Off-Broadway shows in NYC

Off-Broadway theatre refers to performances in any venue besides the 41 designated Broadway theatres in the Theatre District. All theatres with fewer than 500 seats are automatically considered off Broadway, even if they are in the Theatre District. Conversely, any venue with more than 500 seats that isn't a designated Broadway house — such as Radio City Music Hall — is also considered off Broadway.

Off-Broadway is not a specific district or area in New York City. All venues besides the 41 designated Broadway theatres are considered off Broadway, so Off-Broadway theatres are located all across the city.

There are hundreds of Off-Broadway theatres all across the city. Some of the major Off-Broadway venues and producing companies are The Public Theater, Atlantic Theater Company, Second Stage Theater, Manhattan Theatre Club, and Roundabout Theatre Company (the latter three of which operate a Broadway venue in addition to Off-Broadway venues).

Radio City Music Hall, with more than 6,000 seats, is one of the largest Off-Broadway venues in the city; though it hosts more concerts than theatre, it's best known for its annual Christmas Spectacular with the Rockettes. The 3,000-seat Metropolitan Opera House in Lincoln Center is another of the city's largest live-theatre venues.

It's impossible to name the single smallest Off-Broadway theatre, as there are lots of very small performance spaces across the city that are considered Off-Broadway venues. Some popular small Off-Broadway venues include SoHo Playhouse and the Cherry Lane Theatre, but you can discover Off-Broadway theatre in countless intimate spaces like underground clubs, small stages, and more.

Perfect Crime is the longest-running Off-Broadway show, having run since 1987. It currently plays at The Theater Center, and Catherine Russell has played the lead role for the show's entire run. The longest-running Off-Broadway show of all time is The Fantasticks, having run from 1960 to 2002 and again from 2006 to 2017.