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Broadway theaters will officially remain closed until 2021

By Lacy Baugher

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JUNE 28: A 'we are all human' billboard for pride month is seen in Times Square on June 28, 2020 in New York City. Due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, this year's Pride march had to be canceled over health concerns. The annual event, which sees millions of attendees, marks its 50th anniversary since the first march following the Stonewall Inn riots. (Photo by Noam Galai/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JUNE 28: A 'we are all human' billboard for pride month is seen in Times Square on June 28, 2020 in New York City. Due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, this year's Pride march had to be canceled over health concerns. The annual event, which sees millions of attendees, marks its 50th anniversary since the first march following the Stonewall Inn riots. (Photo by Noam Galai/Getty Images) /
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Broadway shut down in March due to the coronavirus crisis, and its theaters will sadly stay that way at least until January 2021.

Sadly, the show won’t go on on the Great White Way anytime soon.

On Monday, the Broadway League announced that Broadway productions in New York City will remain suspended until at least January, 3, 20201. The current shutdown has been in place since March 7 due to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, and though it was originally predicted to last just a month, it has already been extended twice thus far, first to June 7 and then through Labor Day.

Now, with the official news that Broadway shows won’t return before next year, the entire theater community must figure out what’s next.

At the moment, theaters are offering returns and exchanges for shows through January 3, 2021. And returning shows, when we get to that point, are likely to open on a rolling basis, rather than all at once on a specific date.

Some productions had already made further postponement arrangements prior to the official announcement that the shutdown would continue. The upcoming big revival of The Music Man starring Hugh Jackman had already moved its opening to the spring, and the Roundabout Theater Company pushed the entirety of its 2020 season of plays into 2021.

But some shows likely won’t return at all. The Broadway musical adaptation of hit Disney movie Frozen already announced that its coronavirus-induced closing would be a permanent one. And shows like Beetlejuice, which were originally slated to complete their runs this year, will now never get to take their final bows.

When the theaters shut down in March, 31 productions were running, with another eight in previews. How many of those shows will make it back up and running – is anyone’s guess, but given the realities of production costs and ticket prices, it seems like a safe bet that they won’t all return. But which ones will – or won’t – remains to be seen.

“We are determined to bring back the people who rely on this industry for their livelihood, and to welcome back all those who love this vital part of New York City, as soon as it is safe to do so,” League President Charlotte St. Martin said in a new statement. “As so many of us in the Broadway community have been saying during this time: We’ll be back, and we have so many more stories to tell.”

Next. Frozen on Broadway won’t be returning when theaters reopen. dark

For more information about COVID-19 or the restrictions and regulations in your area, visit the CDC’s website or the website for your state’s Department of Health.

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