After a unprecedented theatre shutdown in 2020, it would stand to reason that 2021 would be nothing short of historic. The year saw moving reunions, historic debuts, and more as the lights of Broadway returned to the theatre district. But for many, the return of Broadway wasn’t just a return to the stage—it was a marker of New York’s resurgence after once being the epicenter of the pandemic, and an opportunity to demand and enact change.
As 2021 draws to a close, revisit the moments that defined the year.
The year kicked off with Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical premiering January 1 and streaming on-demand for 72 hours following its debut. The musical presentation, a benefit for The Actors Fund, raised over $1 million in its first 24 hours.
Courtesy of DKC/O&M
Hello Dolly! Tony winner Gavin Creel and Wicked alum Shoshana Bean took part in one of the first NY PopsUp live performances, singing for audiences from a COVID-safe store front in Manhattan.
The Broadway community reunited in Times Square on the anniversary of the Broadway shutdown, performing and advocating for the necessity of arts workers in the recovery of New York City.
Savion Glover tap danced at the first performance to play Broadway during a special invite-only event at the St. James Theatre through the New York PopsUp series in April.
The PopsUp performance continued with a monologue from Nathan Lane. The event—masked and social distanced—honored the audience of frontline heroes and volunteers from The Actors Fund and Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.
As the spring continued, performers found ways to bring the arts back to New York, including Lauren Patten, who performed as a part of TodayTix's rooftop concert series.
Sean Tracy
Performer and activist Amber Iman became the first woman—and first Black woman—to perform on Broadway since the pandemic shutdown during the second New York PopsUp performance to play the Main Stem.
The Broadway COVID-19 vaccination center opened in Times Square April 12. The facility—created in collaboration between the city government and various theatre unions—was initially designated for performing arts workers during the early stages of the nation's vaccination campaign.
Marc J. Franklin
Organized by Courtney Daniels and Nattalyee Randall, the theatre community gathered to march on Broadway to demand accountability and transparency within the industry following allegations of Scott Rudin's abusive behavior.
Michaelah Reynolds
The Last 5 Years alums Sherie Rene Scott and Nasia Thomas sat down to discuss each of their experiences with the Jason Robert Brown musical 20 years after its debut. Scott starred in the original Off-Broadway production and Thomas starred in the 2021 filmed production, created during quarantine.
While Broadway Bares remained virtual this year, more than 80 dancers and 38 crew members gathered in Times Square to film Broadway Bares: Twerk From Home's celebratory finale. The event raised $349,434 so far for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS.
After shuttering in 2018, the Drama Bookshop reopened at its new location on 39th Street, under new ownership by Lin-Manuel Miranda, Thomas Kail, Jeffrey Seller, and James L. Nederlander.
Drew Dockser
Playbill celebrated Pride 2021 with Glimmer of Light at Radial Park. Created by The Neon Coven and presented by Cadillac and Playbill Pride, the event marked Playbill's first-ever live concert.
Marc J. Franklin
After opening Spring 2021, the Little Island continued its programming in the summer with its inaugural cohort of artists-in-residence, including tap dancer and choreographer Ayodele Casel, playwright and Tony Award-nominated director Tina Landau (SpongeBob SquarePants), Tony-honored music director and performer Michael McElroy, and PigPen Theatre Co.
Rebecca J Michelson
Springsteen on Broadway, the intimate solo concert from Grammy-winning rock legend Bruce Springsteen, returned to the Main Stem June 26, becoming the first production to play Broadway following the coronavirus pandemic began in March 2020.
In celebration of raising $1 million for the Actors Fund, Stars in the House creators James Wesley and Seth Rudetsky hosted their first in-person show at Asylum NYC. The show welcomed Chita Rivera, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Kristin Chenoweth, and more.
The Public Theater's Shakespeare in the Park returned to New York City with Merry Wives. Adapted by Jocelyn Bioh, the show re-imagined Shakespeare’s The Merry Wives of Windsor as a celebration of Black joy, laughter, and vitality in South Harlem amidst a community of West African immigrants.
Joan Marcus
Antoinette Chinonye Nwandu’s Pass Over began performances at the August Wilson Theatre August 4, becoming the first play to return to Broadway since the theatre shutdown in March 2020
Marc J. Franklin
Audience members attended the world premiere of The Show Must Go On, a documentary by Dori Berinstein and Sammi Cannold, as a one-night-only fundraiser benefiting The Actors Fund at the Majestic Theatre. The film follows the companies of two productions in South Korea—the world tour of The Phantom of the Opera and the South Korean tour of Cats—as they pushed forward safely during the pandemic when the rest of the industry had shut down worldwide.
After more than a year out of production, shows—like Disney's The Lion King—reunited in the rehearsal room ahead of their anticipated Broadway reopenings.
Marc J. Franklin
Darren Criss performed at Elsie Fest, the annual outdoor music festival for lovers of musical theatre. The event featured performances from Adrienne Warren, Alex Brightman, Barlow & Bear, and more.
The cast of Waitress took a bow after beginning its return engagement at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre September 2. The production became the first musical to play Broadway following the theatre shutdown in March 2020.
