An interesting thing has been occurring in New York City. On the Great White Way, the lights are dimmed for one minute before returning to their brilliant glow. It’s not a random electricity problem, but actually a long-standing honor that has been around for (some say) over a hundred years!
A lot of Broadway legends have unfortunately passed away this past year. Robin Williams, Joan Rivers, and Sir Geoffrey Holder are some of the most recent of these deaths. One tradition that happens whenever someone of significance to the Broadway community passes is the dimming of the Broadway lights.
Nobody is completely certain when this tradition began. Some claim that it has been in affect for over a hundred years. Others say that the first dimming was in 1952 for Gertrude Lawrence. Either way, it’s practically an ancient tradition that has grown more popular since it has begun.
When a prominent person of the theater community moves on, their name is submitted to the Broadway League, the trade association for the Broadway theater industry, where they review the lives and works of those submitted. They have criteria they’ve kept under wraps for years! Based on that secret criteria, they decide whether or not the person will have the lights dimmed in their honor or not. It’s an extremely special thing to be honored this way and incredibly hard to be accepted!
If they decide to dim the lights, the Broadway League releases a press release before hand and notifies all prominent theater owners such as the Nederlanders, Shuberts, etc. The theater owners then notify the managers of each theater to turn off all lights at eight P.M. sharp! Why eight P.M.? Seven is usually the curtain time for a show and that was the typical time until complications with daylight savings time (which pushed the curtain time back during the Summer) made things more difficult. They recently decided that eight P.M. was the best option for every theater. The lights are off for a solid minute and no announcements are made. Then the show goes on as always.
The dimming of the lights is a sad, yet beautiful tradition. When all the glorious marquees shut off, the grief of the community is definitely felt amongst New York City and other parts of the world. However, when you see the light shining bright again, the feeling of hope and joy fill fellow theater-lovers. There are several videos of the tradition on YouTube and I recommend looking it up to see a spectacular sight!