Broadway and the Virus

[jo]

Recognizing that nobody knows how Broadway audiences will react to the evolving coronavirus threat, the producers of 5 major shows are offering a special $ 50 offer for any remaining tickets unsold for the month of March. Scott Rudin ( who is leading the initiative) is producer for West Side Story, To Kill A Mockingbird, Book of Mormon. Other shows are Lehman Trilogy and Virginia Woolf.

www.broadwayworld.com/article/BREAKING-All-Tickets-For-WEST-SIDE-STORY-TO-KILL-A-MOCKINGBIRD-and-More-Will-Be-50-Through-March-20200310

In a statement, producer Scott Rudin said, "As long as New York City is open for business, its beating heart remains the Broadway stage. This is an unprecedented opportunity for everyone to see a show that they otherwise might not have had easy and affordable access to. I can't pretend that great theater is the panacea we've been waiting for, but in the meantime I think we could all use a few hours away from the evening news."

EDIT: It seems he is also producing Lehman Trilogy and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf. Hey, Mr.Producer


Jo

[jo]

Who knows - maybe Scott Rudin and his co-producers may even have some special offers for fans of THE MUSIC MAN - when hopefully it will open to a reinvigorated Broadway! At Hugh's prodding, of course! Just like what he and Sonia Friedman did for The River!

Jo

[jo]

This is the full article from THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER --

www.talkinbroadway.com/allthatchat_new/d.php?id=2481745

CULTURE


Scott Rudin Slashes Ticket Prices to Hit Broadway Productions Due to Coronavirus (Exclusive)

3:00 AM PDT 3/10/2020 by David Rooney

In the first concrete sign that Broadway is preparing to take a major financial beating, remaining seats to all of the producer's shows will sell at the flat rate of $50 from Thursday through the end of March.


Starting at noon on Thursday, remaining seats for five of the hottest tickets on Broadway will be going for a fraction of their normal price, selling for just $50 apiece at all performances through March 29.


Producer Scott Rudin today announced the extraordinary measure of establishing the deep-discount flat rate for all five of his shows, all of which have been playing to sold-out houses or close to it.

That includes long-running smash The Book of Mormon, blockbuster drama To Kill a Mockingbird and the recently opened revival of West Side Story, which has been pulling capacity crowds. Also covered are two plays currently in previews and off to a strong start at the box office: Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, starring Laurie Metcalf and Rupert Everett; and the epic saga of the immigrant brothers who became a capitalist institution, The Lehman Trilogy, directed by Sam Mendes.
Standard top prices for those shows are around $200, which is the norm for Broadway, with premium tickets going for considerably higher.

"These are shows that are playing to fantastically healthy business," Rudin told The Hollywood Reporter. "My partners and I want the buildings full — even, and especially, during this crisis — and this is the way to ensure it. I don't want the actors looking into a sea of red velvet. Nobody wants that. I want no deadwood in these buildings — and my colleagues and I want to give people the chance to see these shows when they otherwise might not be able to afford tickets or to even get tickets."


The move is a direct response to the uncertainties gripping the entertainment sector as the coronavirus situation continues to unfold and the number of ticket cancellations starts to climb.

While Broadway grosses for the week ending Sunday remained steady, even showing a very slight increase from the same period last year, industry insiders have been quietly bracing for a significant impact as group bookings are canceled, along with a high volume of tickets purchased by international tourists, traditionally the bread and butter of Broadway.
"Nobody knows what this will be or how long it will last," said Rudin. "I'm assuming it will be a fast burn and that life will soon be back to normal. In the interim, while it's happening, we want to look after both our colleagues and our customers with as much care as we can. That includes showing up to give great shows to the people who are showing up to see them. That's our obligation."


The March-April window ahead of the April 23 cutoff point for 2020 Tony Awards eligibility is stacked with 17 upcoming Broadway openings and as of now, no production has announced plans to postpone. That could change, however, if the situation deteriorates further and more patrons start avoiding crowded theaters.

