In March of 2020, the dazzling lights of Broadway went dark due to COVID-19, putting countless actors out of work. However, after a year and a half of being closed, Broadway has begun to open up again. It has brought a new sense of hope for theatre lovers everywhere. If all goes as planned, by the end of the year 39 shows will have reopened on Broadway at full capacity. Six, Hamilton, and Wicked are just some of the shows that are making their long-awaited comebacks. 

Six:

This fun, one-act musical features the six wives of Henry VIII as if they were in a pop girl band. They each sing a song about their lives and marriage to Henry to the audience, all while promoting girl-power, confidence, and feminism. The pop musical started in London’s Art Theatre on the West-End, and it’s still running there today. The show gained a lot of attention and started to tour quickly after it premiered. Eventually, it made its way to Broadway in early 2020 at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre. Unfortunately, the queens never got to make their Broadway debut as their opening night was canceled when everything closed down in March. Now, with the Broadway reopening, they finally got a chance to tell their stories to all of their devoted fans. However, it wasn’t quite that easy starting up such a high-energy show again. They realized that their costumes had all been damaged, so designers had to take in their costumes for repairs while rehearsals went on. On the plus side, this helped make their costumes even better and brighter than they were before. Finally, Six the Musical had it’s well-deserved opening night on October 3rd, 2021.

Hamilton:

Hamilton is arguably one of the most popular and influential musicals that has been on Broadway. When this musical was forced to close, many fans were devastated that they couldn’t see the founding fathers live in action. However, they were not completely hopeless, as a live stage recording of the hit musical was released on Disney+ on July 3rd, 2020. Although it wasn’t the same, it gave fans a way to enjoy their favorite musical during quarantine. Hamilton originally opened on Broadway on August 6th, 2015. The musical instantly gained popularity and won 11 Tony Awards along with many other honors. They also got a chance to perform at the White House in 2016. Hamilton tells the story of American founding father Alexander Hamilton. Throughout the musical, the actors teach you about American history while rapping and singing. Though the shut-down wasn’t ideal, it ultimately led to some upgrades. Over 100 lights were replaced with newer technology, and the fixtures were cleaned thoroughly to remove all of the dust. Hamilton made its long-awaited return to the Richard Rodgers Theatre on September 14th, 2021.

Wicked:

Wicked is one of the longest-running shows on Broadway, opening originally on October 30th, 2003. For 17 years, this prequel to The Wizard of Oz has told the story of two witches and their unexpected friendship: the Wicked Witch of the West, Elphaba, and the Good Witch of the North, Glinda. Elphaba was born with green skin, which presented problems for her as people labeled her “wicked” before getting to know her. She meets Glinda at university and they immediately dislike each other based on their clear differences. However, as the story progresses, we see a story of true friendship between the two come together. With fun feel-good songs like “Popular” and power-ballads like “Defying Gravity,” theatre fans were ecstatic to see this musical fly back onto Broadway. On its re-opening night, Kristen Chenoweth, the original Glinda came to surprise the audience. As the show went on, the audience couldn’t help themselves from cheering at some of the show’s most iconic lines and moments. One example was in the opening number “No One Mourns the Wicked” when Glinda makes her breathtaking entrance and delivers the line “It’s good to see me isn’t it?” Wicked returned to the Gershwin Theatre on September 14th, 2021.