November 10, 2007
'Grinch' on Broadway first show shut down by strike
Wearing matching Thing 1 and Thing 2 T-shirts on Saturday morning, 6-year-old Stacey and 10-year-old Nicholas Steele stood in front of the shuttered Broadway theater with glum faces, surrounded by striking stagehands.
They did not like it.
Not one little bit.
 "We were hoping to make this an annual tradition," their mom, Debbie Steele said, explaining they made the trek to see the show on Broadway last year as well.
The Steeles, from Brick, N.J. had even dressed up as Dr. Seuss characters for Halloween, along with their friend Michelle Ritger of Farmingdale, N.J.
Rescheduling after the strike probably isn't an option for them. "I dn't know if we're going to be able to come back. This was the only time," Ritger said.
They were far from the only disappointed theatergoers. At the end of the block, a busload of 7-year-olds were filing back on a bus. The church group had come from maryland and only just learned of the strike, one of the disappointed chaperones said.
More that 20 shows are shuttered due to the strike by the stagehands, who have been working without a contract since July. In addition to the regular Broadway musicals and plays, even Duran Duran is getting shut down, as they had a series of concerts at Broadway's Barrymore theater scheduled through November 13. Picketers in front of the Barrymore this morning told NewYorkology that Duran Duran is also canceled due to the strike.
Eight Broadway shows are exempt from the strike because they have separate contracts with the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees. The eight exempt shows are "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee," "Cymbeline," "Mary Poppins," "Mauritius," "Pygmalion," "The Ritz," "Xanadu" and "Young Frankenstein."
The TKTS discount ticket booth was nearly empty, but there were a handful of shows on offer, including the matinees of "Cymbeline," "Mauritius," "Thee Mo' Tenors," "Crime and Punishment," "The Overwhelming," "Forbidden Broadway," "The Fantasticks," "Frankenstein," "Jump," "Gone Missing" and New York City Opera's "Vanessa" -- all at half price.
The picketing stagehands were polite and apologetic, handing out flyers that said:We truly regret that there is no show.
Theater owners and producers are demanding a 38 percent cut in our jobs and wages. They have built a $20 million fund to be used against us from the sale of theatre tickets to the public.
Broadway is a billion dollar a year industry and has never been more profitable than now.
Cuts in our jobs and wages will never result in a cut in ticket prices to benefit the public but only an increase in the profit for producers.
Unlike the producers, we are not fighting for our second or third homes; we are fighting to keep the one that we have.
We ask for your understanding in our efforts to defend ourselves and protect our families.
Sincerely,
The Brothers and Sisters of Local One, I.A.T.S.E.
 Theatergoers Christine Chavers and Virginia Shuker were disappointed, but sympathetic to the stagehands' cause. Chavers, a theater teacher in Miami, said she wuold "stand in solidarity with my brothers and sisters." Between them, they would have to give up tickets to "Spring Awakening" and "Jersey Boys," but were using the opportunity to add "Mauritius," which is not only a strike-free production, but includes actress Katie Finneran, one of their former students from Miami's New World School of Arts.
After the strike started, the League of American Theaters and Producers issued its own statement:"Local One has darkened most of Broadway. They have chosen to strike--without notifying us, rather than to continue negotiating. It is a sad day for Broadway, but we must remain committed to achieving a fair contract. Our goal is simple: To pay for workers we need and for work that is actually performed. Stagehands are highly skilled and highly paid. They are--and will remain--the highest paid stagehands in the theatrical world. We deplore the strike and the harm it does to the City, the industry, and the theatregoing public. Indeed, to all talented people who make Broadway the top tourist attraction in New York. A strike will have an economic impact of $17 million per day in direct and indirect costs. This could have been avoided had the union's leadership chosen to act responsibly at the bargaining table. We extend our sympathy for the inconvenience caused to the theatregoing public, and assure everyone who has purchased tickets that they will get an exchange or refund." Their website also has information about how to secure a refund for canceled Broadway shows.
Earlier: It's official: Most Broadway theaters closed for strike
Even if Broadway doesn't strike, Off-Broadway beckons
November 10, 2007 11:04 AM in Broadway, Kids, Midtown
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