Following a curtain call that capped off thunderous applause and appreciative ovations that peppered the re-opening performance of “Wicked” Tuesday night, the curtain came down.
The curtain fell and no one stepped out.
The audience remained fixed in place, basking in the moment, not ready to let go of the magic thereturn to live theater on Broadway brought after 18 months away.
Minutes passed. The cheers and applause grew louder.
The curtain was raised again. The cast took another bow, the exchange between audience and company speaking volumes.
It has been a difficult road to reach this point. There have been many hardships.
Yet the work to sustain an industry that itself sustains so much of the lifeblood of New York City has in many ways also just begun.
In a world where there is an ongoing pandemic, the future is uncertain. As a result, keeping Broadway companies and audiences safe presents several challenges.
Looking forward
Broadway officially returned last month, with the new play “Pass Over.” At the start of September, it was joined by the returning musicals “Waitress” and “Hadestown.” “Hamilton,” “Wicked,” “Chicago,” “The Lion King” and “Lackawanna Blues” held their first performances on Sept. 14, and more productions will join the ranks throughout the next few months and into early 2022.
St. Martin stated that the Broadway League has reasons to be optimistic about ticket demand and safety protocols.
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“Well, I have a very cloudy crystal ball,” she said. “Because we don’t know (what the future holds). What we know right now is that ticket sales are great for September, and many shows in October.”
St. Martin believes ticket sales and the success of COVID-19 protocols are encouraging signs for the industry.
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“Our very, very thorough and strict protocols, so far — I’m knocking on wood, by the way — have not led to any outbreaks. We have had one show open for six weeks, and several more for a couple of weeks. A couple of weeks from now, (if) there are no outbreaks, I think what we’re feeling is that our protocols are working. We spent 18 months developing them with our colleagues in the union, to ensure that the audience, the cast and the crew are safe. I say to everyone, as much as we would like to have opened in two weeks, that we would not open until we felt assured that we were delivering the best possible safety that could be delivered.”
She said the industry is keeping a close eye as things develop.
“We’re watching it, we’re not sticking our heads in the sand acting like everything is hunky dory,” She stated that. “But we’re cautiously optimistic based on what we’re seeing.”
