Broadway is not only an iconic New York City symbol, but as a premier tourist attraction, it’s also a major contributor to the city’s economy. New York’s theater industry contributes nearly $15 billion to the local economy and funds almost 95,000 jobs. That’s why it was such welcome news when then-governor Andrew Cuomo announced in May 2021 that NYC’s 41 Broadway theaters would reopen to full capacity following more than one year of closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Broadway theaters were originally forced to close their doors on March 12, 2020. Broadway reopened for a brief period in the summer of 2021 but closed again due to a surge in delta variant cases as well as vaccine hesitancy. Broadway has operated without interruption since reopening in September 2021, with many theaters debuting original productions.
The following is a look at five shows that debuted in the first months of 2022.
1. Skeleton Crew
A story about trust and survival set in a small automotive factory in Detroit, Skeleton Crew premiered at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre on January 19. The play, which premiered off-Broadway in 2006, was written by Tony Award nominee Dominique Morisseau and directed by Ruben Santiago-Hudson. A New York Times Critics’ Pick, Skeleton Crew stars Joshua Boone, Chante Adams, Brandon J. Dirden, Adesola Osakalumi, and Phylicia Rashad.
Ultimately, the play is about society’s collective under-appreciation for front-line workers and the blurred lines between blue- and white-collar workers. The automotive factory in the play is in danger of shutting down operations, leaving a small group of tight-knit workers to examine where their loyalty lies.
In its review of Skeleton Crew, the New York Theatre Guide notes how the play is more poignant now than it was when it debuted off-Broadway, as the pandemic revealed the true essential workers and their importance to a functioning society.
2. Paradise Square
Lower Manhattan’s Five Points neighborhood, featured prominently in the film Gangs of New York, is the setting for Paradise Square, a musical set in pre-Civil War America that highlights the then-harmonious relationship between Manhattan’s Irish and Black communities. Before the New York City draft riots of 1863, these two communities peacefully coexisted. Two-time Tony Award nominee Moisés Kaufman explores this relationship through a fictional story with inspiration from a book written by Christina Anderson, Craig Lucas, and Larry Kirwan.
Jason Howland and Bill T. Jones arranged the music and choreography, respectively, for Paradise Square. The musical’s choreography combines elements of African Juba, Irish step dancing, and tap. Joaquina Kalukango, a Tony Award nominee for Slave Play, stars as saloon owner Nelly O’Brien. The cast also includes Chilina Kennedy, who acted in more than 1,200 showings of Beautiful: The Carole King Musical on Broadway, as well as John Dossett and Sidney DuPont. Paradise Square premiered April 3 at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre.
3. Plaza Suite
Starring Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker, Plaza Suite marks the first time the married couple has appeared in a stage production since the 1995 revival of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.
Called a “smart” and “funny” play by the Daily Beast, Plaza Suite sees Broderick and Parker star as three separate couples with different circumstances (a longtime married couple, a pair of ex-lovers, and a father and mother of a bride). The entirety of the play is set in NYC’s Plaza Hotel.
Written by four-time Tony winner Neil Simon, Plaza Suite opened at the Hudson Theatre on March 28. The creative team also includes several Tony winners, including John Lee Beatty (sets), Marc Shaiman (music), Brian MacDevitt (lighting), and Jane Greenwood (costumes).
4. The Music Man
The Music Man is a beloved musical that premiered on Broadway in December 1957. The five-time Tony Award-winning production ran for 1,375 performances during its original run and was later named among the “great glories” of American pop culture by The Smithsonian Institution. It returned to Broadway at the Winter Garden Theatre on February 10, 2022, with two-time Tony, Emmy, and Grammy Award winner Hugh Jackson in the lead role as Professor Harold Hill, a traveling con artist posing as a boys’ band leader to solicit money from residents of a small town in Iowa.
The Music Man led all Broadway productions in box office revenue for the week ending March 20, the first that the Broadway League released figures for specific productions since the pandemic shutdown, with a $3.4 million take. Average ticket prices at the time were $283.
5. Take Me Out
Playwright Richard Greenberg originally wrote Take Me Out in the early 2000s, and the production was shown at the Walter Kerr Theatre from February 27, 2003, to January 4, 2004. It won Best Play at the 2003 Tony Awards. The revival of the play, which involves a Black professional baseball player managing the challenges of coming out as gay in a classic American institution, premiered at the Hayes Theatre on April 4.
Scott Ellis directed the play, while Jesse Williams plays the lead role of Darren Lemming. The play also co-stars two veteran TV actors making their Broadway debuts: Patrick J. Adams (Suits) and Jesse Tyler Ferguson (Modern Family).