Hot on the Syndicate’s heals were the Shubert brothers.  Beginning with just a single theater in upstate New York, Sam, Lee and Jacob (“JJ” or “Jake”) created a circuit that would eventually surpass the Syndicate.  In Cahn’s 1898 edition Sam Shubert ran his first ad.  He listed just four theaters, the Bastable Theatre in Syracuse, the Rand Opera House in Troy, the Opera House in Utica, and the Cook Opera House in Rochester, all in New York.  Sam booked the Bastable himself, but the others were booked by M. Reis, who also worked with the Syndicate.

As their holdings grew, Sam and his brothers first cooperated with the Syndicate, then competed against it, went to war with it, and eventually triumphed over it.  Before they were done, they too were said to own, lease, manage or book about a thousand theaters, coast to coast.

 

The list at right, containing forty-seven theaters, presumably are the principle theaters in the chain at the time, meaning they were probably owned or leased by the firm.  Hundreds of others were booked by the Shuberts, either on a consistent basis, or just on occasion.

​However, unlike the Syndicate managers, the Shuberts did produce their own shows.  This made it possible to have a reliable, steady stream of attractions for their houses.