The long pause in theatre operation in the West End and on Broadway may lead to a shift of the theatre hotspots to cruise ships, said Senior Vice President for Entertainment and Cruise Programs at Norwegian Cruise Line, Richard Ambrose.
“The labour market for performers and those in the entertainment – musicians, technicians – are clamouring for work. They’ve been unemployed for almost over a year now. And there’s really no end in sight right now. Broadway is looking at late summer of 2021, the West End is trying to open… And it just doesn’t happen,” Ambrose said.
“The cruise industry, and especially the Norwegian Cruise Line, is going to be the employer of choice, which is great,” he added.
According to Ambrose, speaking recently at a virtual press conference, Norwegian has around 2,300 to 2,600 people working in the entertainment department across its 17-ship fleet, which makes the cruise line “the world’s largest regional theatre.”
“Internally, we call ourselves the world’s largest regional theatre. And it really is true. Because if you look at us and what we’re doing from the Broadway, West End production series, the shows that we get prior to Broadway… If you look at Six, the musical – we had two productions on our ships before even touched Broadway, which is a huge coup. Not only for Norwegian Cruise Line but for the industry,” he said.
“It really means that the entertainment industry is taking us seriously, but they also really respect what Norwegian Cruise Line is doing.”
Norwegian Cruise Line is working on compiling its health and safety regulations to ensure that its return to cruising is safe, Ambrose said. One thing he revealed about its theatre operations when cruising resumes is that theatre guests will be sat in a “checkerboard” way.
“We only have to be a meter apart right now, so it’s going to be every other seat. And we also have to have space before and after a guest. You won’t have somebody sitting in front of you, you won’t have somebody sitting behind you. It’s like a big checkerboard if you consider it that way,” he said, adding that social distancing will also be observed between the cast and the guests.
Norwegian Cruise Line today announced its 2023 summer itinerary lineup.
The new itineraries include the brand’s first visit to beautiful Nessebar, Bulgaria on Norwegian Jade’s Extraordinary Journeys sailing through the Mediterranean and the Black Sea; the debut of Norwegian Bliss at the Royal Naval Dockyard during her seven-day roundtrip voyage to Bermuda from New York; Norwegian Jade’s first visit to Bodrum, Turkey and Paros, Greece during her seven-day roundtrip voyage from Athens (Piraeus), Greece; and more.
The company said this is the furthest in advance that it has ever launched its itineraries.
“Now is the time to break free from the hold 2020 has had on us, dream big and plan for the cruise vacation we’ve all been waiting for,” said Harry Sommer, Norwegian Cruise Line president and chief executive officer. “Our newest itineraries along with our incredible, limited-time Black Friday deal provides guests with the perfect opportunity to book, save and indulge in a cruise vacation of a lifetime. We can’t wait to return to the sea, but until we can do so, we are proud to be able to provide our guests with a bit of inspiration, entertainment and behind-the-scenes action with the launch of ‘EMBARK – The Series’.”
Summer 2023 notable itineraries include:
MEDITERRANEAN
The Norwegian Breakaway, Norwegian Epic, Norwegian Gem and Norwegian Jade will sail a selection of five to 11-day cruises through the Mediterranean from May through October.
For the first time, Norwegian Cruise Line will visit the ancient city of Nessebar, Bulgaria during Norwegian Jade’s March 30 Extraordinary Journeys sailing. This nine-day roundtrip voyage from Athens (Piraeus), Greece through the Mediterranean and the Black Sea include a port rich itinerary with no sea days.
On her May 21 sailing, the Norwegian Jade will make her debut in Bodrum, Turkey and Paros, Greece as she embarks on a selection of seven-day Greek Isles roundtrip voyages from Athens (Piraeus), Greece, available through Oct. 15.
From May 6 through Oct. 13, the Norwegian Breakaway will offer port-intensive itineraries during her 10-day Greek Isles roundtrip cruises from Rome (Civitavecchia), Italy, visiting Santorini, Greece; Dubrovnik, Croatia; Florence/Pisa (Livorno), Italy; Cannes, France and more.
NORTHERN EUROPE Sailing a series of Northern Europe cruises from May 8 through Oct. 17, Norwegian Getaway’s nine-day Baltic roundtrip voyages from Copenhagen, Denmark feature an overnight stay, a total of 36 hours in port, in St. Petersburg, Russia. The itinerary also includes calls to Warnemünde, Germany; Tallinn, Estonia; Stockholm, Sweden; and Helsinki.