The Broadway League, the trade organization that represents theater producers and owners, so far has stuck to boilerplate policy announcements in response to the coronavirus scare, indicating increased attention to the cleaning and disinfecting of all public and backstage areas, in line with the standards set by public health authorities. Alcohol-based hand sanitizer dispensers have been installed in the lobbies of all theaters.

In the wake of New York state Governor Andrew Cuomo over the weekend declaring a state of emergency over the coronavirus outbreak, the League also is urging ticket holders experiencing cold or flu symptoms to stay home and contact their point of purchase for information about exchanges or refunds.

The ritual of crowds gathering at stage doors for post-show autographs and selfies has been suspended at some theaters, while others are continuing the practice but implementing stricter rules, such as avoiding physical contact and having actors use their own Sharpies to sign Playbills rather than pens handed to them by fans.

It seems inevitable that as cancellation numbers climb, more and more previously sold-out shows will be turning up on discount sites or at one of the city's TKTS booths where same-day tickets can be purchased for anywhere from 25-50 percent off their face value. The plan introduced by Rudin and his producing partners aims to avoid that by keeping their theaters full and selling $50 tickets directly to consumers via the shows' respective box offices and official ticketing outlets.
"Is it a perfect remedy to what's going on? No. It can't be," said Rudin. "But it's something. And it protects the experience of the people in the building — both onstage and in the audience — and that is what we are obliged to protect. It's not a cure but perhaps it's a salve of a kind."


"There are no citizens like the citizens of New York in terms of resilience and the ability to handle a crisis," continued Rudin. "We have seen it over and over and over. New Yorkers have grit and determination and perspicacity. The city has faced obstacles of enormous difficulty for years and years, and that won't ever change. Neither will the way we react to them. This is a city of largesse and fortitude. That is a fact of life for New York. And Broadway is the heart and soul of New York."

[jo]

Broadway will go dark...

Broadway Goes Dark Amid Coronavirus Concerns
By Playbill Staff
Mar 12, 2020

The closure is effective at 5 PM tonight, and will last through April 12.


Broadway theatres will go dark beginning 5 PM, March 12, by order of Governor Andrew Cuomo. Performances will resume the week of April 13.

The announcement comes as venues and performing arts organizations around New York City and the country have announced closures of their own amid rising concerns about the global coronavirus pandemic.

“Our top priority has been and will continue to be the health and well-being of Broadway theatregoers and the thousands of people who work in the theatre industry every day, including actors, musicians, stagehands, ushers, and many other dedicated professionals,” said Charlotte St. Martin, President of the Broadway League, in a statement. “Broadway has the power to inspire, enrich and entertain, and together we are committed to making that vital spirit a reality. Once our stages are lit again, we will welcome fans back with open arms so that they can continue to experience the joy, heart, and goodwill that our shows so passionately express every night.”

Governor Andrew Cuomo announced in a press conference that no gatherings of more than 500 people will be allowed, excepting schools, hospitals, mass transit, and nursing homes. That ban will be effective beginning 5 PM, March 13. For gatherings under 500, the seating capacity will be cut in half.

Ticketholders should contact their point of purchase regarding refunds or exchanges. No word yet on when the theatres will resume operations. SIX, the musical reimagining of Henry VIII's wives, was set to open tonight, while Lincoln Center Theatre's Flying Over Sunset was to have played its first preview. Revivals of Caroline, or Change and Plaza Suite were to have begun previews March 13, while A Soldier's Play and The Inheritance had been scheduled to play their final performances March 15.

This is the first time Broadway theatres will go dark for a prolonged period since the stagehand strike of 2007, when theatres were shuttered for 19 days.

.

[jo]

A thoughtful piece on Broadway going dark!

www.newyorker.com/culture/cultural-comment/the-coronavirus-shutdown-is-devastating-but-necessary-for-broadway

Cultural Comment
The Coronavirus Shutdown Is Devastating but Necessary for Broadway

By Michael Schulman
March 12, 2020

The theatre closures will cost tens of millions of dollars and put many people out of work. But the health risk to those workers, performing in close quarters, is too great.


