By: Hal C Clarke

A wave of support is building in Hell’s Kitchen as neighbors, former students and admirers rally to help a revered Broadway figure remain in the apartment he has called home for more than five decades, as the NY Post reported.

Nat Horne, a 95-year-old Broadway trailblazer and original member of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, is facing the possibility of losing his longtime Manhattan residence after exhausting his savings on rent and round-the-clock in-home care, according to the NY Post. The legendary dancer and teacher fears that leaving his third-floor walk-up on West 47th Street for a nursing facility could be devastating.

“I’ll probably die if they take me out,” Horne told the NY Post, describing the apartment as his “sanctuary.” “It’s my home.”

As the NY Post reported, Horne has lived in the Hell’s Kitchen apartment since 1968. Now nearly blind and diagnosed with dementia in 2023, he also recently underwent a hip replacement. Despite those challenges, friends say he remains sharp, warm and deeply connected to the neighborhood that has embraced him for decades.

The walls of Horne’s apartment are filled with photographs, posters and memorabilia chronicling a remarkable life in show business, the NY Post noted. Images of icons like Lena Horne, Lauren Bacall and Martin Sheen line the space, reminders of the countless productions and performers he helped shape.

Former student and close friend Stanley Harrison, who visits Horne nearly every day, told the NY Post that the dancer remains vibrant and emotionally present despite his declining health. Harrison said a fall last spring underscored the need for 24-hour care — a cost that quickly drained Horne’s carefully saved retirement funds.

By late summer, Harrison realized Horne’s finances would only last through the end of the year, prompting friends and neighbors to act, according to the NY Post. Donations began pouring in from across the city and beyond, as people who once studied under Horne — and many who never met him — sought to keep him in his home.

Neighbors affectionately call Horne the “Mayor of 47th Street,” the NY Post reported, a nod to his constant presence and friendly demeanor. Harrison said Horne’s generosity as a teacher left a lasting mark.

“He made us feel special,” Harrison told the NY Post, recalling how Horne would encourage students to carry themselves like “gods and goddesses.”

Horne’s influence on American theater runs deep. As the NY Post reported, he was the first Black member of the U.S. Army’s Special Services entertainment unit, boosting troop morale during the Korean War before settling in New York to pursue a stage career. He went on to perform in numerous Broadway productions, work on “The Sammy Davis Jr. Show,” and later open the Nat Horne School of Musical Theatre on West 42nd Street.