“Hamilton” creator Lin-Manuel Miranda joined New York Mayor Bill de Blasio on Monday at the grand opening of a Times Square COVID-19 vaccination center that seeks to revive the city’s entertainment industry.
“We want to meet again and we want to tell stories in the dark,” said Miranda, author and star of the hit musical about Alexander Hamilton. “We can’t do that if they don’t feel safe. So the first step in that process is to receive their vaccines, and that is how the next steps will come.
Broadway theaters have been closed since the start of the coronavirus pandemic in March last year. De Blasio has said that he hopes the dedicated vaccination sites will help the industry reopen in September.
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The new vaccination site in Times Square will be open to theater, television and film workers, said the mayor, underscoring the importance of the entertainment industry to life in the city.
“Yes, it is part of our economy. Much more important, it is part of our identity, ”said de Blasio. “It is part of who we are and part of our hearts. What that means in this city, theater, music, dance, film and television is our expression of all that is New York City. It is our creativity, our heart and our soul. We do something here that doesn’t exist anywhere else in the world in the same way. “
The vaccination site, housed in a former NFL Experience store, will be run by Susan Sampliner, longtime management company for the musical “Wicked.” Miranda said, “If anyone knows how to get the show on time, it’s the Broadway production managers. So they will be in good hands. “
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