The initial structure, destined for the circus of Oscar Carré, was later used for random variety shows. During the late 19th Century, when the Carré family no longer performed on a regular basis, it began to offer operettas and plays. In the 1920s, Circus Carré suffered a slight financial breakdown, and the performing family sold the building to a theatre company, thus the name changed to Theatre Carré. Under the directorship of Max Gabriël, the stables were revamped into dressing rooms, and the building, already a regular theatre venue, became profitable again.

However, new financial difficulties led to the building’s public auctioning in 1924. The buyers renovated the building, cladding it in marble, and installed a new stage. Nevertheless, the building was unprofitable until the 1930s when Amsterdamers began to pay more and more attention to the performances which were staged there. During this period, the theatre accommodated several successful performing companies and various international stars. The theatre continued to operate even during World War II, offering revues, variety shows and circus performances.

Following the war, the public required a more eclectic repertoire, and while the theatre continued to stage revues and circus performances, French and Spanish ballets were also included in its programme. Musicals came along in the late 1950s and it was inaugurated with the immediate hit ‘Porgy & Bess’.The theatre received the world premiere of ‘Free and Easy’ and boasted the production of ‘My Fair Lady’. In the 1960s, the scene was seized and dominated by one-man shows. After another financial breakdown in the 1970s, the theatre was torn down and it wasn't until the late 1970s that the city council purchased the building and restored it to its previous greatness.