Like many aspects of life under the novel coronavirus pandemic, the suspension of Broadway shows happened slowly, and then all at once. It was only on Tuesday morning—the days sure are long this week, aren’t they?—that the producer Scott Rudin announced discounted fifty-dollar tickets for his Broadway shows, including the sellout hits “The Book of Mormon” and “To Kill a Mockingbird.” “As long as New York City is open for business, its beating heart remains the Broadway stage,” Rudin said in a statement. “This is an unprecedented opportunity for everyone to see a show that they otherwise might not have had easy and affordable access to.”

Was this an “unprecedented opportunity” or a health hazard? The public was, by that point, aware of the risks of gathering in large crowds and of the concept of social distancing. I myself went to a Broadway musical on Monday night, when it seemed like an acceptable risk. The audience was packed. But, by Wednesday, the charade no longer felt sustainable. In Washington State, Governor Jay Inslee had announced a ban on gatherings of two hundred and fifty people or more in several counties. The N.B.A. season and New York’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade were cancelled, along with many live events around the world. That same day, Broadway producers announced a halt on fans gathering at the stage doors, but the show-must-go-on spirit prevailed, at least publicly. Then, in the afternoon, the Times reported that a part-time Broadway usher had tested positive for COVID-19, after having worked last week at two shows, the musical “Six” and Rudin’s own revival of “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?”



The theatre owners announced that there would be deep cleanings and the possibility of ticket exchanges, but it wasn’t until Thursday that Deadline reported that the Broadway League, the organization for Broadway owners and producers, was holding an emergency meeting to discuss a possible shutdown. This came not long after Mayor Bill de Blasio had told CNN, “I don’t want to see Broadway go dark if we can avoid it,” and said that he hoped to “strike some kind of balance.” Hours later, the inevitable finally came, as Governor Andrew Cuomo announced restrictions on gatherings of five hundred people or more. (Broadway theatres, by definition, hold five hundred people or more.) Broadway shows were cancelled through April 12th, starting Thursday night, when “Six”—a pop-music take on the wives of Henry VIII—was set to open, at the Brooks Atkinson.

Why did it take so long for Broadway to adjust? The economic costs are devastating. Despite the perennial concerns that theatre—the “fabulous invalid”—is dying, Broadway has been booming. Last season, the total box-office was $1.8 billion, and attendance was up nine and a half per cent, with nearly fifteen million patrons. The closures will cost an untold tens of millions of dollars and put actors, stagehands, ushers, and many others out of a job. Kate Shindle, the president of the Actors’ Equity Association, put out a statement calling for government assistance to arts and entertainment workers, saying, “Equity members are dedicated professionals who earn their health care and pensions one week of work at a time.” But the health risk to those workers, performing in close quarters, is too great, as it is for audiences, who skew on the older side. (The average age of Broadway theatregoers is between forty and forty-five, though matinee crowds tend to be white-haired.)



The timing is particularly bad. Springtime is one of the busiest parts of the Broadway season, as a barrage of new shows open before the Tony deadline, in late April. Among the new shows whose openings have just been scuttled are the Tracy Letts drama “The Minutes,” a gender-swapped revival of “Company,” Martin McDonagh’s black comedy “Hangmen,” a new musical about Princess Diana, the Neil Simon comedy “Plaza Suite,” and a musical version of “Mrs. Doubtfire.” Several others were meant to open soon after April 12th, including the Lincoln Center Theatre musical “Flying Over Sunset,” a revival of David Mamet’s “American Buffalo,” and the baseball comedy “Take Me Out”—all of which will lose their preview periods.

