This summer, New Yorkers were able to do just about everything they could in 2019: Eat in a packed restaurant, go to a ball game, get a shiatsu massage, sweat at a nightclub, freeze in a movie theater and jet off to Paris when they got sick of the disgusting summer in New York.
The final step of reopening — and we always knew it would be — is Broadway.
The beating heart of Times Square — the 41 historic Broadway theaters — roars back to life this month. Bruce Springsteen has helped keep the lights on since late June, but a bona fide new play, “Pass Over,” opens Sunday night. On Sept. 2, Best Musical Tony Award winner “Hadestown” and “Waitress,” starring Sara Bareilles, will kick-start 47th Street.
Juggernauts “The Lion King,” “Hamilton,” “Wicked,” “Chicago” and “Moulin Rouge” will follow soon in September.
Jeanna de Waal, who plays Princess Diana in the upcoming musical “Diana,” told The Post, “Live theater is returning and I thank God to be at the forefront of that experience.”
Broadway producer and Jujamcyn Theaters president Jordan Roth said, “For so long, this is what we’ve all been dreaming about, hoping for, planning and replanning for. Being together safely in celebration and in community. Because that‘s what makes New York New York. That’s what makes living living. That dream is finally here and we are all so ready!”
Good ol’ Broadway will look a little different from how we left it, though, for better and worse. Audiences, at first, will be wearing face masks and presenting proof of vaccination at the door. A few shows — “West Side Story,” “Frozen,” “Mean Girls” — closed prematurely due to pandemic struggles. The powerful producer Scott Rudin, who had several shows running and many more in the works, stepped aside after a Hollywood Reporter story alleged that he’s been emotionally abusive to staff.
A record eight new plays by black playwrights will debut this season.
But there is one thing that’s unchanged and timeless: that feeling of taking your seat at a legendary theater where Ethel Merman, Angela Lansbury or James Earl Jones once performed. The lights go down and suddenly it hits you.
I’m at a Broadway show.
Here’s The Post’s guide to an unusual, unforgettable 2021 fall season on Broadway.
What new shows are opening?
“Pass Over” (Aug. 22)
Two dudes sit on a street corner chatting. Antoinette Chinonye Nwandu’s play, starring Jon Michael Hill and Namir Smallwood, is inspired by “Waiting for Godot,” but addresses modern city issues.
August Wilson Theatre, 245 W. 52nd St.; 888-985-9421.
“Lackawanna Blues” (Sept. 28)
Ruben Santiago-Hudson brings back his autobiographical one-man show to the New York stage for the first time in 20 years.
Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, 261 W. 47th St.; 212-399-3000.
“Six” (Oct. 3)
Your teen daughter already knows every word to “Six,” a fizzy pop concert featuring Henry VIII’s sextet of spurned wives. The little musical has 100 million streams on Spotify and Apple Music.
Brooks Atkinson Theatre, 256 W. 47th St.; 212-719-4099.
“Chicken & Biscuits” (Oct. 10)
There’s nothing funnier than a funeral. Norm Lewis and Michael Urie star in this new comedy about a rambunctious family reuniting after their dad kicks the bucket.
Circle in the Square Theatre, 1633 Broadway; 212-307-0388.
“Is This a Room” (Oct. 11)
In a strange move, this documentary-theater drama will trade off nightly at the Lyceum Theatre with the play “Dana H.” The play’s script is the actual FBI transcript of the interrogation of Reality Winner, who’s in prison for leaking government information.
Lyceum Theatre, 149 W. 45th St.; 212-239-6200.
“The Lehman Trilogy” (Oct. 14)
The more than a century-long history of the Lehman Brothers is told by just three men — from its founding as a modest shop to its disastrous 2008 collapse as the fourth largest investment bank in America. Be warned — getting through 100 years of facts takes about 3 hours.
Nederlander Theatre, 208 W. 41st St.; 212-921-8000.
“Dana H.” (Oct. 17)
From the fascinating, genre-bending playwright Lucas Hnath (“A Doll’s House Part II”) comes a deeply personal play: The actress Deirdre O’Connell lip-syncs to a recording of Hnath’s mother recounting being abducted by a man.
Lyceum Theatre, 149 W. 45th St.; 212-239-6200.
“Caroline, or Change” (Oct. 27)
Jeanine Tesori and Tony Kushner’s musical wasn’t a hit when it first played Broadway in 2004. But the show about a black maid with a vivid imagination has developed a devoted fanbase. This production, starring Sharon D. Clarke, comes to New York via London.
Studio 54, 254 W. 54th St.; 212-719-1300.
“Diana” (Nov. 17)
Thanks to Harry and Meghan, the royals have constantly been in the news. Now, they’re on the stage, too, in a new musical about the turbulent life of Princess Diana — played by Jeanna de Waal. “Preparing for this Broadway role again is an incredible honor that requires a new level of grit and is filled with joy,” de Waal said.
Longacre Theatre, 220 W. 48th St.; 212-239-6200.
“Trouble in Mind” (Nov. 18)
The wonderful LaChanze stars in Alice Childress’ 1955 drama about an actress who’s in rehearsals for an anti-lynching play on Broadway.
American Airlines Theatre, 227 W. 42nd St.; 212-719-1300.
“Clyde’s” (Nov. 22)
In this new play from the great writer Lynn Nottage, a woman runs a sandwich shop where former inmates get back on their feet. It stars Uzo Aduba and Ron Cephas Jones.
Hayes Theatre, 240 W. 44th St.; 212-541-4516.
What are the new COVID rules?
Like most everywhere else in New York City today, you must show proof of vaccination (for instance, your CDC card or an Excelsior Pass) to enter any Broadway theater. A negative test result won’t cut it. Then, once inside, you must wear a mask, even at your seat. These rules will remain in place till at least Oct. 31, but expect them to be extended.
Bathrooms, you say? You’ll find that many new shows are 90 minutes long and have no intermission, to prevent crowding by the bar and toilets. But for shows with one or two intermissions, the procedure will be the same — crowded, snaking lines — but with masks.
Can I bring my kids?
Bringing the kids along to events in New York these days can be confusing. The Metropolitan Opera, for instance, will not allow children under 12 for the time being until they can be vaccinated.
Kids can, however, immediately enjoy Broadway again. “Aladdin” would be pretty awkward if they couldn’t. Unvaccinated under-12-year-olds will need to show either a negative PCR test taken within the previous 72 hours or a negative antigen test taken within the previous 6 hours. They have to mask up, too.
What about eating and drinking?
Don’t fret. Your $27 pinot grigio and $10 M&Ms aren’t going anywhere. But after you buy them at the bar, you’re expected to bring them back to your seat, and only unmask when you’re taking a sip or a bite.
Are Theater District restaurants open again for dinner?
Many are.
The famous Joe Allen (326 W. 46th St.) reopened on Wednesday night. Tony Award winner John Benjamin Hickey was there for its kick-off dinner service.
Italian mainstay Barbetta (321 W. 46th St.) is back, too. As is the popular Bond 45 (221 W. 46th St.) and Hurley’s Saloon (232 W. 48th St.).
Expect the legendary Sardi’s (234 W. 44th St.) and Cafe Un Deux Trois (123 W. 44th St.) to reopen later in the fall.
The Glass House Tavern (252 W. 47th Street), where the original cast of “Hamilton” would hang out nightly, unlocked its doors to fanfare in July.
“It’s been great to see our customers,” Glass House owner Chris Reilly told The Post. “We wanted to be ready when people were coming back in the city, and it’s been great to see all the Broadway community here. We’re really looking forward to Broadway’s reopening.”