The farewell was a sweet sadness – but now Shakespeare in the Park is back!
The Big Apple institution is planning to reopen a post-pandemic on July 6, kicking off the season with a reinvention of “The Merry Wives of Windsor” set in Harlem.
“We’re SO READY”, Teatro Público – which produces free Shakespeare plays in Central Park – tweeted Tuesday.
Posting a photo of his empty outdoor stage in Manhattan at the Delacorte Theater, the group added, “Delacorte is not empty, it is full of hope that we will be together again this summer.”
Mayor Bill de Blasio gave a press conference at the theater on Tuesday, calling his planned reopening “a great harbinger of what’s to come in New York City.”
He cited one of the Bardo’s works as a good measure.
“Here, I hope, our lasting joy begins,” said the mayor, citing Shakespeare’s “Henry VI, Part 3”.
“The idea of standing in line to get a sunburn looks very good to me now,” joked Blasio amid the cold temperatures.
“And I’m looking forward to all of you having this sunburn together. People will line up for miles for the chance to be back in this beautiful space, and that will be a sign of rebirth. When the first actor enters the stage on July 6, it will be another sign that New York City is coming back forever. “
The theater group – which featured from Meryl Streep and Morgan Freeman in versions of “The Tamed Vixen” to Al Pacino in “The Merchant of Venice” – had to cancel Shakespeare’s programs at the Park last summer amid the coronavirus.
The state is set to allow up to 500 people at outdoor events starting next month, if participants can provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test. Without proof, the capacity for outdoor events is limited to 200. Delacorte accommodates almost 2,000.
Resident director Saheem Ali told The Post that “probably 415” people could watch Shakespeare in the Park this summer.
Another Manhattan theater also announced on Tuesday that it will reopen an off-Broadway show after the closure of COVID-19.
“The office! Musical Parody” debuted in the fall of 2018 and worked until it was stopped under state health orders of March 15, 2020.
The show’s producers said on Tuesday that they plan to reopen the show at the Jerry Orbach Theater on West 50th Street on April 9.
According to state guidelines as of April 2, indoor locations can reopen at 33% capacity or allow 100 people at a time without testing and up to 150 with testing.