Metro

Broadway reopens with big shows including ‘Hamilton’ and ‘Wicked’

By
Julia Marsh and
Sam Raskin
Published Sep. 14, 2021
Updated Sep. 14, 2021, 3:59 p.m. ET

Broadway’s lights are coming back on.

Theaters will reopen at 100 percent capacity Tuesday evening for marquee Broadway shows like “Hamilton,” “Wicked,” “The Lion King,” and “Chicago,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said Tuesday.

“When Broadway is up and running, it says so much about New York City,” de Blasio said at his daily press briefing, held remotely from City Hall. “Tonight, some of the biggest shows in Broadway come back.”

“You can feel the life of the city coming back all the time,” the mayor added. “That’s going to be great for the life and energy of the city, great for the jobs.”

In the coming weeks, several other productions will come back, including “Six” on Oct. 3, “Come From Away” on Sept. 21 and “Moulin Rouge” on Sept. 24. Next month, “Jagged Little Pill” is slated to return on Oct. 21 and “The Phantom of the Opera” on Oct. 22.

The Richard Rodgers Theatre, home of the musical "Hamilton," appears closed during Covid-19 lockdown in New York on May 13, 2020. Theaters for “The Lion King,” "Hamilton” and “Wicked” are set to reopen on Tuesday.
Theaters for “The Lion King,” “Hamilton” and “Wicked” are set to reopen on Sept. 14, 2021. Evan Agostini/Invision/AP

“At least 30 shows are reopening between now and the end of the year,” said Anne del Castillo, commissioner of the New York City Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment. 

“Broadway is back, [and] coming back more every single week,” said de Blasio.

As he encouraged New Yorkers to attend Broadway performances, the mayor said he is “very much looking forward to attending a show soon.” 

The cast in the hit Broadway musical the Lion King preforms for the general public on West 44th Street and 7th Avenue in Manhattan in-the-wake of the reopening of Broadway shows tonight.
The cast of “The Lion King” performs for the general public on West 44th Street and 7th Avenue in Manhattan before the reopening of Broadway shows on Sept. 14, 2021. G.N.Miller/NYPost
Costumed cast members of Broadway's "The Lion King," L. Steven Taylor, as Mufasa, right, and and Tshidi Manye, as Rafiki, left, appear in Times Square to herald the return of Broadway theater in New York, Tuesday, Sept. 14, 2021.
Costumed cast members of Broadway’s “The Lion King,” L. Steven Taylor, as Mufasa, right, and Tshidi Manye, as Rafiki, left, appear in Times Square to herald the return of Broadway theater on Sept. 14, 2021. Marc A. Hermann / Metropolitan Transportation Authority via AP

Sara Bareilles, a Tony Award-winning composer of “Waitress,” called Tuesday a “magic day.”

“This is a magic day for the entire theater community,” said the “Love Song” singer during the press conference. “To describe the feeling in the room as electric does not even do it close to justice.”

Big Apple theaters opening their doors for full crowds comes months after then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced in May that Broadway shows would be permitted to return on Sept. 14.

Lion King cast members perform in Times Square
In the coming weeks, several other productions will come back, including “Six” on Oct. 3, “Come From Away” on Sept. 21 and “Moulin Rouge” on Sept. 24. Next month, “Jagged Little Pill” is slated to return on Oct. 21 and “The Phantom of the Opera” on Oct. 22. G.N.Miller/NYPost

“This goes back months of preparation to get to this point,” said Councilman Paul Vallone (D-Queens). “To show the world again is what makes us so amazing.” 

In June, Bruce Springsteen ended Broadway’s shutdown by performing a limited engagement of his solo show.