NEW YORK -  More than two dozen Broadway plays and musicals were set to go dark Today in the crucial run-up to the lucrative holiday season as stagehands prepared to strike, a person familiar with contract negotiations.

The work stoppage was to begin at 11 a.m., affecting an early matinee of "Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical," said the person, who spoke Friday on condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.

A union spokesman declined comment. Lisa Linden, a spokeswoman for the League of American Theatres and Producers, said the group had not heard from Local One regarding the job action. "It would be shocking if they would hurt the theatergoing public by shutting down Broadway without notice," she said.

The League and Local One have been in negotiations for more than three months, wrangling over work rules and staffing requirements, particularly requirements governing the expensive process of setting up a show.

Local One, which has been working without a contract since the end of July, was told Friday by its parent union, the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, to begin the walkout on Saturday.

Eight Broadway shows will not be affected by the strike, as they are playing in theaters with separate Local One contracts. They are "Young Frankenstein," ''Mary Poppins," ''Xanadu," ''The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee," ''Mauritius," ''Pygmalion," ''The Ritz" and "Cymbeline." Off-Broadway shows will also keep running.

On Thursday, after two days of contentious negotiations, the local got its parent union's permission to strike.

November has been an exceptionally busy month for Broadway, with the opening of such plays as Tom Stoppard's "Rock 'n' Roll," ''Cyrano," starring Kevin Kline, and "Young Frankenstein." Still to come before Christmas are such productions as "The Farnsworth Invention," by Aaron Sorkin, Disney's "Little Mermaid" and a revival of Harold Pinter's "The Homecoming." Broadway traditionally does well in December, particularly in the week between Christmas and New Year's, normally the busiest of the year.

In March 2003, more than a dozen Broadway shows went dark after musicians went on a four-day strike, costing the city millions of dollars in lost revenue. Earlier this year, the musicians agreed to a new three-year contract.

The 3,000-member stagehands union, which has between 350 and 500 members working on Broadway at any given time, contends it could find employment for many of its people in television or film if a work stoppage occurs.

You must be logged in to comment.