Picking a favorite Broadway theatre can be fraught. After all, what is your criteria? Most comfortable seats? Easiest to get to from your preferred subway line? Best sight lines? Most consistently the home of your favorite productions? Favorite chandelier?
There are many reasons to fall in love with a theatre, most of them subjective. But there is one objective need we all have—every so often, when attending the theatre—and if that need is not adequately met, it can ruin the experience.
I am speaking, of course, about restrooms.
Even the most prepared theatregoer may find themselves in need of the bathroom during intermission one day. And when that day comes, you will find yourself praying for an adequate number of stalls, a short line, and a well-mannered attendant who keeps things flowing at a brisk pace. Unfortunately, those three points of order are not guarantees.
Most Broadway theatres are closing in on 100 years old, with facilities to match. Thanks to some renovations over the last few decades, however, a handful of theatres have stepped up their game to deliver a restroom experience that flies in the face of the dreaded bathroom line so frequently seen snaking through Broadway's hallways.
In ranking our favorites of the Broadway theatre bathrooms, we have applied four points of consideration:
1. How many stalls are there?
2. How accessible are they?
3. Is the intermission foot traffic well-managed?
4. BONUS: Are they aesthetically pleasing?
In an ideal world, all theatre bathrooms would pass all four of these qualifiers with flying colors. But until that day comes, read on to see our ranking of the five best bathrooms on Broadway (the Marriott Marquis excepted: If you know, you know!)
5. The Lyric Theater
Currently running show: Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
The Lyric Theatre's bathrooms have been a masterclass in managerial forethought, ever since its renovation in 2017. Redesigned ahead of the Broadway premiere of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, the designers clearly kept in mind that children typically need to use the restroom more than their parents, and the Lyric bathrooms are constructed in such a way that an intermission rush is no problem.
Intuitively designed, the bathrooms are built on a curve to keep everyone moving, preventing any crowding around the sinks or in the doorway so patrons can get in, do their business, and get out with as few roadblocks in their way as possible. Bathrooms are located on the orchestra and the dress circle levels, with an accessible restroom suite in the dress circle level. While there aren't quite as many stalls as would be ideal, due to space constraints on the orchestra level, this is still a welcome step in the right direction post-renovation.
4. The Stephen Sondheim Theatre
Currently running show: & Juliet
The bathrooms at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre are wonderful, albeit a bit hard to find if you aren't familiar with the space. Located on the orchestra and lower lounge levels, they are accessible via both elevator and stairs, and wheelchair accessible options are available on the orchestra level.
Don't let the long line intimidate you: The attendants here run the bathrooms with military precision, and the only reason you can see a line form is because of the venue's decision to not install a larger holding lounge/parlor room, as is typical for most Broadway theatres. Perhaps the venue's biggest selling point, in addition to its wonderful attendants, is its capacity. While all of the bathrooms in the space are designated gender-neutral today, the bathroom that was initially built to be a women's restroom (so all stalls, instead of any urinals) has 30 well-maintained and operational stalls, triple the amount required by code! The line flies by thanks to that number, and you'll be back in your seat upstairs in no time.
3. James Earl Jones Theatre
Currently running show: Liberation
The James Earl Jones Theatre experienced one of the best bathroom renovations of all time in 2021, when an annex was built and it was renamed from the Cort Theatre. Once one of the worst bathroom setups on Broadway, with disabled patrons instructed to go to a neighboring hotel to find relief, the annex allowed for a whole new suite of bathrooms to be built, with large mirrors and flattering lighting.
Wheelchair accessible bathrooms are now reachable via an elevator trip to the lowest level of the annex, and other bathrooms are now present on every public level of the space. If we were in the business of handing out awards for best renovations, the James Earl Jones would certainly win Most Transformed.
2. The August Wilson Theatre
Currently dark but upcoming: Dog Day Afternoon
The bathrooms at the August Wilson Theatre may just be the best selfie station on Broadway. Since a series of renovations in the 1990s, the Wilson has been known for its themed lobby bathrooms, complete with stall wraps and mirror messages. They are treated like extensions of the show you are seeing, be it the catty notes from Regina George during Mean Girls' tenure, or the Berghain-esque aesthetics of the space during Cabaret's reign. We cannot wait to see what Dog Day Afternoon comes up with.
Aesthetics aside, the Wilson boasts neatly maintained bathrooms on the mezzanine level and an accessible, single-stall, all-gender restroom on the Orchestra level. Given the bathroom's proximity to the bars throughout the theatre, attendants are never far, making these some of the cleanest bathrooms on Broadway.
1. The Palace Theatre
Currently running show: Beetlejuice
The Palace Theatre is a small bladder'd theatregoer's best friend. During its renovation in 2019, spacious and well-oriented bathrooms were installed on every level of the theatre, making long lines a thing of the past, even during the most hectic of intermissions. Every bathroom is accessible, with barrier-free restrooms on floors 2 through 6 of the theatre: a rarity when numerous Broadway theatres still have the gall to direct disabled theatregoers to do their business at neighboring restaurants and hotels!
Sleek and shiny, the Palace's bathrooms are well maintained, the sinks have adequate water pressure and heat adjustments, and the attendants are active without ever feeling obtrusive. You haven't known heaven until you've seen the Palace's seemingly endless line of open stalls, leading to practically zero wait time for 99 percent of performances. There are even large and well-lit mirrors placed throughout every bathroom for spacious preening! Tens across the board.
