Construction of the Hippodrome began in June 1904, with Frederick Thompson and Jay H. Morgan as architects, and the Fuller Company as the general contractor.
 Finishing touches were still being put in place days before the April 12, 1905 opening.
With a seating capacity of 5300, almost twice that of the Metropolitan Opera's 3000 seats, the gargantuan building is still considered as one of the true wonders of theatre architecture.
Its stage was 12 times larger than any Broadway "legit" house and was capable of holding as many as 1,000 performers at a time, or a full-sized circus with elephants and horses – who could be housed in built-in stalls under the stage.
 It also had an 14-foot (4.3 m) high, 60-foot (18 m) diameter, 8,000-gallon clear glass water tank that could be raised from below the stage by hydraulic pistons for swimming-and-diving shows.

The exterior of the red-brick and terra-cotta building was Moorish in style, with two corner towers, each of which was topped by a globe covered in electric lights.
Construction of the Hippodrome began in June 1904, with Frederick Thompson and Jay H. Morgan as architects, and the Fuller Company as the general contractor.  Finishing touches were still being put in place days before the April 12, 1905 opening. With a seating capacity of 5300, almost twice that of the Metropolitan Opera's 3000 seats, the gargantuan building is still considered as one of the true wonders of theatre architecture. Its stage was 12 times larger than any Broadway "legit" house and was capable of holding as many as 1,000 performers at a time, or a full-sized circus with elephants and horses – who could be housed in built-in stalls under the stage.  It also had an 14-foot (4.3 m) high, 60-foot (18 m) diameter, 8,000-gallon clear glass water tank that could be raised from below the stage by hydraulic pistons for swimming-and-diving shows.
The exterior of the red-brick and terra-cotta building was Moorish in style, with two corner towers, each of which was topped by a globe covered in electric lights.
New York Hippodrome