Barry Manilow tests positive for COVID-19, will miss Broadway show premiere
Barry Manilow has tested positive for COVID-19, the artist announced Wednesday. Manilow was scheduled to attend the opening night of his new Broadway show "Harmony: A New Musical," but said he will miss it.
"This just might be the cruelest thing that has ever happened to me: 25 years waiting for this show to premiere in New York and I can't attend," Manilow tweeted. "Even in the face of this pandemic, we New Yorkers remain the toughest, staunchest people on the planet — so, put on a mask and go see a show!"
I am heartbroken to say that I have just tested positive for COVID-19 and won’t be able to attend tonight’s opening night performance of my new musical, HARMONY. This just might be the cruelest thing that has ever happened to me: 25 years waiting for this show to premiere in pic.twitter.com/V1KNIjZP1N
— Barry Manilow (@barrymanilow) April 13, 2022
"Harmony: A New Musical" is set for a limited engagement run at New York's National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene at the Museum of Jewish Heritage.
The news comes as a rise in COVID-19 cases has temporarily halted several Broadway shows.
On April 7, "Plaza Suite" canceled several of its shows after leads and real life couple Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick both tested positive for COVID-19.
Several performances of "Macbeth," which stars actor Daniel Craig, and a preview performance of "A Strange Loop" were also canceled due to positive COVID-19 tests among the cast and crew.
"A Strange Loop is about—among other things—real life," Michael R. Jackson, who created "A Strange Loop," tweeted last week. "Covid is part of real life. It took me 20 years to get here. It took us all 2+ years to get here. The wait will be worth it. Facts. Stay tuned and get ready for us to blow the roof off."
Sophie Reardon contributed reporting.