‘The Original Rock Palace’, The Capitol Theatre, or colloquially ‘The Cap’, is Westchester’s music mecca...and legendary impresario Pete Shapiro has the place pulsing! Opened at 149 Westchester Avenue in Port Chester as a grand playhouse in 1926, and about to celebrate its Centennial, The Capitol earned its reputation in the late 60’s and early 70’s as a regular tour stop for some of the biggest names in music, including the Rolling Stones, Janis Joplin, Traffic, and most notably the Grateful Dead. Jerry Garcia, the legendary leader of the Grateful Dead, famously remarked about The Capitol, “See, there’s only two theaters, man, that are set up pretty groovy all around for music and for smooth stage changes, good lighting and all that - the Fillmore and The Capitol Theatre. And those are the only two in the whole country.” Shapiro purchased, refurbished, and reopened The Capitol in 2012, and today The Capitol hosts about 100 shows a year, and is otherwise available for private events. While The Capitol may be best-known as home-base for Phil Lesh and Friends - Lesh has played The Cap over 100 times, and for Bob Weir - with over 25 appearances at The Cap, the theater puts on a wide array of music, with lots of rock, blues, country, jazz and other genres, and has some top notch comedy as well. Over the last decade, The Capitol has hosted legends including Neil Young, Willie Nelson, Robert Plant, Steely Dan, My Morning Jacket, Wilco, The Avett Brothers, Elvis Costello, Snoop Dogg, Ms. Lauryn Hill, Bill Burr, Tom Segura, Billy Strings, Gary Clark Jr., and many others. Some of The Capitol’s headliners just in 2023 included Bob Weir, of course, and Bob Dylan, Peter Frampton, Brandi Carlile, Goose, Wilco, Lake Street Dive, Tina Fey & Amy Poehler, Pete Davidson, Kevin Hart, and Diana Krall.

Immediately and completely caught-up in the movement of ‘Deadheads’ following the Grateful Dead from tour date to tour date, during the summer before his junior year of college Pete drove 14,000 miles in 30 days, in an old van, passing through all 48 Continental States, and shot a film on video about the experience called And Miles To Go: On Tour with The Grateful Dead. “I was hooked, and not just on the Dead, but on the whole energy of the jam band era,” Pete declares. “During my senior year at college I was the Associate Producer on a film called Tie-Died: Rock ‘n Roll’s Most Deadicated Fans, which was released at Sundance 1995...and then Garcia died about a half-year later on August 9th of that year. ... But I’d felt the energy of the young audiences that were not just listening, but totally involved with the Dead and the other big jam bands, like Government Mule and Disco Biscuits, and who were totally loyal to stand-out performers like Bruce Springsteen and the Rolling Stones... who, in turn, could always fill an arena. I knew ‘The Dead’ would survive Jerry’s death - but I didn’t expect to play a role in some of their next iterations. And I of course had no idea that one day Stevie Van Zandt, from Springsteen’s E Street Band and a star of the TV series The Sopranos, would say about me that “Peter is the reincarnation of the ‘60’s and ‘70’s entrepreneurs. He’s as close as we have to Bill Graham,” the legendary producer of the Grateful Dead.

“I was friends with Larry Bloch, who owned a classic rock club in Manhattan called Wetlands Preserve, and in 1996 he handed me the keys,” Pete explains. “Wetlands was my education in the business of live entertainment and my entree with the biggest performers in the music industry. We had a big run, drawing sold out shows for bands like Blues Traveler, Dave Matthews, and Phish. ...But that all came to an abrupt end on 9/11, when we had to close the club. I worked on producing some films, including All Access: Front Row, Backstage. Live! in 2001, and U2 3D, the first live action digital 3D film released in movie theaters, in 2007. Then in 2009, I opened the Brooklyn Bowl at 61 Wythe Avenue in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and returned to the business of putting on shows in my own venue.” Shapiro’s Brooklyn Bowl, a combined concert venue and bowling alley, with a substantial restaurant and a screaming bar, has been a huge success. Shapiro programs and books an array of music that continues to bring packed crowds night after night. And the formula is so good, Shapiro now also owns and operates Brooklyn Bowl Philadelphia, Brooklyn Bowl Nashville, and Brooklyn Bowl Las Vegas. Separately, Shapiro owns and publishes Relix Magazine and Fans.live, with both media ventures focused on communities formed around mutual interest in music and live events. And Shapiro is a renowned producer, with the Lockn’ music festival, Central Park Jazz & Colors, the Jammy Awards, the Green Apple Earth Day Festival, and the Climate Rally to his credit, among other shows, events, and festivals. ...All register-ringing music to Shapiro’s ears.

Even more important, Shapiro is deeply involved in an array of charitable and philanthropic endeavors.

The Capitol Theatre has a dedicated Capitol Community program that contributes a portion of ticket sales to local and music- related charities, and itself runs a children’s live music program called The Rock And Roll Playhouse, which introduces young people and their parents to the music of rock ‘n’ roll at rock clubs around the country. Shapiro is also a Founder and former Chair of HeadCount, a not-for-profit that aims to use music in an effort to register voters and promote participation in democracy, and he serves on the Board of New York Public Radio and of New York’s City Parks Foundation. And he’s a family man, who gleams when he talks about his wife, Rebecca, who is a high-powered music publicist at ShoreFire Entertainment, and his two teenage kids.

“I still get to about 40 or 50 events a year at The Cap. I’m there for most of the big performers, and for some of the private events where we may have arranged something special,” Shapiro says, having just ‘done a private’ with the Tedeschi Trucks Band the night before. “I’m 51, and I feel like I’ve been putting on a party just about every night for the last 27 years! And, down deep, I want everyone to like my party and have a great time...every night! So there’s a lot of stress involved, and I have to take a risk, financially and emotionally, on every show. All the details matter - and there are a lot of moving parts! Stuff happens. I once had a small tornado hit a Tom Petty show at an outdoor event in Virginia...you duck for cover...and then get back up. At The Cap, I’m particularly focused on the visual components and a total integration of lighting and visuals for the show. And I like to be around as people start coming in - check-out the pre-show mood, and make whatever adjustments to the theater or the staff or the music or the bar that might get things primed. We have about 50 volunteer ushers at The Cap, and each one is a kind of a host to their kindred listeners in the theater that night. It’s all about keeping The Cap ‘pretty groovy’ like Garcia said! ...And, of course, I like to make sure the performers are happy! I have a great life for a lot of reasons, but, you know, the kid in me is still tickled about putting on shows with musicians like Robert Plant, Willie Nelson, Neil Young, Bob Dylan, and of course the guys from the Dead!” Monte Lipman, Founder and CEO of Republic Records, and a B&NC local, sums it up, saying, “I am the unofficial ‘President of the Pete Shapiro Fan Club’. It’s hard to imagine an individual who’s more passionate, positive, and full of life than Pete Shapiro. Attending a concert with Pete is quite the spectacle! As this bigger than life figure saunters through the venue of adoring fans, his aura of positivity and beautiful vibes are nothing short of infectious. Equally as cool is catching the early bird special for a gentleman’s round of golf with my man on a Sunday morning. Though his game could use some work, his stories and anecdotes are of historic proportions!”