St Clement’s Episcopal Church

Years ago, I went to a college classmate’s party on this block (West 46^th Street, between 9^th-​10^th Avenue) and the avenue was a run-​down byway dotted with massage parlors, peep shows, drug dealers, flashers, and ruffians. Today the greasy-​spoons and bodegas have been replaced by chic restaurants with outdoor seating. (In the old days. the only «outdoor seating» would be a stoop — occupied by a thug cleaning his nails with a switchblade.)
But now it is a block for theatre-​going and gourmet dining —- miraculous!
I like attending performances at St. Clements and have been here several times. The stage is a generous size, theatrical rigging is in place, and the seats are nicely raked.
However, if you are disabled or have knee problems, be aware that there are many stairs to climb to the auditorium as well as to the basement bathrooms. Restrooms are clean but you’ll almost need a sherpa to guide you through tunnels and chambers. No elevators.

Surprisingly awesome space! Very friendly, personable Box Office & front of house personal, no frills, inexpensive concessions are, clean and relatively spacious bathrooms, proper temperature in the theater proper, and really nice playing space. Not a single bad seat in the house. Good acoustics. Comfortable, generously raked seating (so no issues with someone in front of you blocking the view).
All the charm of old school off-​broadway, with modern day amenities! Win win!

I have seen many off-​Broadway plays at this location and it is not the best venue around.
There are too many steep stairs to climb to our seats and too many stairs to the basement restroom. If you require assistance, there are no elevators. The place feels rundown, old and musty.
Well, it is off-​Broadway…

A quaint and intimate venue for off-​Broadway plays, this church may not be the easiest to navigate for people with disabilities. I came here to see A Queen for a Day (see review if you are interested) and was enchanted by the coziest of it. If you are not a fan of climbing stairs, whether to get into the church, down to the bathroom, or up the stairs to your seat (we were in C row and still had to climb), you might not find it so charming. The seats were comfortable, though slightly cramped for leg room and happily for us, stadium so the tall person in front of me didn’t obscure out view. The bathroom to my happy surprise had a few stalls and was very clean. Staff was friendly and efficient. The front door to enter to get the ticket booth seemed narrow to me. Hey, it’s old and people didn’t eat supersized portions then when it was built. If you’re built like a burly wrestler, enter sideways if you must but come see one of the plays. I didn’t see the rest of the church to rate it.

I came to St. Clement’s to see an off-​Broadway show. I was really excited, but intrigued as most shows I’ve seen have been in a theater of some sort, not that a church can’t have a theater but the elegance of the architecture of this church was really outstanding.
It also set the mood for the play I watched: «A Queen for a Day.» Not to give too much out — but if you’re a fan of the Sopranos — you’ll wanna watch it, or a fan of organized crime history/​shows/​etc. But it takes place in a warehouse, which really was illuminated by the atmosphere of the church. But this church is practically a full Broadway set — the way the lighting is played with and everything is really great.
Plus, the staff is also so wonderful — so inviting and helpful. I really enjoyed my time here and will definitely come back for future shows!

This is a beautiful group of people, committed to supporting everyone. Lovely and loving.