Broadway producers and theatre owners and striking stagehands
are heading back to the negotiation table today for the first time in a week.
"Negotiations between the League of American Theatres
and Producers and Local One are scheduled to resume tomorrow, Sunday, Nov. 25,
2007," Charlotte St. Martin, executive director of the League of American
Theatres and Producers, said in statement, according to Reuters.
"We are glad they accepted our invitation to
negotiate," said Bruce Cohen, a spokesman for Local One, of the
International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees.
A meeting was set at the Westin Hotel last week-end, but
ended with the producers suddenly walking out, just before Thanksgiving week,
which is traditionally one of the best weeks for Broadway business.
The strike, begun on November 10, has shut down more than
two dozen plays and musicals, including “Chicago,”
“Wicked” and “Hairspray.” It has also cut foot traffic at Theatre District
restaurants.
The reason of the dispute was the number of stagehands
required to open a Broadway show. The producers want a flexible number while
the union wants a specific number and ample compensation for any concessions
made.
Meanwhile, “Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas “,
which had been shut, reappeared live on Friday after the state Supreme Court
Justice Helen Freedman ordered its reopening. The reason was that the show’s
production company would suffer irreparable damage if the $6 million holiday
musical wasn’t permitted to resume its limited run, which ends January 6.
“Pygmalion,” "The Ritz," "Cymbeline,"
"Young Frankenstein," "Mary Poppins," "Xanadu,"
"The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee" and
"Mauritius," whose theaters have separate contracts with the league,
are not affected by the walkout.
The last strike which had bad results for Broadway was in 2003
when musicians walked out for four days. Broadway was affected by a similar
dispute two decades ago.
