

[4][9] Evita achieved the box office record for the Marquis Theatre seven times;[157] it grossed $1,586,902 over eight performances for the week ending May 10, 2012.