Broadway
Broadway plays or musicals are performed in New York City. "Off Broadway" originally referred to the location of a venue (and its productions) on a street in Manhattan's Theater District that intersected the street called Broadway—the long-time hub of the theater industry in the United States. Now, generally speaking, the term refers to a professional venue in New York City whose seating capacity is between 99 and 500, or to a specific production that first appeared in such a venue.
The rationale behind the designation is based on the implication that an Off-Broadway production is smaller and less elaborate—in terms of venue size, production cost, etc.—than a "Broadway" production.
There was a time when, regardless of the size of the venue, a theatre could not be considered Off Broadway if it were within the "Broadway Box" (the traditional Broadway Theatre District). This is no longer the case as evidenced by a number of theatres in that area, including (but not limited to) New World Stages, The Little Shubert Theatre and The Snapple Center. However, if an Off-Broadway theatre is located within the "Broadway Box," then there is a slightly higher minimum salary requirement for actors, according to Actors' Equity (labor union for live-theater performers) rules.
A number of successful Off-Broadway shows have had subsequent runs on Broadway. For instance, the musicals, "A Chorus Line", Godspell, Avenue Q, Rent, Spring Awakening, Hair, Grey Gardens, Little Shop of Horrors, and Stephen Sondheim's Sunday in the Park with George, and the plays Doubt, I Am My Own Wife, Bridge & Tunnel and Tina Howe's Coastal Disturbances were initially presented Off Broadway. However, productions such as Stomp, Blue Man Group, Altar Boys, Perfect Crime and Naked Boys Singing have run successfully for several years in Off-Broadway venues. The Fantasticks, the longest-running musical in theatre history, spent its original 42-year run Off Broadway.In 2008, three Off-Broadway shows, title of show, In the Heights and Passing Strange, transferred to Broadway although Passing Strange and title of show struggled to find audiences and closed quickly.
Off-Broadway shows, performers, and creative staff are eligible for nomination for the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award, the Outer Circle Critics Award, the Drama Desk Award, the Obie Award (presented since 1956 by The Village Voice), and the Lucille Lortel Award (created in 1985 by the League of Off-Broadway Theatres & Producers). Although Off-Broadway shows are not eligible for Tony Awards, an exception was made in 1956 (before the rules were changed), when Lotte Lenya won for "Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical," for the Off-Broadway production of The Threepenny Opera.