Let there be darkness. Broadway theater marquees will be dimmed for one minute on Tuesday, Sept. 9, in tribute to former Tony Award nominee Joan Rivers, the Broadway League announced via Twitter. The news comes after an outcry on social media following the league's earlier proclamation that Rivers did not qualify for the posthumous honor, a long-standing tradition in the theater community.
"Joan Rivers loved Broadway and we loved her," Broadway League executive director Charlotte St. Martin said in a statement on Tuesday. "Due to the outpouring of love and respect for Joan Rivers from our community and from her friends and fans worldwide, the marquees of Broadway theatres in New York will be dimmed in her memory tonight, at exactly 6:45 p.m. for one minute."
The decision to dim the lights is a reversal of the league's previous decision, which St. Martin explained to the Times on Monday. "Under our criteria people need to have been very active recently in the theater, or else be synonymous with Broadway — people who made their careers here, or kept it up," she told the paper. "We love Joan — she was very supportive of Broadway and came to a lot of show openings — but she hasn't acted on Broadway in 20 years."
That original decision was met with outrage on social media from both fans and fellow stars, who started the hashtag #dim4joan to voice their objections. Six-time Tony winner Audra McDonald, for one, wrote:
#Dim4Joan plain and simple. She deserves it.
— Audra McDonald (@AudraEqualityMc) September 9, 2014
She also reposted something from one of her producers, who argued, "If not Joan Rivers, then who does meet the requirements? Really, Broadway League? The woman who, besides having made a major impact on performance and who was a prominent advocate of Broadway, famously said, 'If you don't go to Broadway, you're a fool. On Broadway, off Broadway, above Broadway, below Broadway, go! Don't tell me there isn't something wonderful playing. If I'm home in New York at night, I'm either at a Broadway or an off-Broadway show. We're in the theater capital of the world, and if you don't get it, you're an idiot.'"
Broadway vet Harvey Fierstein got in on the action, too, tweeting:
Hey Broadway! Time to dim the lights for Joan Rivers queen of comedy. She loved Broadway and we loved her #joanrivers
— Harvey Fierstein (@HarveyFierstein) September 8, 2014
Indeed, prior to the league's reversal, seven theaters had decided to independently dim the lights in honor of the late Fashion Police host, who died on Thursday, Sept. 4, at age 81. Jordan Roth, president of the Jujamcyn Theaters, previously announced on Twitter that all five of his theaters would dim the lights on their marquees on Tuesday at 6:45 p.m. And according to the Times, the New Amsterdam Theater (home of Aladdin) and the Helen Hayes Theater (where Rivers gave a Tony-nominated performance in Sally Marr…and Her Escorts) had decided to follow suit.
As reported by the Times, past recipients of the honor have included James Gandolfini, Lauren Bacall, and Robin Williams.
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