Broadway will be dark this summer amid the coronavirus: 3 reasons why theaters may be closed for the foreseeable future

The closure of Broadway, which began in March, has already led producers to close certain productions. Disney
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said on Thursday that it Closes Broadway Music Production of "Frozen" of the pandemic Previously, producers said the curtain was forever on two-piece productions, "Hangman" and "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?"

However, there is a significant possibility that performance cancellations may be further extended, said Charlotte St. Martin, president of the Broadway League, as the arts and entertainment industry is in the fourth phase of New York. official state reopening plan, which requires the gradual start-up of certain commercial sectors as long as the State respects certain parameters.

"We literally can't reopen unless we trust the safety of the actors, the team and the spectators," St. Martin told MarketWatch. "So we don't really know when it will be and this is part of the challenge we face."

There are 3 major challenges facing Broadway shows in the coronavirus era that could reduce your chances of reopening: # 1: almost 16% of Broadway viewers are over 65 years of age. And once you remove tourists from the equation, that percentage goes down. higher, according to industry experts.

# 2: During the 2018-2019 season, tourists from outside New York's metropolitan areas bought 65% of the tickets sold for Broadway shows, according to Broadway League data, and nearly one in five members of the Broadway audience were visiting abroad.

# 3: Many theaters are over 100 years old and have narrow hallways, tight seating, and small bathrooms. The size of the audience must be reduced considerably to comply with the guidelines of health experts in order to keep people six feet apart from each other.

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It will be difficult to ensure the safety of audiences and theater professionals due to the limitations of the theaters themselves. Social distancing is not possible in most Broadway theaters, added St. Martin.

Behind the scenes, actors and crew members are often located in extremely close locations, which greatly increases the risk of transmission of an airborne disease like the coronavirus that causes COVID-19.

"Social distance simply does not make a program financially viable," said St. Martin.

But even leaving aside the problematic logistics of the reopening, there are other factors that will limit Broadway's ability to recover from the coronavirus pandemic.

Tourists are a key part of the Broadway audience

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With such a large audience share for a given Broadway show on a given day made up of visitors from outside the city, Broadway's ability to rebound will largely depend on the capacity of New York's tourism sector to return. at full power.

And if the past is any indication, it could take a long time. "It's a completely different world in which we now face September 11," said Gregg Arst, president of the theater ticket analysis and consulting company Tanna. "But the example is that it has taken international tourism about four years to return to pre-September 11 levels."

As a result, if Broadway reopens before tourism in New York recovers, producers will seek to provide seats to their shows with members of the public from New York and its suburbs.

This pivot could pose some challenges for longer programs like "Wicked" and "Chicago," said Arst. New York audiences are already familiar with these shows, which could make them more difficult to sell.

"The freshness of a new Broadway show has its own appeal," he said. "New shows may have an easier time chasing the local audience, but older shows can take this time to really revitalize New York and the fabric of Broadway as part of their lives."

Local Broadway audiences tend to be older

This is not really the case that when you watch a Broadway audience, you see a sea of ​​gray.

Although there is a perception that Broadway theater goers are older, said St. Martin, the reality is that the average age of a member of the public was 42.3 years last season. "It is not the spring chickens, but it is not the oldest audience," said St. Martin.

"You take all the tourists, what's left?" Manhattan audiences tend to lean even further, "said New York-based theater salesman Bill Hofstetter.

The elderly are particularly susceptible to the life-threatening complications of COVID-19. Patients over the age of 65 account for almost half (48%) of COVID-19-related deaths in the United States. United States

As a result, many older viewers are more afraid when they return to the seats of the Gran Vía Blanca. NAIL New York City Theater Lovers Study led by Shugoll Research, a Maryland-based marketing research firm, found that 23% of people 55 and older said it was very unlikely that they would return to the theater.

Another 45% said they would wait six months or more before reviewing the shows. Only 21% said they were very likely to start watching shows again in the coming season. "Do you want to let your father enter a theater?" Said Hofstetter.

Although older audience members are an important part of the theater community, St. Martin noted that industry considerations regarding the timing of the reopening would not be based on any group. "Our audience must be safe regardless of their age," he said.

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How Broadway recovers

New York relies heavily on the reopening of Broadway to thrive in a post-coronavirus world. In its last season, Broadway contributed $ 14.7 billion to the Big Apple.

"These are the people who stay in hotels and eat at restaurants because they are here to see a show on Broadway," said St. Martin. Right. "Broadway is often called the beating heart of New York, but it also provides real jobs that bring real benefits not only to the Times Square area, but to the whole city."

In periods of previous unrest, the city lent a helping hand: after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the city subsidized the purchase of tens of thousands of tickets for Broadway shows. But, as St. Martin noted, "it doesn't even fill a house overnight." And that relief would only come after the city has tackled more urgent priorities.

Broadway, meanwhile, could take the approach that airlines are currently taking while battling waves of cancellations due to coronavirus, said Arst. "The airlines wait a year in advance," he said.

Most airlines currently offer coupons to travelers rather than cash refunds if they proactively cancel their travel plans due to COVID-19. Broadway could take a similar approach and try to get people to change their tickets for spring or next summer instead of canceling. "This does not mean that the client does not only want to get his money back, because there are also clients who need this financial assistance," he said.

Beyond Broadway, regional theaters, touring shows and productions off Broadway could have an easier reopening, added Hofstetter.

And viewers can expect to see discounts when the shows return, said industry experts, although these may be limited depending on the number of people seated.

Regardless of the route chosen by the producers and owners of Broadway theaters, this historic closure will be difficult to recover. "It is certainly disappointing to know that New York will be deprived of Broadway this summer," said Arst.