TORONTO — “ Come From Away” is going dark until after the Christmas holiday following a positive COVID-19 test among the backstage crew.
Mirvish Productions says it’s cancelled four upcoming performances of the Gander, N.L.-set musical in an effort to “protect all the artists, technicians, staff and audiences, and allow everyone to celebrate the holidays safely.”
The shows affected were scheduled to run Thursday night, Friday afternoon and on Sunday afternoon and evening.
Mirvish says “Come From Away” is scheduled to resume performances on Dec. 28.
“Come From Away” reopened at the Royal Alexandra Theatre only last week as a new round of tighter capacity restrictions were introduced limiting all live theatres and concert halls to 50 per cent capacity.
Ticketholders for the affected performances have been contacted with the option to exchange their tickets for another performance or a different theatre show or receive a refund or a credit, according to a representative for Mirvish.
The announcement comes as the live theatre industry is rocked by the rapid spread of the highly contagious Omicron variant.
On Broadway, many of the biggest productions, including “Hamilton,” “Aladdin,” “Dear Evan Hansen” and “Hadestown,” cancelled shows at least through Christmas.
And organizers behind the Alanis Morissette musical “Jagged Little Pill” announced their show was wrapping up down for good, having played its final performance at the Broadhurst Theatre on Dec. 17.
They noted the decision was influenced by “multiple positive COVID-19 cases within the company.”
“In light of the extreme uncertainty ahead of us this winter, and forced to choose between continuing performances and protecting our company, we’ve made the difficult decision to close our doors,” the show’s producers said in a statement.
Earlier this week, the Shaw Festival announced it was shutting down its production of “A Christmas Carol” after a company member tested positive for COVID-19.
The uncertainty around the pandemic also led Mirvish to pull Tom Stoppard’s play “Leopoldstadt” from the schedule in January at the Princess of Wales Theatre.
David Mirvish said in a statement on Sunday that capacity restrictions, as well the non-essential travel advisory from the federal government with looming border closings and quarantines expected, have complicated logistics.