the Broadhurst and Schoenfeld theaters. Work on the two theaters started in May 1912. The next month, the new-building application for the New Theatre (which had been filed in 1911) was withdrawn, and two new-building applications for Shubert's and Ames's theaters were filed. Herts began accepting bids for construction contractors that July, and the Fleischmann Bros. Company was selected the following month to construct both of the new theaters. The project encountered several delays and disputes over costs. Documents indicate that the Fleischmann Bros. had expressed concerns of imprecise drawings and fired several workers. Further delays occurred when Ames requested several changes to the Booth's design in mid-1912; Herts said this would require the plans to be completely redone, while J. J. Shubert believed the changes were superficial. The Fleischmann Bros. warned that the delays could set back the project further, as the sgraffito ornament could not be installed during winter. Opening and initial productions By August 1913, British actor Johnston Forbes-Robertson and his wife Gertrude Elliott had announced their plans to open the new Shubert Theatre with a season of plays in repertory. The New-York Tribune reported that Forbes-Robertson's appearance would "establish a dramatic precedent of the highest order". The first event at the new Shubert Theatre was a reception for Forbes-Robertson on September 29, 1913, with Julia Marlowe, Augustus Thomas, and DeWolf Hopper making speeches. Three days later, on October 2, the theater officially opened with a revival of Hamlet, starring Forbes-Robertson. This coincided with the opening of Shubert Alley, which was first used during Hamlet intermission. At the theater's opening, Lee Shubert said, "In using for this new theatre the name of Sam S. Shubert, we consecrate it in the most solemn manner we know." At the time, there were just two other theaters on the surrounding blocks: the Little Theatre and the now-demolished Weber and Fields' Music Hall. The Forbes-Robertson Repertory Company's productions included Shakespeare plays, as well as other works such as George Bernard Shaw's play Caesar and Cleopatra. The first original production at the Shubert was the Percy MacKaye play A Thousand Years Ago, which premiered in January 1914. Next came the theater's first musical, The Belle of Bond Street with Gaby Deslys and Sam Bernard, which closed after a short run. A revival of George du Maurier's play Trilby opened at the theater in 1915. Later that year, the Shubert hosted its first