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What has caused more individual shutdowns of Broadway than any other event? Wars, pandemics, strikes or power outages.
Strikes have temporarily shutdown New York City's theater district more times than any other factor.
Most of the strike related shutdowns lasted days though. Until coronavirus reached America in early 2020, the last time Broadway had been closed for more than a year had been during the American Revolution. Even during the Spanish Flu pandemic of the early 20th century, which was far deadlier than COVID-19, Broadway stayed open. For the first time since March of last year, restrictions on the theaters are about to be removed, meaning they'll be allowed to reopen but it's still going to be months before people can go see a Broadway show.
REPORTER: Broadway now has the green light to reopen on May 19th but bringing shows back isn't as simple as just flipping on a light switch. So New York's theater owners are instead going to reopen in the fall.
The timing comes as New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that capacity restrictions can be lifted on the venues later this month, much faster than many in the arts community had expected. Broadway has been dark since March of last year with an estimated 100,000 people out of work.
But re-launching Broadway shows requires weeks of advance preparation and production like rebuilding sets and costumes, bringing back staff, casting for the shows and then conducting rehearsals plus time to sell the tickets. Even if theaters could get their cast and crew in place by the summer, social distancing restrictions remain in place for indoor venues.
That limits audience size and according to an industry insider, it's a financial burden most Broadway shows can't handle. So theater fans eager for the "Great White Way" to reopen will have to wait a few more months before the lights come back on, on Broadway.