Even if we assume that theatre is back on by mid-April, it’s unclear whether all these productions will survive. Rumors are already swirling that some shows are bowing out for good, but a Broadway publicist assured me on Thursday that “American Buffalo,” “Beetlejuice,” “The Minutes,” “Hangmen,” and the new musical “Sing Street” will resume the week of April 13th, “when the government indicates Broadway can re-open.” (It’s far from the world’s most pressing problem, but the Tony Awards schedule will need to be rethought.) Nothing of this magnitude has ever happened to the Broadway industry, apart from brief shutdowns for strikes and after 9/11. At the Wall Street Journal, Terry Teachout has proposed using livestreaming as an interim method for keeping the industry afloat. Off Broadway companies and regional theatres around the country are also cancelling performances, leaving the institutions that produce them and the artists and workers who put them onstage financially vulnerable.



There is hardly a profession, a country, or a facet of daily life that won’t be affected by the pandemic. But a ban on crowds cuts to the core of what gives theatre its identity. The Broadway shutdown may have come a few days later than it should have, but it’s the right move, if a painful one. In the eighties, the New York theatre scene weathered a different kind of health crisis, one that was prolonged and deadly and devastating, wiping out nearly a generation of artists and audiences. Of the many works of art that flowered from the AIDS epidemic, one of the most recent is Matthew Lopez’s multigenerational drama “The Inheritance,” about the disconnect between the gay men who lived through it and the younger ones for whom life under it is unimaginable. The show has been playing at the Barrymore Theatre since September, and its last performance was scheduled for this Sunday. But closing came three days early.

.

[jo]

The US CDC has recommended the extension of mass gathering prohibition by another 4 weeks. Expect Broadway to be close till mid-May.

Some say it is only recommendatory...but people expect it to become reality.

People also worry not just about the withdrawal of entertainment choices... but also the likely prospect of long-term unemployment for those involved in the trade. It is also hard to determine which shows will have resources enough to re-open or to open for the first time when the bright lights return to Broadway.


www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/large-events/mass-gatherings-ready-for-covid-19.html


Discussions on the BWW and ATC boards --


www.broadwayworld.com/board/readmessage.php?thread=1121822


www.talkinbroadway.com/allthatchat_new/d.php?id=2482411

[jo]

A hopeful note from Michael Riedel --

nypost.com/2020/03/12/the-show-will-go-on-how-broadway-will-survive-coronavirus/


The feature was written before the extension of the closure period to around mid-May.

Michael Riedel
Entertainment

The show will go on: How Broadway will survive coronavirus
By Michael Riedel
March 12, 2020 | 6:16pm | Updated


With the coronavirus outbreak, Broadway is facing its worst crisis since 9/11. But it got a lifeline, albeit a thin one, from Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who yesterday prohibited gatherings of more than 500 people. That ruling allows Broadway producers, whose shows have been shut down through April 12, to collect insurance money. The payments won’t cover everything — and many shows may close or not even open — but as one producer said, “It’s something.”


As the week began, Broadway seemed determined to stick to the old adage, “The show must go on.” But as the virus — and the panic — spread, producers were shocked to see so many theatergoers clamoring for refunds or new dates. (Telecharge will automatically refund purchased tickets for performances between March 12 and April 12.)



After President Trump announced that he was prohibiting flights from Europe to America, the bottom fell out. Tourists buy nearly 65 percent of the tickets sold on Broadway, especially in the spring and summer.

Until the coronavirus abates, very few people will be traveling anywhere. Actors Equity, which represents Broadway performers, advocated for a shutdown. An actor in “Moulin Rouge!” stayed home with a fever, and everybody backstage was fearful of his condition. It’s not been determined if he has the virus.

Broadway producers met Thursday at noon to decide what to do, and everybody was “calm,” a source said. The producers realized Broadway had to close, but believe the industry can bounce back once the fear has abated.


Whether some of its new shows will survive remains to be seen. A few shows in previews don’t have enough cash reserves to see them through this storm. Tracy Letts’ new play “The Minutes,” which was to open on Sunday, was rumored to be in trouble. But a spokesman insists: “‘The Minutes’ will reopen on April 13.”

Martin McDonagh’s “Hangmen,” which won great reviews when it played off-Broadway, was also in previews and could find itself in trouble. But its producer Robert Fox says: “We will be looking at the situation, and if there is potential to reopen, we will reopen along with the other plays that are in the same situation.”


