Sunday Reading: The Return of Broadway

There have been only a few times in history when Broadway has “gone dark.” Even at the height of the 1918 flu pandemic, New York City’s theatre district remained open. Now, as theatres begin to welcome (vaccinated) audiences, we’re bringing you a selection of pieces about the art we’ve missed so much.

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In “All About the Hamiltons,” from 2015, Rebecca Mead profiles Lin-Manuel Miranda and talks with the playwright about “Hamilton” in the period before its opening. Vinson Cunningham explores the treatment of race in two radically different plays, Aaron Sorkin’s “To Kill a Mockingbird” and Jeremy O. Harris’s “Slave Play.” In “Fortress Mamet,” John Lahr profiles David Mamet, whose play “American Buffalo” is currently in revival. In “Alice Childress, the Last Woman Standing,” Hilton Als chronicles the fascinating career of the Black playwright. Finally, in “Performers on Lockdown Turn to Their Smartphones,” Alexandra Schwartz writes about the early days of the pandemic shutdown and the ways in which people coped with the resulting vacuum. “Nine days, which feel like nine weeks, have gone by, as of this writing, since Broadway went dark and New York’s theatres closed their doors,” she observes. “By the time you read this, it may well feel like nine years. The suddenness with which the city’s performance ecosystem has vanished defies comprehension—it’s as if the Great Barrier Reef had died overnight.”

—David Remnick