Strike Shuts Down Most Broadway Shows

Source: New York Times

The stagehands took their picket signs to the wet sidewalks around 10 a.m. today, after a meeting of Local One, their union, at the Westin New York on West 43rd Street.

Twenty-seven Broadway shows, including “Wicked,” “Jersey Boys” and “The Lion King” were shuttered, starting with “Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical” which was to raise its curtain at 11 a.m.

Only eight shows, which are in theaters on a separate contract with the union, are still running: “Cymbeline,” “Mary Poppins,” “Mauritius,” “Pygmalion,” “The Ritz,” “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,” “Xanadu” and “Young Frankenstein.”

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/10/theater/10cnd-theater.html

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I hope the strike ends soon.

I cannot imagine Rush and Sean actually writing their own stuff. On the other hand, it is hard to imagine Rush and Sean using writers who belong to the dreaded hateful demon organization known as a union.

Hasn't he been saying the same thing for years? :boring:

with the darkened theaters.

All the missed work, missed entertainment, lost revenue for cafes and nightclubs nearby, etc..

indeed, that complicates matters considerably for these strikers:

Union officials also point out that there are more than a thousand non-Broadway jobs in Local One that stagehands can rotate into while they are not working on Broadway, but that rotation system has become more complicated now that the strike by the Writers Guild of America has left Local One members in the television industry without work as well.

It's the holiday season. There's too much money to be made to allow Broadway to go dark in November-December. At this time of year, everyone involved (producers, stagehands, actors) wants or needs the money, considering how sparse things get in January-February. They'll work something out. Hopefully.

I do feel sorry for everyone involved. The strikers and actors, who will now be entering the most expensive time of year in one of the most expensive cities on Earth on what essentially amounts to unemployment. And the tourists, many of whom plan their yearly vacations around coming to NYC to see shows.

i agree...

..who bought tickets. I had my own tix reserved for The Daily Show this Monday, and should have been on the plane as I'm writing this. So I feel bad for all concerned.

But not bad enough not to support the strike: I'm a writer as well, and my friends who're pros have been shit on for years. Everyone knows writers are the backbone of entertainment, and yet the lowest of the low on the totem pole. The only way it can be changed is by yanking the carpet out from under the corporate bloodsuckers. When their wallets start to feel the pinch, we'll see how quickly things get settled!

The first time Fantasia didn't even show up! I wonder if the strike will end by next Wednesday? I feel for the stagehands but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed.

But this is one - these people are lucky they get to write for a living. There are millions of people who would do so, but the competition is such that only a few can actually make a living at it - and they're complaining? They make more than any of us ever will as it is, and have a wonderful job, unlike most of us. Their quality of life is so high - it doesn't sit right for them to complain.

Okay, first, this isn't the WGA strike, its the stagehands in NYC.
Second (back to writers), because they're lucky enough to get to do what they love for a living, they should just roll over and take any bone that's thrown at them?
Third, most of them DO NOT make more money than any of us ever will, and their quality of life is about middle-class, if they're lucky. There are always a few people at the top of any game, and yes, they make a lot of money and have a high quality of life. They're not the ones the WGA strike is about.

Just to clear some stuff up...

I suppose this is a bit confusing for some folks, but they are two different strikes and not directly related to one another. I am glad you pointed that out.

...instead of rotting in front of a crt.

http://www.lyricsfreak.com/f/frank+zappa/im+the+slime_20057165.html

I am the Slime From Your Video

I am gross and perverted
Im obsessed n deranged
I have existed for years
But very little had changed
I am the tool of the government
And industry too
For I am destined to rule
And regulate you

I may be vile and pernicious
But you cant look away
I make you think Im delicious
With the stuff that I say
I am the best you can get
Have you guessed me yet?
I am the slime oozin out
From your tv set

You will obey me while I lead you
And eat the garbage that I feed you
Until the day that we dont need you
Dont got for help...no one will heed you
Your mind is totally controlled
It has been stuffed into my mold
And you will do as you are told
Until the rights to you are sold

Thats right, folks..
Dont touch that dial

Well, I am the slime from your video
Oozin along on your livinroom floor

I am the slime from your video
Cant stop the slime, people, lookit me go

--Frank Zappa

He had just bought two tickets to LaGuardia for next week. I told him, "Oh, I don't think it's always all the theatres, and probably not Off- or Off-Off Broadway . . . and then there is always Kiki's cabaret act."

Then I told him to just hang out at CBGBs and go to Rock and Roll Fag Bar at The World and he nearly hung up on me. We rather miss the NYC of the mid to late 80s.

Local One had 802s back in the short-lived musicians strike of 2003.

I hope 802 will stand on the picket lines with the stagehands.

Anything less is unthinkable.

Solidarity is the only way!

"We are Local One, the stagehands who work behind the scenes for all the shows on Broadway. We truly regret that there is no show. Theatre owners and producers are demanding a 38% 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 profits 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."