Located in the East Village, Webster Hall is one of New York City’s oldest nightclubs. Built in 1886, it originally served as a hall for union rallies, weddings and military functions, and during the 1910-20s, masquerade balls. Public concerts started in the 1950s. In 1980, the Hall was a popular nightspot called The Ritz, where acts such as Prince, Tina Turner, U2, Metallica and other then-“emerging” acts performed. The club also had a unique video component. When the Ritz relocated in 1989, the Ballinger Brothers took over, with the venue reopening as Webster Hall in 1992. Today it serves as a nightclub, concert venue, corporate events center, and recording venue, and has a capacity of 1,500 people for its main theater space, with four floors and five unique environments.
In 2008, it was designated a New York City Landmark. In April 2013, New York band The Yeah Yeah Yeahs held a concert there to celebrate the release of their newest release, Mosquito.
Webster Hall is easy to get to by subway, N/Q/R or 4/5/6 to Union Square station.