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While the state of New York continues to ease restrictions on the pandemic, cultural spaces are coming back to life. The cinemas in New York City were able to open with reduced capacity on March 5. The arts and entertainment venues can welcome participants back on April 2nd, with a maximum of 100 people indoors.
While the news is a welcome relief to many, it still leaves a question about when Broadway, a central industry for the city’s cultural identity and economic vitality, can start again.
The shows are canceled until May 30 this year, but few theater professionals expect a return in the spring or summer. Instead, they are looking at autumn and winter as a more opportune time to revive an industry that has come to a complete halt almost a year ago. A long-awaited production, a revival of “The Music Man”, starring Hugh Jackman, set the premiere date on February 10, 2022.
Broadway shows are canceled until May 30 this year, but few theater professionals expect a return in the spring or summer. (AP Photo / Mary Altaffer)
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Producers and breeders said they are looking forward to returning. “I can’t let this pandemic end with a 35-year legacy,” said Andrew Lloyd Webber, the famous composer behind “The Phantom of the Opera”, referring to the show’s record, which started in 1986 in the West End of London. and in 1988 on Broadway.
Returning to theaters is not so simple, since the Broadway financial model only works when shows can be played at their full capacity, according to theater professionals. This is due to production costs that can easily reach $ 15 million for a musical, as well as current expenses, such as cast and crew salaries and theater rentals, which can reach hundreds of thousands of dollars a week.
In contrast, cinemas and other locations can better manage financially with reduced capacity, allowing them to work within the new state guidelines.
Broadway theaters may open soon according to the guidelines, which increase the maximum capacity to 150 with proof of a negative Covid-19 test required of all participants. And there are plans to use the Broadway venues in the coming weeks as part of the NY PopsUp series of events designed to bring culture back to the lives of New Yorkers.
Pop-up programs are not expected to be large-scale Broadway shows, however. And state officials have not given a timetable for when capacity will be increased to make a night on Broadway a reality. “We will continue to work closely with the industry to safely increase capacity limits as public health conditions permit,” said a state spokesman.
Returning to theaters is not so simple, since the Broadway financial model only works when shows can be played at their full capacity, according to theater professionals. (AP Photo / Charles Sykes, archive)
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It is also weighing on the theater industry’s mind when viewers will feel safe to return, even if the green light is given by the state. It is a problem that goes beyond Broadway and affects sports facilities, which the state of New York has also allowed to reopen with limited capacity, and other venues. But Broadway theaters, some of which date back more than a century, are known to be cramped in a way that defies any notion of social detachment.
Broadway officials said they were aware of the issue. Charlotte St. Martin, president of the Broadway League industry trade group, said that many safety protocols are being considered for the return of Broadway, ranging from making modifications to air conditioning systems to reducing points of contact between viewers. and theater people.
The programs can be chosen by the audience members themselves, for example, instead of being delivered by porters. “We can stack them at the end of the corridors,” said Ms. St. Martin.
Other obstacles may delay the reopening of Broadway. As much as some producers want to open their doors as soon as possible, they said they need to guarantee a good advance sale, which does not happen overnight.
“In the world of my dreams, I wish I had six months” to sell tickets, said Chris Harper, one of the producers of a “Company” revival, which opened last March. Instead, Harper said he would probably have to work on a more limited schedule, but promises to open up his production anyway.
As popular as long-running musicals like “Phantom”, “Wicked” and “The Lion King” are, some in the industry have noted that such programs depend heavily on an out-of-town audience. (iStock)
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There is also the question of whether some programs will be in a better position to debut earlier than others. As popular as long-running musicals like “Phantom”, “Wicked” and “The Lion King” are, some in the industry have noted that such programs depend heavily on an out-of-town audience.
This can be a challenge for them, since tourism is not expected to recover for some time in the city. And that could leave more room for more recent shows or those that attract New York audiences who understand theater, industry professionals said.
One-act shows may have a special appeal to theatergoers, as an interval almost guarantees more interaction between members of the audience while lining up for the bathroom or the lobby bar.
“They don’t have to think about mixing for 20 minutes,” said Kevin McCollum, a veteran producer who is part of the team behind “Six,” a much-anticipated musical that is scheduled to debut on Broadway return.