Meghan Picerno, a Broadway actor starring in "the Phantom of the Opera," said she misses her castmates, costumes and what she calls "inhabiting Christine." That would be her character, Christine Daae, the chorus girl who is the obsession of the mysterious Phantom of the Opera in the Broadway musical.
Picerno and her castmates will be back on stage here at the Majestic Theater on Oct. 22 for its first performance since Broadway went dark more than a year ago. Now, the show must go on.
Governor Andrew Cuomo announced this week that Broadway tickets can go on sale Thursday and theaters can open beginning Sept. 14.
Asked if she still remembers her lines, she said, "I think so. We’ll find out. I’ll be studying those hard."
Picerno, who had been a part of The Phantom of the Opera’s world tour, joined the Broadway production five months before the pandemic brought the curtain down on theater shows.
"We were the last show actually to be performing before they shut down," she said.
The pandemic took away work for actors, musicians, ushers and stagehands.
In that time, she said she sang for corporate and private events, and collaborated with orchestras around the world and her castmates. But it doesn’t compare to the stage.
"We’re sharing this once-in-a-lifetime experience every time there’s a new show, so I can't wait for that. And honestly, let’s face it, our species just went through trauma, and we need to heal," Picerno said. "The arts is how we’re going to heal, especially live theater."
Picerno said nothing will change in the production due to coronavirus. It will still be the same show, just as fans remember it.