NEW YORK — The closure of Broadway due to the Blizzard of 2016 on Saturday, Jan. 23 was not without precedent. The threat of a big storm in Jan. 2015 did the same thing, and theatres also closed during Hurricane Sandy in late 2012. But the 2016 storm, which dumped more than 26 inches of snow in Central Park, remained iffy enough on Jan. 23 that some Saturday matinee audiences were already in their seats when the plug had to be abruptly pulled.
Part of the problem was an abundance of caution about closing shows prematurely due to an abundance of caution — which happened last year, when the storm turned out to be not as bad as the pre-storm hype.
But when it became clear that the 2016 storm was building up to be as bad as feared, and that travel restrictions would be imposed later that day, matinee shows set for 2 p.m. on Jan. 23 at major Lincoln Center and Broadway venues were canceled between 12 noon and 1 p.m., even though cast and crew were at the venues and audiences were on the way.
Although some venues were able to open the next day, the Bruce Springsteen concert set for Madison Square Garden on Jan. 24 had to be postponed as well.
One live show that went on through the worst part of the storm Jan. 23 was NBC’s Saturday Night Live, which took the opportunity to poke some dark-humored fun. A “news correspondent” reporting on how the blizzard “wasn’t that bad” during the show’s mock news broadcast had been cheerfully reporting in a light jacket, without hat or gloves. On a followup segment, the show grimly noted that the “correspondent” had died from exposure.
In Washington DC, the Kennedy Center closed Friday, Saturday and Sunday, but reopened Monday, Jan. 25. Performances at Wolf Trap were also postponed, and among the concerts that had to be rescheduled in Baltimore were Garth Brooks’ two shows that had been slated for Royal Farms Arena; he’ll perform there Jan. 31.
