Playhouse Theatre

The Playhouse Theatre is a theater located at 4045 University Way NE on The Ave in the University District, Seattle, Washington. It was converted from a tile warehouse in 1930 by Burton and Florence James, who set up the Seattle Repertory Playhouse with multi-ethnic performers and audiences.

They received funding during the Federal Theatre Project of the New Deal to set up the Negro Repertory Company, one of four FTP units in Seattle, which was based at their theatre. The facility was sold to the University of Washington in 1950, which used it for its theatre department. In 1967 it was converted from a proscenium to a thrust stage. From 2007 to 2009, the building was reconstructed to add a story and make numerous improvements.