Broadway is back in business today as the 19-day stagehand strike comes to an end and actors, musicians, producers and of course stagehands return to work. A spokeswoman for the League of American Theaters and Producers said all the shows that had been idled by the walkout would have performances this evening (November 29).

New opening dates for shows that had been schedule to open during the strike have been announced. Most will be in previews until the official opening. The Farnsworth Invention will open Monday December 3, The Seafarer is schedule to open Thursday December 6, Is He Dead will be opening Sunday December 9 and a new opening date for The Little Mermaid had not been determined at this time. In addition to these openings August: Osage County is set to open on Tuesday December 4.

It was announced at 10:30 on Wednesday night to the cheering stagehands, almost 100 had gathered outside the law offices where the negotiations had taken place. Around 10:45PM the executive director of the League, Charlotte St. Martin, officially announced that “Performances begin tomorrow night”. In a later statement she said “The contract is a good compromise that serves our industry.”

This was the first strike in the stagehands union history, which goes back 121 years. It affected 27 shows on Broadway as well as one Duran Duran concert, which ended up moving to another location.

According to the city comptroller’s office the strike reportedly coast the city $2 million a day, which would mean a lose of almost $40 million over the course of the 19 day strike.

A resolution could not have come at a better time. After losing serious revenue last week with the Thanksgiving holiday, which usually brings in droves of people to New York, it is clear no one wanted this to continue on into the busy Christmas holiday season.

The stagehand strike hits again.

The Little Mermaid was originally schedule to open officially at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on December 6 but due to the current strike that has temporarily shut down most of Broadway the opening has been delayed. No new opening date has been announced at this time.

The show will resume previews, which started on November 3, when the strike is over and then will announce a new date for opening night.

The show starts Sierra Boggess as Ariel, Sean Palmer as Prince Eric, Norm Lewis as King Triton, Tituss Burgess as Sebastian, Eddie Korbich as Scuttle, Jonathan Freeman as Grimsby, Derrik Baskin as Jetsam, Tyler Maynard as Flotsam, Cody Hanford and J.J. Singleton as Flounder and Sherie Rene Scott as Ursula.

The following productions are affected by the current and will be closed until at least Saturday November 17, 2007

August:Osage County, Avenue Q, A Bronx Tale, A Chorus Line, Chicago, Curtains, Cyrano de Bergerac, Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas, The Drowsy Chaperone, The Farnsworth Invention, Grease, Hairspray, Is He Dead?, Jersey Boys, Legally Blonde, Les Miserables, The Lion King, The Little Mermaid, Mamma Mia!, Monty Pythons Spamalot, Phantom of the Opera, Rent, Rock ‘n’ Roll, The Seafarer, The Color Purple, Spring Awakenings, Wicked 

There are still some really great shows that are currently running for all regularly schedule performances 

Young Frankenstein, The Ritz, Xanadu, Mauritius, Cymbeline, Pygmalion, The 25^th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Mary Poppins

The Local One strike which is crippling the theater industry in New York has now gone into day 3 of the strike. Although Monday is a particularly quiet day on Broadway with few shows having Monday performances normally things are getting even quieter as the strike continues.

Local One which is the Broadway Stagehands union has been working since July 31^st without a contract. This is the first strike in the union’s 121-year history, though this is not the first strike to happen on Broadway. Broadway went dark in 2003 when the musicians strike but this ended after four days.

Below is a list of shows that are currently on strike as well as shows that are still running during the strike since those productions are either presented by Broadway’s nonprofit sector or are housed in theatres whose contracts with Local One are separate.

Productions effected by the strike and will be closed until further notice-

August: Osage County

Avenue Q

ABronx Tale

A Chorus Line

Chicago

Curtains

Cyrano de Bergerac

Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas

The Drowsy Chaperone

Duran Duran

The Farnsworth Invention

Grease

Hairspray

Is He Dead?

Jersey Boys

Legally Blonde

Les Miserables

The Lion King

The Little Mermaid

Mamma Mia!

Monty Pythons Spamalot

Phantom of the Opera

Rent

Rock ‘n’ Roll

The Seafarer

The Color Purple

Spring Awakenings

Wicked

Productions currently running during the strike-

Young Frankenstein

The Ritz

Xanadu 

Mauritius

Cymbeline

Pygmalion

The 25^th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

Mary Poppins

It has been announced that Rosie O’Donnell will serve as the National Ambassador for this year’s Kids’ Night on Broadway. The event which is sponsored by The New York Times and Madame Tussaud’s New York gives young people, ages 6-18, the chance to see Broadway and Off-Broadway shows for free when accompanied by a full-paying adult. The event will be held February 5, 6, 12 and 13.

So far there are some amazing shows that will be participating in this event: Young Frankenstein, Xanadu, Wicked, Stomp, Spring Awakenings, The Phantom of the Opera, Rent, Mary Poppins, Monty Python’s Spamalot, Mamma Mia!, The Little Mermaid, Legally Blonde The Musical, The Lion King, Is He Dead?, Hairspray, Grease, The Farmsworth Invention, The Fantasticks, Curtains, The Drowsy Chaperone, Come Back Little Sheba, A Chorus Line, The Color Purple, Chicago, Avenue Q, and Altar Boyz.

In addition to giving away free tickets to these Broadway and Off-Broadway show, the event also contains an educational component and some pre-theatre events. The entire event kicks off with a party at Madame Tussaud’s at 3:00PM on February 5, 2008.

Below is a list of recent and upcoming openings for to the 2007-2008 New York Broadway season. Please note this information is subject to change.

Note: This calendar is for informational purposes only.

June 28, 2007

Old Acquaintances (American Airlines Theater)

July 10, 2007

Xanadu (Helen Hayes Theater)

August 19, 2007

Grease (Brooks Atkinson Theater)

October 4, 2007

Maritius (Biltmore Theater)

October 11, 2007

The Ritz (Studio 54)

October 18, 2007

Pygmalion (American Airlines Theater)

October 25, 2007

A Bronx Tale (Walter Kerr Theater)

November 4, 2007

Rock ‘n’ Roll (Bernard B. Jacobs Theater)

November 8, 2007

Young Frankenstein (Hilton Theater)

November 9, 2007

Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical (St. James Theater)

November 14, 2007

The Farmsworth Invention (Music Box)

November 15, 2007

The Seafarer (Booth Theater)

November 29, 2007

Is He Dead? (Lyceum Theater)

December 2, 2007

Cymbeline (Vivian Beaumont Theater)

December 3, 2007

Lone Star Love (Belasco Theater)

December 6, 2007

The Little Mermaid (Lunt-Fontanne Theater)

December 9, 2007

The Homecoming (Cort Theater)

February 21, 2008

Sunday in the Park with George (Studio 54)

March 9, 2008

In the Heights (Richard Rodgers Theater)

April 3, 2008

South Pacific (Vivian Beaumont Theater)

April 17, 2008

A Catered Affair (Walter Kerr Theater)

May 1, 2008

Les Liaisons Dangereuses (American Airlines Theater)