| Grinch Stars Beat Broadway Ban
LATEST: The stars of Broadway show THE GRINCH beat the ban on them returning to work - by giving fans an impromptu performance on the streets of New York. More than 30 performers, including many of the show's child actors, sang songs from the show, as hundreds of fans gathered outside the St James Theater on Tuesday (20Nov07). Cast and crew on all Broadway productions have been on strike since 10 November (07), supporting stagehands' quest for better pay. Union bosses gave workers on The Grinch permission to return to work, because the show is only due to run during the Christmas period and is in danger of shutting down for good. But theatre bosses refuse to let the strikers return, in support for other venues. Speaking outside the theatre on New York's 44th Street and Eight Avenue, The Grinch conductor David Rosenblum said, "We're being illegally locked out of the theatre.
Broadway stagehands, producers try to bring end to strike
NEW YORK -- Broadway stagehands and theater producers met again Sunday, the second day of intense negotiations to find a solution to a strike that has shut down 27 plays and musicals for more than a week. The union, Local 1, and the League of American Theatres and Producers would not comment on the resumption of the talks. They had met for more than 12 hours Saturday in a theater-district hotel. Pressure has mounted for a solution to the work stoppage, which began Nov. 10, because today starts the lucrative Thanksgiving holiday week, one of Broadway's best weeks of the year. The stagehands -- who include scenery and prop handlers, carpenters, electricians, and lighting and sound technicians -- have been working without a contract since the end of July. Negotiations have focused on work rules -- how many stagehands are required to open a Broadway show and keep it running.
Broadway strike claims lucrative Thanksgiving weekend
NEW YORK -- Talks broke off Sunday between striking Broadway stagehands and theater producers, and performances for more than two dozen Broadway shows were canceled through Nov. 25, the lucrative Thanksgiving holiday weekend."We are profoundly disappointed to have to tell you that talks broke off tonight, and that no further negotiations are scheduled," Charlotte St. Martin, the executive director of the League of American Theatres and Producers, said in a statement."Out of respect for our public and our loyal theatergoers, many of whom are traveling from around the world, we regret that we must cancel performances through Sunday Nov. 25," she added.Bruce Cohen, a spokesman for Local 1, the stagehands' union, said that before the talks broke off, the producers informed the union that what the local had "offered was simply not enough."The union declined further comment.The two sides met Sunday for more talks about holding a marathon, more than 12-hour session on Saturday.Pressure has mounted for a solution to the work stoppage, which began Nov.
Broadway talks bomb
NEW YORK - Talks broke off yesterday between striking Broadway stagehands and theater producers, and performances for more than two dozen Broadway shows were canceled through Nov. 25, the lucrative Thanksgiving holiday weekend. "We are profoundly disappointed to have to tell you that talks broke off tonight, and that no further negotiations are scheduled," Charlotte St. Martin, the executive director of the League of American Theatres and Producers, said in a statement. "Out of respect for our public and our loyal theatergoers, many of whom are traveling from around the world, we regret that we must cancel performances through Sunday Nov. 25," she added. Bruce Cohen, a spokesman for Local 1, the stagehands' union, said that before the talks broke off, the producers informed the union that what the local had "offered was simply not enough." The union declined further comment.
Striking Broadway stagehands, producers talk again
NEW YORK -- Broadway stagehands and theater producers met again Sunday, the second day of intense negotiations to find a solution to a strike that has shut down 27 plays and musicals for more than a week. The union, Local 1, and the League of American Theatres and Producers would not comment on the resumption of the talks. They had met for more than 12 hours Saturday in a theater-district hotel. Pressure has mounted for a solution to the work stoppage, which began Nov. 10, because Monday starts the lucrative Thanksgiving holiday week, one of Broadway's best weeks of the year. The stagehands -- who include scenery and prop handlers, carpenters, electricians, and lighting and sound technicians -- have been working without a contract since the end of July. Negotiations have focused on work rules -- how many stagehands are required to open a Broadway show and keep it running.
Thanksgiving performances canceled
NEW YORK (AP) _ Broadway faces a gloomy Thanksgiving after the collapse of talks between stagehands and theater producers with more than two dozen shows now canceled through the end of the lucrative holiday week.
Negotiations broke down Sunday after a weekend of marathon meetings between Local 1 and the League of American Theatres and Producers.
"We are profoundly disappointed to have to tell you that talks broke off tonight, and that no further negotiations are scheduled," Charlotte St. Martin, the league's executive director, said in a statement.
"Out of respect for our public and our loyal theatergoers, many of whom are traveling from around the world, we regret that we must cancel performances through Sunday Nov.
Strike unlikely to affect Broadway Series
Chances of the lights going out at Cincinnati's Aronoff Center, home to touring Broadway shows, are slim even though an ongoing stagehands strike has darkened all but eight New York City Broadway theaters since last Saturday. Broadway shows idled because of the strike include the musicals "Wicked" and "Jersey Boys." In addition, Broadway openings of such new shows as Conor McPherson's new play "The Seafarer" have been delayed. The work stoppage is expensive for the theater community. For instance, last week the Broadway box office gross on "Wicked" alone was near $853,000 for just eight performances. The Aronoff Center for the Arts, downtown, is currently hosting the touring musical "Camelot" through Nov. 25, but expects no extension of the strike to road shows. "I have no information at this time that this strike is likely to have any effect on the local market," said Stephen Loftin, president and executive director of the Cincinnati Association for the Arts that manages the Aronoff Center, Music Hall and Memorial Hall.
Bloomberg Plays Different Role in Strike
Broadway was only four days into a strike in 2003 when New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg pressured both sides to come together and warned of the looming ''severe economic impact'' that could result from the dispute. This time, theaters have been dark for more than a week and the mayor is not only refraining from wagging his finger in public, he's downplaying the potential damage the stagehands strike could cause the city and shrugging off some of the concerns he voiced four years ago. The losses, he said Monday, are mostly contained to the theater industry, and theatergoers counting on Broadway shows may be disappointed. Otherwise, it's hard to quantify any sort of economic setback, and life goes on, he said. ''I think what it hurts more is our reputation, and it's the psychic things rather than dollars,'' he said.
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