CLEVELAND — The saying in theatre is ‘the show must go on,’ but apparently, not in a pandemic.
Monday evening several ticket holders made their way to the State Theatre doors at Playhouse Square to find out the Monday and Tuesday performances of ‘Wicked’ had been canceled.
The Playhouse Square cited COVID-19 concerns in a press release.
“This was like a Christmas present for me,” said Paula Schumacher.
She and her husband Eric traveled an hour to Cleveland to enjoy the show.
“We got here real early, so we actually went over and got a bite to eat ahead of time and we paid $20 to park, so I guess we are going home,” he said.
The idea of staying home to stop the spread is brewing for other venues and businesses in the area, too.
Christopher Feran is the director of coffee for Phoenix Coffee Company.
“It’s just this continual, you know, deja vu all over again type of situation,” he said.
The company’s five locations throughout Cleveland and Cleveland Heights will only offer carry out for the time being.
“Looking at our own industry, the number of restaurant closures this week because of cases and breakthrough cases, in particular, it demands a level of caution that we haven't exercised since the beginning of the pandemic,” said Feran.
He admitted it does affect their bottom line.
“It does have an impact. We do less volume. We don’t have folks sitting around for 3 or 4 hours who buy a cup after cup of coffee, maybe getting a pastry. They’re coming in once and taking it to go,” he said.
But he said, at this point, it was an easy decision to make.
“It's do what you think is right. It's really important to us to protect our staff and to stay open for the community,” he said. “The one silver lining, I suppose, is that we've done this before, so we dusted off the old playbook and everything that we found that works. We know how to operate safely.”
Phoenix Coffee isn’t alone.
Restaurants like Happy Dog, Astoria Cafe and Market, Flying Fig, and more have changed operations due to the surge in cases.
It’s recommended to call the restaurant or business you’re hoping to frequent before showing up.
A spokesperson for Playhouse Square said in a press release: Ticket holders who purchased directly from Playhouse Square (box office, phone or web) need take no action and will receive a full refund including handling fees. Credit card refunds will appear on accounts within 7-10 days. Ticket holders who purchased or received tickets through a third party will need to contact them directly.