There were rumors that Broadway’s longest running show — “The Phantom of the Opera” — may have to close down for good. After 32 years, it’s dependent on the tourist trade, which will be thin for the next few months. But Andrew Lloyd Webber tells me that he has no intention of closing it. There are “huge plans to remarket and refresh it,” says Lloyd Webber, who plans to keep it open another 30 years.

Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker were due to begin previews Friday in “Plaza Suite.” They both got sick with flu in Boston during the out-of-town tryout, and were understandably worried about opening during the coronavirus outbreak. (Broderick’s sister was just diagnosed with the virus.) But they’re both troopers and have let it be known that when Broadway is up and running again, they’ll be ready to perform.


At the end of the day, that spirit is what will save Broadway. Not only has the Great White Way weathered 9/11, but it also survived the Great Depression, the financial crises of the 1970s and 2008 and another virus more deadly than coronavirus: AIDS.

That one wiped out untold numbers of theater people.



Broadway will come back, one press agent says, because “we’re good at staging comebacks.”

And when it does, I see Patti LuPone, the star of the upcoming revival of “Company,” Broderick, Parker, Hugh Jackman and the casts of “Moulin Rouge!,” “The Book of Mormon,” “Wicked,” “Dear Evan Hansen” and “Hamilton” leading the charge.

If only Elaine Stritch could be there to lead everybody in “I’m Still Here,” Broadway’s true anthem, now and forever.


“Len Berman and Michael Riedel in the Morning” airs weekdays on WOR Radio 710.

[jo]

Broadway asks for your generous heart to support the Emergency Assistance Fund/Actors Fund thru Broadway Cares/EFA in these difficult times!

www.talkinbroadway.com/allthatchat_new/d.php?id=2482557


donate.broadwaycares.org/campaign/covid-19-emergency-assistance-fund/c276873


Broadway has given us great memories -- let's help out


PS: To-date it has reached only 27% of its $ 1 million goal.


Jo

[jo]

[jo]

The outlook for Broadway, per Michael Riedel --

nypost.com/2020/03/19/for-once-broadway-isnt-going-to-quickly-bounce-back/

[jo]

And Actors Equity allows streaming under certain conditions --

Film performances and allow them to be shown on VOD!

www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/actors-equity-unveils-streaming-agreements-as-virus-shutters-live-venues-1285343

Nature has a way of forcing paradigm shifts!


Jo

[jo]

A response to the Riedel article --

On ATC --

re: Riedel: Broadway isn’t going to quickly bounce back
Posted by: KingSpeed 08:26 pm EDT 03/19/20
In reply to: Riedel: Broadway isn’t going to quickly bounce back - TimDunleavy 07:16 pm EDT 03/19/20

I wonder about The Music Man. I’m not sure Broadway will be open by then. I also wonder about TV and film sets. Surely they can’t continue with a large group of people working so intimately. That means no new TV or movies in early 2021.

Maybe it will put in question the planned rehearsal dates for TMM - July to August?

Maybe rehearsals can be reconfigured...so there are no more than 10 people in any session ( including the creative team)? is that realistic?

Jo

[jo]

In the meantime --

A Broadway serenade from Hugh

As New Yorkers are now house-bound ( the Jackmans included)!


Jo

[hughmanity]

Thanks to Jo and everyone else for your posts, both uplifting and thought-provoking.  Happy to be able to access this board in these times.  And thanks, Hugh, for the song.  

[jo]

Stay well, hughmanity

Hugh has helped uplift the spirit in more ways than one.

On March 27 --

[jo]

Andrew Lloyd Webber continues his online concert

I've put in a request

Two songs from his most lyrical, most Sondheimesque score -- ASPECTS OF LOVE!

Maybe I'm biased -- but Andrew has one of the, if not the most, melodic talent of all present-day composers!


