[13] To avoid disrupting the construction of the New York City Subway's Eighth Avenue Line, structural engineer David M. Oltarsh placed the Gallo Opera House's foundation, orchestra, and balcony within an enclosure that was suspended from the theater building's roof.

[18] A staircase from ground level leads to a rectangular room with leather and wood decorations, as well as a red, purple, and brown color palette.

[3][4][5] Gallo planned to present the San Carlo Grand Opera Company's productions at the theater during the autumn, renting it out for legitimate shows at other times.

[41][42] Goodman used the theater to stage a production of Laurence Stallings and Oscar Hammerstein II's musical Rainbow,[43] which ran for less than a month in late 1928.

[59] Among the theater's productions in 1931 were the plays Gray Shadow,[67] Young Sinners,[68] Ebb Tide,[69] and It Never Rains;[70] the musical Fast and Furious;[71] and performances by the New Yorker Grand Opera Company.

[72] The next year, the theater hosted several plays performed by the Spanish-speaking theatrical company La Compania Dramatic Espanola,[73] as well as another dance festival.

[89][90] That December, the Bowery Savings Bank leased the theater to the Palladium Operating Corporation, which planned to convert it into an "English"-style music hall.

[112] The first public exhibition of the theater's screen was in May 1941, when over a thousand audience members watched a live broadcast of a boxing match between Billy Soose and Ken Overlin at Madison Square Garden.

[120][a] Shielded television cameras had to be developed due to strong magnetic interference from equipment at a neighboring power substation for the New York City Subway system.

[152][153] The renovation involved the construction of a dance floor, a balcony, and a disco booth, as well as the addition of mirrors, light bars, and floating vinyl platforms.

[173][174] According to a 1977 Wall Street Journal article, "very beautiful" members of the public were almost always admitted, while men entering alone were invariably rejected to prevent predatory behavior.

[173] The band Chic wrote a song in 1978, "Le Freak", after being refused entry to the club on New Year's Eve 1977, despite having been invited by Grace Jones.

[184][185] In June 1978, the New York City Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA) mandated that Rubell and Schrager stop selling memberships and refund existing members.

[200] The organizers of a Valentine's Day party in 1979 imported 3,000 Dutch tulips, transported 4,000 square yards (3,300 m2) of sod from Bermuda, and rented eight antique sculptures that each cost $17,000.

[252][253] A federal grand jury indicted Rubell and Schrager on charges of tax evasion in June 1979, observing that the two men had skimmed $2.5 million, or as much as 60 percent of Studio 54's receipts over the past two years.

[258] Rubell and Schrager ultimately pleaded guilty to tax evasion in November 1979,[255][259] after New York magazine published a cover story describing the "party favors" that the two men gave to their friends.

[267][c] The NYSLA unanimously voted not to renew Studio 54's liquor license on February 28, 1980, citing Rubell's and Schrager's criminal convictions, although the club was allowed to continue operating.

[274] Among those who expressed interest in the club were restaurateur Mark Fleischman, television host Dick Clark, and record executive Neil Bogart.

[279][280] Studio 54 remained shuttered through the rest of the year, in large part because Rubell and Schrager continued to file legal objections against the NYSLA's revocation of the club's liquor license.

[275] Fleischman also repainted the interior and removed the original club's light fixtures,[283] and he paid the New York state government $250,000 in back taxes.

[289] Notable figures associated with the second iteration of Studio 54 included doorman Haoui Montaug,[290] as well as Paul Heyman, who was a photographer, producer, and promoter at the club.

[305][306] The nightclub tended to attract a young and racially mixed clientele who were frequently involved in fights, prompting complaints from local residents.

[321] Cabaret Royale closed in January 1995,[322] and Allied announced plans to convert the space into a virtual reality gaming venue at a cost of $10 million.

[320][323] In anticipation of Studio 54's conversion, the nightclub hosted a final party on May 23, 1996,[324][325] featuring disco star Gloria Gaynor and performers such as Crystal Waters and RuPaul.

[332][333] The old nightclub required extensive renovations and was not air-conditioned,[331] but Roundabout's artistic director Todd Haimes considered it the "only viable option" for the theatre company.

[1][9] Studio 54 was supposed to host a revival of Bob Fosse's musical Dancin' during the 2011–2012 season,[358][359] but this was ultimately canceled, and the theater was instead closed for renovations.

[372] Next, the theater hosted John Leguizamo's solo show Latin History for Morons and an American Sign Language revival of Children of a Lesser God in 2017–2018.

[167] Architectural Digest magazine described Studio 54 as "the nightclub where the velvet rope was born", its impact evident long after the venue had been converted back to a theater.

[150] GQ magazine wrote in 2020: "When you want to designate a particular brand of louche elegance on a night-time scene, Studio 54 is the natural first port of comparative call.

1, is a four-track compilation EP of disco anthems from the club's prime days, revised by musicians from both the original scene and the modern dance music era.