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Broadway Shows Won't Go On

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By MICHAEL KUCHWARA, The Associated Press

Published: November 11, 2007

NEW YORK - Producers and theater owners say they're just looking for a fair agreement that wouldn't force them to hire extra workers they don't need.

Stagehands counter by declaring their union "is open to exchanges on work rules and other areas," but will absolutely refuse any plan that would cut jobs.

Therein lies the seemingly unbridgeable gap that has shut down most of Broadway, closing such well-known shows as "Wicked," "The Phantom of the Opera" and "Hairspray" as well as newer productions such as the Kevin Kline "Cyrano de Bergerac" and Disney's "The Little Mermaid," which was in previews and hadn't even officially opened.

Local One struck more than two dozen plays and musicals Saturday, causing confusion in the Times Square theater district and sending disappointed theatergoers home or to other entertainments.

Actors were left without audiences.

Patrick Page, who plays the celebrated green meanie in "Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas," appeared in front of the St. James Theatre and sang for unhappy children who couldn't see him on stage.

"It's disappointing, most of all for these kids," Page said. "They don't understand anything about contract negotiations."

The performer said there were four sold-out shows of "Grinch" scheduled on Saturday and three on Sunday.

"That's a lot of kids to turn away from the theater," he added, although he said he had sympathy for the stagehands, too. "They're the guys who keep me safe when I get hoisted up; they're the guys who put light on me," he said.

Disgruntled theatergoers were not as sympathetic.

Outside the Gershwin Theatre where "Wicked" plays, Wanda Antonetti of DuBois, Pa., and her daughter, Sherry Antonetti, of Dover, Del., contemplated where to shop. They arrived Saturday morning to celebrate Wanda Antonetti's 70th birthday and did not know about the strike until they arrived at the theater. "We came a long way for lunch," Wanda Antonetti said.

Patrons will be able to get refunds for tickets to canceled shows or exchange the tickets for the next available date, the league said.

No new negotiations have been scheduled between Local One and the League of American Theatres and Producers, so the outlook is uncertain.

Eight shows are still performing because they are playing in theaters with separate Local One contracts. They include "Young Frankenstein," "Mary Poppins," and "Xanadu."

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