Jo

[jo]

He may not have the melodic talent of ALWebber -- but who cares -- just looking at him singing YOU WILL BE FOUND and you forget the bleak world outside


BWW recognizes his versatility!

www.broadwayworld.com/article/Video-Hugh-Jackman-Covers-DEAR-EVAN-HANSEN-From-Quarantine-20200320

[njr]

I KNOW I’m biased, but my vote for most melodic talent goes to Paul McCartney! 😉❤️

[jo]

Update from Michael Riedel --

nypost.com/2020/04/02/company-producer-strives-to-keep-it-together/


If COMPANY officially opens but for the upcoming season ( it was only in previews before the theatres were closed) -- will it compete with The Music Man for Best Revival? But can the show hold up that long?

But more importantly, in his writeup, Riedel shares this --

Theater sources say the League will soon announce that Broadway will be dark until further notice. Producers quietly are saying they won’t be back until June or July.)

If this is a most optimistic estimate...then maybe early to mid-fall could be the more realistic timeframe?


Everything seems to be hanging in the balance


Jo

[jo]

Posted on the Twitter account of the Wall Street Journal on March 26 ( sorry, can't get to the full article) --

[jo]

[jo]

Broadway will continue to be closed and may reopen only on June 7 ( per NY Times article, including possible implications) --

www.nytimes.com/2020/04/08/theater/broadway-shows-canceled-june-coronavirus.html

Excerpts --

The Broadway League, a trade association representing producers and theater owners, said the 41 Broadway houses would remain shuttered at least through June 7. But industry leaders widely expect the theaters to remain closed longer — many say that a best-case scenario is reopening following the July 4 weekend, and that it is possible that the industry will not reopen until after Labor Day.

Official press release --

BROADWAY THEATRES EXTEND SUSPENSION
THROUGH JUNE 7, 2020

(New York, NY) – April 8, 2020 – In accordance with guidelines from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and under the continued direction of Governor Andrew Cuomo, Broadway shows in New York City will extend the current suspension of all performances through June 7, 2020.

“Our top priority continues to be the health and well-being of Broadway theatregoers and the thousands of people who work in the theatre industry every day, including actors, musicians, stagehands, ushers, and many other dedicated professionals.” said Charlotte St. Martin, President of the Broadway League. “Broadway will always be at the very heart of the Big Apple, and we join with artists, theatre professionals, and fans in looking forward to the time when we can once again experience live theatre together.”

Those holding tickets for performances through June 7, 2020 will receive an e-mail from their point of purchase with information regarding exchanges or refunds. Any customers holding tickets through June 7, 2020 that have not received an e-mail by April 12^th should reach out to their point of purchase for information regarding exchanges or refunds.

Jo

[jo]

Gov Cuomo is skeptical about the anticipated Broadway re-opening.

deadline.com/2020/04/andrew-cuomo-broadway-june-7-coronavirus-skeptical-1202903748/

[jo]

For whatever it's worth --

BWW poster shares some info from media ( Wall St Journal and Washington Post) --

JayElle
Shut down until June 7


Posted: 4/8/20 at 10:50pm
Robbie2 wrote in part: Personally, I don't think BWAY will open till after Labor Day!"


Here are 2 paragraphs from the 4/8/20 Wall St Journal:

“League President Charlotte St. Martin said it is still difficult to determine a true opening date for Broadway. It will depend not only on when New York state lifts restrictions on gatherings in venues, but also on when producers are able to get their casts fully rehearsed and ready, she said.

On top of that, the industry is mindful that it might take time before theatergoers are comfortable coming together, even if state officials give the green light, Ms. Martin said.

“We won’t bring the shows back until we feel there’s enough of an audience to be there,” she said. Professionals in the industry echoed Ms. Martin’s concerns, with some saying a September opening seemed a more realistic possibility.”



And The Washington Post which discusses the $ aspects:

“How many shows can Broadway sustain when Broadway comes back?” asked one longtime insider who did not want to be identified, for fear of industry reprisals. “Maybe it’s not 31 shows. Maybe it’s 20.”

www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/theater_dance/broadway-extends-its-shutdown-for-nearly-two-more-months-as-anxieties-rise-about-its-future/2020/04/08/2c9d606c-79ae-11ea-b6ff-597f170df8f8_story.html

[jo]

Full article from The Washington Post --

Theater & Dance
Broadway extends its shutdown for nearly two more months as anxieties rise about its future

An empty Broadway in mid-March. (Jeenah Moon for The Washington Post)
By
Peter Marks

April 9, 2020 at 2:11 a.m. GMT+8

NEW YORK — Broadway announced Wednesday that the covid-19 crisis will keep its theaters closed at least through June 7, deepening the damage to a New York institution and throwing into doubt the future of some new and long-running productions.

Representatives of numerous productions offered assurances that they plan to reopen once the shutdown ends. But given all the variables — including the expense of restarting, which could run to $1 million or more per show — speculation is rife about the viability of some of them. That is especially true for musicals that depend on tourists, who may be the last to return in robust numbers.

“How many shows can Broadway sustain when Broadway comes back?” asked one longtime insider who did not want to be identified, for fear of industry reprisals. “Maybe it’s not 31 shows. Maybe it’s 20.”



The announcement by Charlotte St. Martin, president of the Broadway League, the trade group for Broadway producers and theater owners, erased the previous return date, set for the week of April 13. “Our top priority continues to be the health and well-being of Broadway theatregoers and the thousands of people who work in the theatre industry every day,” she said in a statement.

That a shutdown would be longer for an industry that accounts for 87,000 jobs and sells $2 billion in tickets annually was a foregone conclusion: New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo (D) earlier this week extended the state’s closure of nonessential businesses to April 29. That, too, is subject to change, given the severity of the virus in the nation’s hardest-hit city and state.



New York is one of the world’s great cities for the arts — but the damage from the pandemic is proving to be catastrophic
Setting a new return date means that anyone holding tickets for Broadway shows through June 7 will get an email from the website or production that sold them, “with information regarding exchanges or refunds,” the Broadway League said.

The future is up in the air for any number of shows that were running or planning to open in one of Broadway’s 41 theaters. Smash hits such as “Hamilton,” “Come From Away,” “To Kill a Mockingbird” and “Dear Evan Hansen” — not to mention perennial box-office behemoths such as “Wicked” — are not considered to be in jeopardy. But a tier of shows that were displaying signs of weakness may have a more challenging path back, industry observers said.



Alex Brightman in “Beetlejuice,” which won’t be able to complete its run. (Matthew Murphy/Winter Garden Theatre)
No long-running show has announced a closing. A spokesman for “Mean Girls,” for example, said tickets to the musical by Tina Fey, Jeff Richmond and Nell Benjamin remain on sale for performances after June 7.

Straight plays that were supposed to open in March and April — including revivals of Richard Greenberg’s “Take Me Out,” with Jesse Tyler Ferguson, and David Mamet’s “American Buffalo,” with Sam Rockwell, Laurence Fishburne and Darren Criss — have no new opening dates. The productions say they still intend to open, but insiders report that the availability of stars who are in demand in other mediums can sometimes complicate such plans.



One immediate casualty is the completion of the run of the musical “Beetlejuice,” whose tenancy in the massive Winter Garden Theatre has to end June 6. That is because another show, a revival of “The Music Man” with Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster, has dibs on the house. “Beetlejuice” had found a following after a lackluster start, and it still plans a national tour, a spokesman said. A search for a new Broadway home is ongoing.


By many accounts, the costs of reopening rise as the shutdown continues. Marketing and advertising expenses to reinvigorate the box office can run from about $600,000 to $1 million, industry experts say. Add costs such as rehearsal expenses to get a large cast back up to speed and the price tag increases.

“I’m sure it’s going to be tough,” said Peter Bogyo, a longtime Broadway hand who wrote a how-to manual, “Broadway General Manager,” on mounting and budgeting a Broadway show. “Like the virus itself, the weakest and most vulnerable are the ones that are going to falter. They’re going to have to spend extra money to rebuild.”