Overview
- The Drama Book Shop formally opened the Gilbert Parker Studio on Nov. 12, with co-owners Lin-Manuel Miranda and Thomas Kail leading the inauguration.
- The basement black-box seats up to 50 people and includes dedicated sound and lighting support plus a dressing room designed for accessibility.
- The studio houses the house piano linked to early work on In the Heights and will be available for artists to book for writing, rehearsals, readings, and small performances.
- Miranda and Kail own the shop with producers Jeffrey Seller and James L. Nederlander after rent increases forced the store from its 40th Street site and the team moved and reopened the shop on 39th Street in 2020.
- The new space aims to revive the bookstore’s role as an incubator for new work by preserving a longtime creative basement and by offering low-barrier access that could help launch the next generation of theatre projects.