I cannot begin to express the joy I FELT when it was announced that Broadway theaters will be reopening in September! What a thrill it will be to go, sit in those seats, feel that carpet underneath my feet, be handed that Playbill, hear the announcement about cellphones and the prohibition of taking photos, then experience the lights going out and overtures starting to play. The smell of the theater, the energy of the theater. Of course, safety and health protocols will be in place, but whatever they are, a theater-starved public will be happy to follow them.
It was March 2020 that the theaters shut down and now the doors will triumphantly open and the shows will go on. The list of shows is also very impressive and exciting: Sept. 14 will usher in the first four Broadway shows. The ladies of murderess row will be back on stage as “Chicago” returns to the Ambassador Theatre; the fan favorite “Hamilton” will return to the Richard Rodgers Theatre; “The Lion King,” Disney’s beloved musical, with a mainly Black cast, will once again proclaim the beauty of the Circle of Life at the Minskoff Theatre; and “Wicked” will show us the other side of the Wizard of Oz, at the Gershwin Theatre. Sept. 17 “David Byrne’s American Utopia” will be back, though the theatre hasn’t been determined yet. Sept. 17 will also be the day that we finally get to see previews of “Six,” which will open at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre on Oct. 3. “Come From Away” will return Sept. 21 at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre. The extravagantly wild, and sexy “Moulin Rouge!” will be at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre Sept. 24. “Aladdin” will fly back into the hearts of children and adults alike Sept. 28 to the New Amsterdam Theatre.
October will also be an engaging month on Broadway as “Caroline, Or Change” will begin previews on Oct. 8 at Studio 54, opening Oct. 27. “Tina: The Tina Turner Musical” will take audiences by storm once again when it returns to the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on Oct. 8. “Ain’t Too Proud—The Life and Times of the Temptations” will be singing and splitting again at the Imperial Theatre on Oct. 16. “Jagged Little Pill,” a delightful, vibrant musical experience, will return to the Broadhurst Theatre on Oct. 21. The highly anticipated “Mrs. Doubtfire” will preview Oct. 21 at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre and open on Dec. 5. One of Broadway’s longest running shows, and with good reason, “The Phantom of the Opera” will have the chandelier falling again soon at the Majestic Theatre, when it returns Oct. 22. “Trouble in Mind” will begin previews Oct. 29 and open Nov. 18 at the American Airlines Theatre.
The months that follow will have amazing new works and some tried and true favorites. “Flying Over Sunset” will preview Nov. 4, opening Dec. 6 at Lincoln Center’s Vivian Beaumont Theater. The highly anticipated musicals “Diana: The Musical” and “MJ: The Michael Jackson Musical” will both grace the stage in December. “Diana: The Musical” will preview Dec. 1 and open Dec. 16 at the Longacre Theater, while “MJ: The Michael Jackson Musical” will preview Dec. 6 and open Feb. 1, 2022 at the Neil Simon Theatre. A musical that touches the heart, “Dear Evan Hansen” will have life breathed back into it on Dec. 11 at the Music Box Theatre. “Company” will
begin previews Dec. 20 and open Jan. 9, 2022 at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre. “The Music Man” will begin previews Dec. 20 and open Feb. 10, 2022 and “Birthday Candles” will begin previews March 18, 2022, opening April 10, 2022 at the American Airlines Theatre. “Intimate Apparel,” a new opera with music by Ricky Ian Gordon and a libretto by Lynn Nottage, based on her play of the same name, will begin previews Jan. 13, 2022 and open Jan. 27, 2022 at the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theatre at Lincoln Center.
Broadway is going to offer a variety of productions for all theatrical pallets. Upcoming shows that have not yet set their include four classic favorites—“The Book of Mormon” at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre; “Hadestown” at the Walter Kerr Theatre; “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child—Parts 1 and 2” at the Lyric Theatre; and “Girl From the North Country” at the Belasco Theatre. Revivals are certainly welcome and in abundance. “To Kill a Mockingbird” at the Shubert Theatre, “West Side Story” at the Broadway Theatre; “Skeleton Crew” at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, “Plaza Suite” at the Hudson Theatre; “Lackawanna Blues” at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre; “How I Learned to Drive” at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre; “American Buffalo” at Circle in the Square; and “1776” at the American Airlines Theatre. Additional productions coming will also include “Clyde’s” in Fall 2021 at the Helen Hayes Theatre; “The Lehman Trilogy” at the Nederlander Theatre; “The Minutes,” theatre to be announced; “Ain’t Supposed to Die a Natural Death,” theater to be announced; “Between Riverside and Crazy,” at the Helen Hayes Theatre, Fall 2022; “Pass Over” at the August Wilson Theatre; “Sing Street,” theatre to be announced; “Take Me Out” at the Helen Hayes Theatre, Spring 2022; and “Thoughts of a Colored Man” at the Golden Theatre.
To purchase tickets you can go to ticketmaster.com or go to the show websites likehttp://www.sixonbroadway.com/ or http://www.moulinrougemusical.com/ orhttp://www.passoverbroadway.com/ or http://www.mjthemusical.com/. Broadway is committed to having a safe, responsible return. The website http://www.broadwaybrighter.com/sites the Broadway Brighter Promise, which states, “Health and safety guidelines are being instituted that include intensive cleaning of all theatres, so that high-touch surfaces are regularly sanitized both backstage and in audience spaces, with each theater undergoing a thorough cleaning at least once daily and hand sanitizer made available throughout the theatre. Air filtration systems have been updated to accommodate CDC guidelines and hospital standards, so that as much fresh outdoor air as possible is filtered inside and digital tickets will be provided to reduce contact at the box office as well as at bars and merchandise stands…Masks will also be mandatory, covering the nose and mouth.”
All I know is I can’t wait to see you all back on Broadway!