Broadway Legend Joined: 9/11/16
What states are going to be the first to reopen their theatres?
I'm in Illinois, and we've had the fastest decline of new cases in the country. We're in Phase 3 of reopening, and are expected to hit Phase 4 next Friday, so I could see us having a decent amount of theatre in the area by the Fall.
Regional theaters everywhere are planning to reimagine the live experience, social distancing and masks intact for the time being. Expect some of those to open first, albeit without national tours (I think those could come back gradually if all goes well with Broadway). I'm not so sure exactly where the first notable reopening will be, though.
Some might say that Spring 2021 could be too soon for a Broadway comeback at the moment. Right now, I don't see shows gearing up for re-rehearsals/re-teching in January-February, as Charlotte St. Martin would like to see. Ya never know though... the vaccine and treatment candidates so far look quite interesting to say the least.
Broadway Star Joined: 3/10/19
My performing arts center in upstate NY built an outdoor stage and is doing a production of Midsummer Night's Dream in early July. They're having everyone bring their own concessions and set up picnic blankets at least six feet apart from each other. So maybe that counts?
Based on the huge spike on new cases, looks like South Carolina never shut down any of their theatres. They were one of the last states to impose home lockdown and they were one of the first states to re-open.
Yale Rep cancelled all shows for 2021. I think its going to be awhile. Especially in the tri-state area.
Maybe tiny, regional theaters where states have not seen a huge spike in cases. So maybe Montana or South Dakota?
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/29/19
Prather dinner theater in Fort Myers started performances again and I know of a few theaters in Orlando who have rehearsals going on. All non-union.
The more important question for me is , even if theatres in my area reopen, when will I feel comfortable enough to go. My husband is older than I am and in a "at risk" category, because of previous health problems. Also I take care of my elderly parents who are also in the at risk group. I'm not sure I will be able to go again until there is a working vaccine (and I attended live theatre at least 2-3 times a week).
San Antonio has already reconfigured and reopened The Tobin.
They are fortunate to have invested in a seating system that can reconfigure with the push of a button, allowing for very easy social distancing.
https://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local/article/Watch-This-is-what-the-Tobin-Center-will-look-15289518.php
I can imagine an outdoor theatre that can also rehearse outdoors (like the Muny) being among the first to open.
Swing Joined: 12/13/18
Gammage in Tempe, Arizona sent out updated info to season ticket holders today. Hadestown will be rescheduled to 2022. The Bands Visit and Mean Girls are also rescheduled to next summer. They still show the Hamilton tour coming this October and Oklahoma in December.
Arizona is one of the worst states right now so I don’t see any tours actually coming here for a while. I wish they would just cancel the first half of the season already instead of keeping hopes up
Broadway Star Joined: 8/7/11
Jordan Levinson said: "Regional theaters everywhere are planning to reimagine the live experience, social distancing and masks intact for the time being. Expect some of those to open first, albeit without national tours (I think those could come back gradually if all goes well with Broadway). I'm not so sure exactly where the first notable reopening will be, though.
Some mightsay that Spring 2021 couldbe too soonfor a Broadway comeback at the moment. Right now, I don't see shows gearing up for re-rehearsals/re-teching in January-February, as Charlotte St. Martin would like to see. Ya never know though... the vaccine and treatmentcandidates so far look quite interesting to say the least.
I heard today about a steroid medication that has helped people with severe cases of coronavirus. It's still being tested. It was on the radio,but not on a crackpot,conspiracy-laden program . It was on the national news and it gave me a little hope.
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/06/16/steroid-dexamethasone-reduces-deaths-from-severe-covid-19-trial.html
Broadway Legend Joined: 9/10/08
Our dinner theatre in Jacksonville started performances last week. I have a credit with them and instead of risking reclosing again due to people not following guidelines, I am going on July 1. It's Cinderella. I'm not interested in really seeing that but they already cancelled my May performance through no fault of theirs. I rescheduled for The Music Man in August and they already replaced it with another show I wasn't interested in seeing...Grease.
LizzieCurry said: "I can imagine an outdoor theatre that can also rehearse outdoors (like the Muny) being among the first to open."
I had the same thought....
Los Angeles’s Center Theater Group (Ahmanson, Mark Taper Forum, etc.) announced they would not be scheduling anything through April 2021.
Broadway Legend Joined: 8/15/15
One of my locals here in East PA opens in May 2021 so not here.
That is a realistic date. Good on CA for being amazing throughout this entire pandemic.
Florida and Arizona will be soon closed again after they stupidly reopened too soon. The spike in numbers is insane for those two states. Totally preventable of course.
Huss417 said: "Yale Rep cancelled all shows for 2021. I think its going to be awhile. Especially in the tri-state area."
Yale Rep cancelled the 2020-21 season, not all of 2021.
Goodspeed Opera House still has South Pacific starting performances on 9/11/20, rescheduled from April.
Broadway Legend Joined: 9/11/16
SmoothLover said: "LizzieCurry said: "I can imagine an outdoor theatre that can also rehearse outdoors (like the Muny) being among the first to open."
I had the same thought...."
Dave Chappelle just did a stand-up act centered around George Floyd at an outdoor venue. They showed at the beginning how audiences were social distanced with masks, and temperatures were checked before entrance.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3tR6mKcBbT4
I highly recommend it. It shows how Chappelle's work can transcend humor and become some of the most biting social commentary available today.
As an actor, and especially some place like Goodspeed, actor housing is basically quarantine. You really don't interact with anyone outside of the cast and crew, so I think it's feasible. As long as there is no interaction with the cast/crew and the audience, I could see it happening.
With theatres reopening, am curious to know what, if any, actions will be taken by AEA, if an AEA theatre reopens using non-union talent.
A large regional theatre in Ontario (Canada) announced today that they are cancelling their whole 20/21 season, with a planned opening of Fall 2021!!! We're all wondering if this will now domino to other companies across the province. It's a surprising announcement considering the current Covid numbers (which are relatively low).
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