The Iconic venue kicks off New York's re-awakening

By Patti Pietschmann

 Carolines on Broadway  is now open making it one of the first live entertainment venues to operate in Times Square. The entertainment venue opened with headliner Donnell Rawlings whose six scheduled shows were SRO.  

Big stars under bright lights of Broadway

Originally a small cabaret back in 1982 operating out of Chelsea, Carolines is about to celebrate 40 years as a woman-owned business. 

To New Yorkers it's an iconic cultural and entertainment institution which has hosted emerging and legendary performers such as Jerry Seinfeld, Sarah Silverman, Dave Chappelle, Tracy Morgan, and others.

"As NYC reawakens, we are so pleased to welcome back Carolines, one of our City's most iconic institutions and the perfect place to enjoy great comedy in New York City. Congratulations to Caroline Hirsch and the entire team at Carolines for bringing back this extraordinary gem to the Crossroads of the World," said NYC & Company President and CEO Fred Dixon.

“Hearing the laughter from Caroline’s again is a huge step forward to NYC’s recovery.  Times Square has seen steady growth welcoming over 180,000 people a day to the neighborhood, but we won’t be fully back until our iconic Times Square venues like Broadway and Carolines are re-opened."

 COVID-19 cautious

As part of the re-opening, Carolines is employing current COVID-19 health and safety guidelines, including temperature checks upon arrival for all guests entering the venue., It's also doling thorough sanitization before and between shows including high-touch surfaces, paperless menus via a QR code, and spaced seating for all shows which is sold by table only so that guests are seated only within each group. Carolines on Broadway will operate at reduced capacity.