Broadway is at the core of New York's identity. The theater district is a must see for most of New York's 65 million annual visitors. Yearly ticket sales surpassed $1.8 billion in 2019. Over 12,000 people are directly employed in Broadway theaters. When shows went dark due to the pandemic, those people saw their identity taken away in a heartbeat, along with their ability to earn a living. It's clear that Broadway will be back at some point, but it will be very different for the people on stage and those in the seats.