The residence provided young women pursuing theater a place to rest between auditions, along with opportunities to socialize and receive simple meals.
The Rehearsal Club served as the inspiration for Edna Ferber and George S. Kaufman's 1936 play Stage Door, which was adapted into the 1937 film of the same name starring Katharine Hepburn and Ginger Rogers.
[7] James Dean, before he became a Hollywood legend, often visited the Rehearsal Club and for a time dated resident Liz Sheridan, also known as "Dizzy," then a 23-year-old fledgling dancer on the Milton Berle Show.
[8][9] In 1979, Rockefeller Brothers Fund sold the buildings at 45–47 West 53rd Street to American Folk Art Museum[10] and the Rehearsal Club closed for good.
In 2018, The Rehearsal Club partnered with Webster Apartments and relaunched their residency program to provide a safe affordable haven for young women seeking careers in the performing arts.