The Broadway League has announced that marquee lights of all Broadway theaters will be dimmed tonight for exactly one minute at 7:45pm in memory of 21-time Tony-winning director/producer Harold Prince, who died this morning at age 91.
"To be both a genius and a gentleman is rare and extraordinary," said Thomas Schumacher, chairman of The Broadway League. "Hal Prince's genius was matched by his generosity of spirit, particularly with those building a career. Sitting on the T. Edward Hambleton Fellowship Panel of Mentors alongside Hal was both a lesson in producing and a lesson in humanity. He was a giant."
"Harold Prince, a former chairman of the board of the Broadway League, was devoted to the theater and cared deeply about all aspects of the business. His passion, creativity and unparalleled standards gave life to so many of the shows we now consider Broadway classics," said Charlotte St. Martin, president of The Broadway League. "He was famous for his remarkable artistic collaborations, but what some may not realize was his extraordinary commitment to mentoring the next generation of industry professionals and ensuring the future of Broadway."
Among Prince's Tony-winning works were the original productions of Sweeney Todd, West Side Story, Cabaret, Fiddler on the Roof and the record-breaking hit The Phantom of the Opera, which is currently the longest-running musical in Broadway history.
His other Broadway credits include The Pajama Game, Damn Yankees, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Company, Parade, She Loves Me, It's a Bird...It's a Plane...It's Superman, Pacific Overtures, On the Twentieth Century, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Merrily We Roll Along and the revue Prince of Broadway, which marked his final Broadway credit.
Prince was presented with a Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2006.