BERMUDA For the first time on her May 21 sailing, the Norwegian Bliss, will call to Norfolk, Virginia. The vessel will also make her debut at the Royal Naval Dockyard in Bermuda as she begins a series of five and seven-day roundtrip cruises sailing out of New York. The itineraries include two overnight stays at the Royal Naval Dockyard
ALASKA Between April 22 and Oct. 15, Alaska will welcome four Norwegian Cruise Line ships: Norwegian Jewel, Norwegian Sun, Norwegian Encore and Norwegian Joy. The ships will sail a variety of five to nine-day voyages from Seattle; Vancouver, Canada; and Seward, Alaska, and every seven and nine-day itinerary.
BAHAMAS Starting June 2 through Dec. 29, the Norwegian Sky will sail three and four-day roundtrip cruises from Miami, calling to Freeport, Nassau and Great Stirrup Cay.
THE CARIBBEAN Cruising roundtrip from Miami, the Norwegian Escape and Norwegian Sky will offer a mix of five to nine-day sailings between Eastern and Western Caribbean. The various itineraries include calls to Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic; St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands; Road Town (Tortola), British Virgin Islands; Great Stirrup Cay, Bahamas; George Town, Cayman Islands; Roatan Island, Honduras; Cozumel, Mexico; Harvest Caye.
Norwegian Sky leaving the port of Miami
CANADA AND NEW ENGLAND Beginning Aug. 27 through Oct. 29, the Norwegian Escape will homeport in New York City offering seven-day roundtrip cruises to Canada and New England making calls to Newport, Rhode Island; Portland and Bar Harbor, Maine; Saint John and Halifax, Canada. The Norwegian Pearl will sail a series of seven-day open-jaw cruises to and from Boston, and Quebec City, Canada from Aug. 25 through Oct. 13 with visits to Bar Harbor, Maine; Halifax, Sydney, Charlottetown and Saguenay, Canada.
The trade association representing 95 per cent of the global ocean-going ships says its members will maintain the voluntary suspension of cruise ship operations in the U.S. through the end of the year.
Cruise Lines International Association members include brands of Carnival Corporation, Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise Line, the three largest cruise ship groups. Each made their own separate announcements related to suspending U.S. cruises through the end of the year on Monday.
The voluntary suspension comes less than a week after the U.S. CDC issued framework guidance to resume cruise operations in earnest despite surging cases and recent warnings from government scientists that cruise ship travel exacerbates the spread of COVID-19. The CDC’s No Sail Order, which was first issued in March and later expanded multiple times, expired on October 31.
The framework requires cruise lines to “demonstrate adherence to testing, quarantine and isolation, and social distancing requirements to protect crew members while they build the laboratory capacity needed to test crew and future passengers.”
CLIA said today that extending the sailing suspension through the end of the year will give its members time to implement the extensive measures set out by the CDC and the guidance of outside public health experts.
The suspension has created unprecedented losses for cruise lines and beaten down cruise stocks. According to CLIA, the cruise industry generates over $53 billion in annual economic activity and supports 421,000 jobs in the United States. The cancellation of cruises since for nearly eight months has resulted in estimated losses of more than $25 billion in economic activity and over 164,000 American jobs.
The Association issued the following statement on behalf of its members:
“As we continue to plan for a gradual and highly-controlled return of cruise operations in the U.S., CLIA members are committed to implementing stringent measures to address COVID-19 safety, including 100% testing of passengers and crew, expanded onboard medical capabilities, and trial sailings, among many others. We share a common goal with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to protect public health, which has been affirmed and reaffirmed consistently throughout the industry’s response to the global pandemic. As we work to operationalize a path forward, our members have agreed to extend our existing suspension of U.S. operations through December 31. This action will provide additional time to align the industry’s extensive preparation of health protocols with the implementation requirements under the CDC’s Framework for Conditional Sailing and Initial Phase COVID-19 Testing Requirements for Protection of Crew. We recognize the devastating impact that the pandemic continues to have on the 421,000 Americans whose livelihoods are connected directly to cruise operations. We will work with urgency to advance a responsible return to cruising while maintaining a focus on effective, science-based measures to protect public health.”
CLIA’s statement added:
“In the nearly eight months that cruise operations in the U.S. have been suspended, CLIA members have been diligent in the planning and development of rigorous protocols in the interest of the health and safety of passengers, crew and the communities cruise lines serve. The public health protocols that CLIA members have agreed to adopt have been informed by the recommendations of world-class experts in public health and science, as well as the experiences of CLIA member lines who have resumed sailing in Europe and other parts of the world with approval from local and regional governments.”
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