This theater was named after Sam S. Shubert, the second oldest of the three brothers in a theatrical producing family. It shares a Venetian Renaissance facade with the adjoining Booth Theatre, which was constructed at the same time, although the two have distinctly different interiors. The two theatres are connected by a private road/sidewalk, "Shubert Alley". It opened on 21 October 1913 with a series of Shakespearean plays, including Othello, Hamlet, and The Merchant of Venice, staged by the Forbes-Robertson Repertory Company.
