Michael Quinn’s off-Broadway play, Feltman: World’s First Hot Dog is a one-man tour de force that promises an entertaining and eye-opening look at the history of the ubiquitous hot dog.

Quinn is not just the actor/playwright/producer of this fascinating show, but is someone with a deep connection to the Feltman’s brand. This is partly a personal tale divided into two acts.

The first act brings us to Coney Island during the 1850s. Quinn plays Charles Feltman, a German immigrant struggling to sell his baked goods on the beaches of Coney Island. At wits’ end, but determined not to give up, Feltman develops his ‘red hot’, a sausage made from traditional German ingredients. He plans to sell these red hots in his buns and market them to Coney Island beachgoers as a complete handheld meal. Eventually being renamed hot dogs, they became a big hit, and Feltman’s business developed into an empire lasting nearly 90 years. Through a series of unfortunate events, the Feltmans empire collapses, and the company goes out of business in 1954.

In the second act, Quinn plays himself. Through family connections with the sons of Charles Feltman and his grandfather, Quinn inherits the secret formula for Feltman’s hot dogs. This act follows him as a teacher and local historian from the 1990s through the 2000s, where he loses his brother to the 9/11 terror attacks. This inspires Quinn to finally resurrect the Feltman’s brand to pay homage to both Charles Feltman and his own brother while bringing back a piece of Coney Island history. Just like Charles Feltman, who struggled to make a name for himself, Quinn shares how he struggled to bring the brand back from obscurity and into public consciousness to make it a success once again.

This one-hour play is packed with fascinating facts about Coney Island history and its early connections with famous actors, singers, and comedians who began their careers as vaudeville acts. You’ll find out why Coney Island grew into America’s amusement park in the late 1800s and what ultimately led to its downfall in the 1950s.

The show is family-friendly and rated PG. It is playing on select dates in March, May, and June 2026 at the 36th Street Theater. The theater is located at 36th Street and 8th Avenue in Manhattan.

For more information and to purchase tickets, go to feltmanworldsfirsthotdog.com