Broadway Kicks Off Fall Season With High Hopes and Lingering Uncertainty

variety.com:

Gordon Cox Theater Editor Broadway hasn’t been the same since the pandemic. Just consider “The Phantom of the Opera.” The recent closing announcement of the landmark long-runner underscored just how unpredictable the Street has become after the interruption of the 18-month shutdown and a bumpy restart.

Over the summer, sales and attendance picked up promising momentum, and the 19 new productions that will open between Oct. 1 and the end of the year represent a lineup as robust and varied as any prior to lockdown.

But backers of incoming shows know Broadway is still navigating the pandemic’s aftermath, including seemingly enduring shifts in production considerations, consumer lifestyles and buying habits.

No one is quite sure how much longer it will be before things return to normal — or even what “normal” looks like anymore. “Last season, I feel like we were waiting for this moment when all the airlines were going to be back up and running smoothly, and every hotel would be busy, and COVID would basically be nonexistent,” says Brian Moreland, the producer of the Samuel L.