If anyone can reawaken Broadway from an unprecedented shutdown that has left many insiders fearful for the theater industry’s future, it’s Hugh Jackman.
Producers Scott Rudin, Barry Diller and David Geffen on Wednesday confirmed that their large-scale revival of Meredith Willson’s The Music Man, which will star Jackman alongside another returning Broadway treasure, Sutton Foster, is now scheduled to begin previews April 7, 2021, at the Winter Garden Theatre. Official opening night has been set for May 20.
The eagerly anticipated production originally was announced for the fall and had been logging brisk ticket sales before Broadway went dark on March 12 as part of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s pandemic mandate to suspend all large gatherings in an effort to flatten the curve of COVID-19 infections.
That original shutdown was put in place through April 12, with subsequent extensions pushing the closure back to June 7 and then again through Labor Day. An announcement is expected from trade organization the Broadway League this week extending the blackout into January, though most insiders are looking at March/April as a more realistic period for reopening.
While many productions are waiting in the wings, keeping their casts and creative teams together through the unprecedented work stoppage, the announcement of firm dates for a show on the scale of The Music Man sends a clear signal that Broadway is gearing up to get back in business.
Whether appearing in plays or musicals, Jackman has proven himself the biggest star on Broadway in the past two decades. Having such a reliable box office draw lead a splashy remounting of one of the most beloved shows in the American musical canon is perhaps the best kickoff Broadway could hope for to resuscitate the sector at this most challenging time in its history.
“Performing on Broadway is a great honor for an actor, in fact, one of the greatest,” said Jackman in a statement. “No two shows are exactly alike, in large part due to the audience. Show One is filled with anticipation, fear and excitement. It’s like an opening night eight times a week; the energy in the theater is palpable. It is those same feelings that happen every show thereafter — and you and I are going through it together.”
(Excerpt) Read more in: The Hollywood Reporter