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Broadway Usher Has Reportedly Tested Positive For Coronavirus
By
Ben Yakas
Published Mar 11, 2020
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By
Ben Yakas
Published Mar 11, 2020
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A day after we reported on how Broadway producers and owners are grappling with how to proceed in the face of the coronavirus pandemic, a Broadway usher who worked at two theaters recently has reportedly tested positive for COVID-19, the NY Times reports.
The usher worked last week (March 3rd to 7th) at performances of a new revival of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? at the Booth Theater. Before that, the usher also helped manage lines at one or more performances of Six, a new musical about the wives of Henry VIII, which is in previews at the Brooks Atkinson Theater.
The usher, whose name has not been released, is currently under quarantine. It's not clear when they began showing symptoms. But, unbelievably, the Times writes that the show will still go on: "Both shows are expected to perform as scheduled on Wednesday night. The Shubert Organization, which operates the Booth, subjected that building to a deep clean on Wednesday, according to three people who were told about the measure."
A different usher, who asked to remain anonymous, told Gothamist on Tuesday that she thought the dangers of coronavirus had been greatly exaggerated: "People are still going to shows," she said. "We've been asked to not touch tickets, and wash our hands after the show begins. We also can't wear gloves, and yet we still hand out playbills. Totally not sure the logic behind all this. I've also been asked to track down any coughing member of the audience and note their location, which becomes quite silly as theaters themselves are not the best ventilated to begin with, and many people cough during every show. We also can't sit on the floor."
She added, "Honestly, I may be in the minority on this, because it's not the plague, AIDS, or polio...just another form of a flu. The scaremongering news tactics are what's upsetting people, not the actual illness. Zika was worse than this. I don't get the hype about it at all. I expect the theaters to shut down, but that's only if the mayor decides to. It's just ridiculous, really."
Charlotte St. Martin, the president of Broadway League, the trade group representing theater owners and producers, told Gothamist that while theaters are listening to experts and taking precautions, they would be staying "open for business and will continue until we are mandated by the city, state or federal government to shut down." The belief around the industry is that this is motivated by a desire to keep people employed with the productions, and also because if a Broadway production cancels shows voluntarily, it will not receive insurance coverage for loss of income. If there is a government mandate to shutter, losses incurred after two closed shows could be covered.
But there have been examples of people taking that ethos to the next level: producer Scott Rudin, who is behind Virginia Woolf as well as four other major current productions, slashed prices for all those shows to $50 from March 12th through March 29th. "As long as New York City is open for business, its beating heart remains the Broadway stage," Rudin said in a statement. "This is an unprecedented opportunity for everyone to see a show that they otherwise might not have had easy and affordable access to."
Dr. Irwin Redlener, the director of Columbia University's National Center for Disaster Preparedness, told Gothamist that Broadway's attitude toward the pandemic would have to change soon: "That's a pretty arrogant statement for them to make in the face of a real health emergency. If in fact it is deemed important to shut those kinds of venues down because we're worried about the spread of a dangerous disease, they're going to have to comply. I think it's very likely that we're going to actually see some mandates coming from the government that will require them to shut down."
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COVID-19
coronavirus
broadway
Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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