Marc J. Franklin
An hour later, the company of Hadestown celebrated its Broadway return after also resuming performances September 2.
Marc J. Franklin
Members of the theatre community gathered for the Trans March on Broadway September 6. The event, organized by Sis, called attention to the erasure of trans bodies within the theatre and entertainment industries following transphobic remarks made by producer Cameron Mackintosh.
Rebecca J. Michelson
Long-running musical Wicked joined The Lion King, Hamilton, and Chicago in returning to their theatrical homes September 14. In addition, Ruben Santiago-Hudson's Lackawanna Blues began performances for its Broadway run the same evening.
Marc J. Franklin
Playbill celebrated Curtain Up!, a free, three-day outdoor theatre festival in Times Square commemorating the return of Broadway, created in partnership with the Broadway League, the Times Square Alliance, and presented by title sponsor Prudential.
The cast of Six performed in the Curtain Up! finale concert, concluding a weekend filled with 22 free live events split between two stages in Duffy Square and outside the New York Marriott Marquis Hotel.
Marc J. Franklin
The 74th annual Tony Awards were celebrated in a ceremony at the Winter Garden Theatre September 26. The four-hour event was divided into an awards ceremony honoring work created during the 2019–2020 season hosted by Audra McDonald and Broadway's Back!, a concert celebration of Broadway’s return hosted by Leslie Odom, Jr.
Jenny Anderson/Getty Images for Tony Awards Productions
The Metropolitan Opera opened its 2021–2022 season with the premiere of Terence Blanchard’s Fire Shut Up in My Bones. The production marked the company’s first performance of an opera by a Black composer in its 139–year history.
Rose Callahan / Met Opera
The cast of Six celebrated its official opening October 3. The production was originally set to open March 12, 2020, though the Broadway shutdown was announced just hours before.
New Tony Award winner Adrienne Warren took a bow at the return performance of Tina: The Tina Turner Musical at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre.
Marc J. Franklin
Temptations star Otis Williams joined the company of Ain't Too Proud onstage for its Broadway return performance at the Imperial Theatre.
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Emilie Kouatchou made history as the first Black woman to step into the role of Christine Daaé in The Phantom of the Opera in its 33-year run on Broadway.
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Andrew Norlen and Matthew Murphy celebrated the release of their book When the Lights Are Bright Again. Created in response to the theatre shutdown, the book served as a moment-in-time record of the struggles and hopes of the theatre community during the pandemic.
Director Michael Longhurst hugged actor Sharon D Clarke during the opening night of Caroline, or Change. The long-awaited revival opened at Studio 54 following a West End run in 2018.
Marc J. Franklin
After a film capture premiere on Netflix in October 2021, Diana: the Musical returned to the Longacre Theatre November 2. The musical would go on to play 16 previews and 33 regular performances before closing December 19.
The MTA welcomed back theatregoers to New York City by launching a new Broadway ad campaign shot by Matthew Murphy featuring Moulin Rouge!, Dear Evan Hansen, Six, Waitress, Mrs. Doubtfire, Chicago, and The Phantom of the Opera.
Matthew Murphy
Lin-Manuel Miranda and Andrew Garfield posed at the New York premiere of tick, tick... BOOM!. The film adaptation of Jonathan Larson's semi-autobiographical piece played select theatres before arriving to Netflix in November.
Marc J. Franklin
The original Broadway cast of the Tony-winning musical Spring Awakening reunited for a one-night-only concert presentation to benefit The Actors Fund November 15 at the Imperial Theatre.
Stephen Sondheim attended the return performance of Company at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre. The November 15 evening began with cast and crew dedicating the performance to the seminal theatre composer, who died later that month.
Wicked performed at the 95th Annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. After viewers watched at home in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, NYC welcomed back spectators to the 2021 event.
Members of the Broadway community assembled to pay tribute to life and art of composer-lyricist Stephen Sondheim, who died November 26 at the age of 91.
During the memorial, Lin-Manuel Miranda honored Sondheim by reading a passage from his lyric collection, Look, I Made a Hat before joining the theatre community in a performance of "Sunday" from Sunday in the Park With George.
Marc J. Franklin
Ahead of its theatrical release, the stars of Steven Spielberg’s long-awaited film adaptation of West Side Story celebrated the movie with a special screening at Jazz at Lincoln Center November 29, marking its New York City premiere.
Marianne Elliott’s gender-swapped revival of Stephen Sondheim and George Furth’s Company officially opened at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre.
Lincoln Center Theater’s world premiere of Flying Over Sunset opened at the Vivian Beaumont Theater December 13, becoming the last show of 2021 to officially open. The musical was originally scheduled to begin performances March 12, 2020, but halted due to the Broadway shutdown announcement hours before its first performance.
Bruce Glikas
Playwright Keenan Scott II made his Broadway acting debut in his show Thoughts of a Colored Man, stepping into a performance after a cast shortage due to a wave of breakthrough COVID cases affecting Broadway companies during the holiday season.
Trica Baron
