thebroadwayblog.com: As Broadway approaches the one-year mark of no performances, New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo has released a plan for reopening Broadway theaters and other venues. There is still no firm date for when Broadway and live, indoor theater will resume, but Cuomo did note the state is moving toward reopening venues by using rapid testing and socially distanced seating with reduced crowd sizes.
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I know that people in the theater industry are suffering from being out of work for so long and not being able to do the jobs they love. However, I think that having any sort of live theater right now is hugely irresponsible. Currently, there are new variants of the virus emerging some that vaccines may not be effective against. They are spreading rapidly and mutating. Right now is a critical time to control these variants. While it is heartbreaking that theater should not be opened it is the safest most responsible thing. The article also mentioned that indoor dining would reopen again in New York. This is directly tied to an increase in cases. If we want theater back sooner I believe keeping case numbers down so people can be vaccinated and that these vaccinations are effective against variants is of the utmost importance right now. The more cases go up the more likely there will be more mutations and variants and the more likely vaccines will be ineffective. The government should be providing financial support to artists and theater-makers, reopening theater now will only do more damage in the long run.
This article brings me hope. It is difficult to see that the superbowl and games leading up to it were allowed to have in person attendance, even with a halftime performance, but in person theatre has rarely been given a chance. I do understand that some of this is due to stadiums generally being open air, but it is still hard to watch. Sports may be the American pastime but they are not for everyone. I am sure that if Broadway and other theaters were given the chance to open sooner with Cuomo’s guidance and precautions in place, they would have accepted. At the same time, Cuomo just put a curfew into place at least in some parts of the state, so it is hard to know what the outcome will be and when performances will be given a chance to shine again in person. I hope that when even pop ups begin to occur, they are done at the right time and as safely as possible. I just hope for the best for all of those who have faced unemployment during these challenging times. Certain shows may have the record for the longest time running, but this has to be the record for the longest “intermission”.
I’m very excited at the prospect of theater returning to New York city in whatever capacity. I saw a comment a while back, about how Saturday Night Live was able to resume productions with live audiences and that it was unfair that theaters weren’t able to do the same. Honestly, after seeing how close those audience members are sitting, I am inclined to agree. Obviously, we should try to keep everyone safe and healthy, but as we slowly reopen with things like indoor dining, theaters should be part of that process. Personally, I feel like Broadway wants to wait until it can operate as normal, but that feels ridiculous. Have limited seating, keep everyone socially distanced and make it work. I know that are there concerns about revenue being much lower, but there are theaters all across America making it work with whatever budget they can get their hands on. Broadway and Cuomo need to figure out a solution, because if I can see people in Shadyside having dinner at restaurants, theaters in New York should find a way to reopen.
This was something that really caught my eye when I first read it in the New York Times. I can see how people may think doing theatre right now is irresponsible, but I feel that we have an obligation to the theatre industry to start the transition back into in person work. Many people have been without a paycheck since March of 2020 and if we don’t begin phasing back into production, I think the effects will be catastrophic for many of these people. I like the idea Cuomo had in creating this because it offers safe entertainment to bring the community of New York together. Without huge publicity, it should keep the crowds small and manageable. There is also the whole aspect of it being outside and masks still being required. The risks are much lower in that situation and I think outdoor shows are a really great way to transition back to in person work. This is something New York needs right now because the city has been so dead since March. People are getting outside all the time in the park spaces and this would be a really great opportunity to get the arts community in NYC back together again.
I am literally DYING to drive to New York and catch some of these performances. What an incredible way to get people more comfortable with unconventional presentation of theatre, and try to get entertainment back up during this pandemic. Especially in New York, which is always a place that is rich with performances and artists, I love knowing that all these creators will have a space to share their gifts again. It is really frustrating that we are able to have a Super Bowl but we can't even have outdoor theatre with audiences yet. Especially because that arena was quite literally packed with people who were being so flimsy with their mask usage, ripping them off, wearing them under their nose, and generally being unsafe. It makes me feel hopeful that we can have theatre in this capacity but I wish there was more we could do to get the industry back on it's feet again. There is so much art that has been halted in these last few months that will literally never see the light of day because of this pandemic, and that is really disheartening to think about. Being able to get some of the theatre magic back to New York city will certainly be refreshing, and I think I can speak for most theatre kids in saying I am ecstatic for these events!
As much as I would like live performance to resume and as exciting as it may be for that to happen, efforts to actualize that are not congruent with the severity of the pandemic at the moment. The article mentions New York will be allowing limited indoor dining, which, frankly, I think is a terrible idea. We can't keep making allowances like this because then the cases will never really go down. I know too many people in my life who are not careful, not as careful as they should be, or blatantly disregarding the wishes and safety of others to live a life of relative normalcy. As horrible as that sounds, adding to that would be incredibly irresponsible. The United States has an abysmal pandemic response, both on part of government restrictions and how seriously (or not seriously! I guess!) the population is taking the pandemic. Allowing in person events like this will in no way make Covid go away any sooner, and might actually prolong it.
Finally, theatre is being given even a portion of the chance that other entertainment forms have been given to resume operations during this time. Of course, I understand that theatre presents a unique challenge during this pandemic, due to the nature of audience seating and limited space inside indoor venues. The pandemic is still raging and in a lot of ways it is worse than it was when it started, but too few efforts are being made to allow theater actors and designers to continue working during this time to compensate for the amount of time theaters have remained closed. Compare this to other forms of entertainment, such as film, sports, and television, and the whole situation just infuriates me. Other industries have been finding ways to continue their art during these times, on an industry wide, and even nationwide, scale in some cases while theatre has just been left behind. Something needs to change. Finally, with a state government-endorsed plan to move forward, maybe theatre can actually begin to come back from this tragedy.
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