Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Arts & Entertainment
Curtains for Broadway?
By
Dave Hogarty
Published Oct 10, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Dave Hogarty
Published Oct 10, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Both the League of American Theater Producers and Owners and Local One, the stagehands union have put their final offers for a contract agreement on the table. Distance between the two offers could mean that almost all Broadway shows will go dark in the near future. According to The New York Times there are no more negotiating sessions scheduled, so a lockout by the producers and owners looks likely. If that happens, only four shows will continue to stage performances: “Mary Poppins,” “Pygmalion,” “Mauritius” and “The Ritz."
At issue are work rules that dictate how many stagehands are needed for a show's production and for how long. The producers would like some flexibility during their shows' expensive load-in periods. A show's load-in period is when equipment and sets are being loaded into a theater. Producers must determine how many stagehands they'll need and all of those employees are paid for the entire period, regardless of whether they're working or needed.
Local One says that it is unwilling to make costly concessions without some additional benefits. If the lockout goes through, and it could start immediately, it will be the second stoppage of Broadway shows in the last five years. The most recent one lasted four days in 2003.
(NYC - Theater District: St. James Theater, by wallyg at flickr)
Tagged
broadway
District
James Theater
Local One
Mary Poppins
new york
new york times
nyc
photos
The New York
the new york times
the ritz
theater
theater district
Dave Hogarty
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE arts-entertainment
Inside a photographer's journey to visit every neighborhood in New York City
What do you see when you record the whole of the boroughs?
By
Sonia Rao
Published Oct 5, 2026 at 11:00 a.m. ET
Banned books and Winnie the Pooh: October in NYC libraries
It's a busy month at the branches.
By
Alec Hamilton
Arts & Entertainment
Banned books and Winnie the Pooh: October in NYC libraries
It's a busy month at the branches.
By
Alec Hamilton
NYC music in October: The Strokes, a Blink-182 cover band, and Polish experimentalism
By
Hank Shteamer
Are you a New Yorker? The Department of New Yorker Verification will now decide.
By
Hannah Frishberg
In the mood for a pastoral autumn experience? Try Queens.
By
Elizabeth Shwe
and
James Ramsay
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .