Andrew Lloyd Webber gets experimental COVID-19 vaccine: ‘Ill do anything’ for theater – Asbury Park Press

At "Cats" world premiere in New York, composer Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber talks of unusual concept transforming T.S. Eliot poems into the beloved musical, calls star Taylor Swift "absolutely fantastic." (Dec. 17) AP Entertainment

He is not throwing away his shot.

One day after announcing that he would be taking part in a COVID-19 vaccine trial, legendary composer Andrew Lloyd Webber said that he had received the experimentalimmunization.

"Just completed the Oxford Covid-19 vaccine trial. Ill do anything to get theatres large and small open again and actors and musicians back to work," he wrote on social media on Thursday.

In this Jan. 28, 2018 photo, Andrew Lloyd Webber arrives at the 60th annual Grammy Awards at Madison Square Garden in New York. A new permanent exhibit opening Tuesday, June 11, 2019, offers visitors an Instagram-ready chance to put on costumes and sing some of Broadway's most famous show tunes, but also a taste of what's going on backstage, from controlling fog to switching on lights. While it's billed as "The Ultimate Broadway Experience," the truth is it's more a Lloyd Webber experience, featuring only props, music and characters from the theater icon's work: "The Phantom of the Opera," "Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat," "Evita," "Sunset Boulevard," and "Cats."(Photo: Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)

The post accompanied a photo of himself sitting in a chair next to a medical professional who is preparing to give him the shot. Lloyd Webber is wearing a black T-shirt emblazoned with "Save Our Stages," the same hashtag he ended his post with.

On Facebook he tagged the National Independent Venue Association, which works at "securing financial support to preserve the national ecosystem of independent venues and promoters," according to its mission statement. The group reposted Lloyd Webber'smessage and added a thank you note.

On Wednesday, Lloyd Webber announced that he was taking part in thetrial.

"I am excited that tomorrow I am going to be vaccinated for the Oxford Covid 19 trial. Ill do anything to prove that theatres can re-open safely," he tweeted.

Lloyd Webber, composer of "The Phantom of the Opera," "Cats,""Evita," "School of Rock" and other musicals produced both in the West End and on Broadway, has been vocal about the reopening of London's theaters.

A few weeks ago, after "Phantom of the Opera"producer Cameron Mackintosh said that the pandemic has caused the London and UK touring productions of the show to permanently shut down, Lloyd Webber responded: As far as Im concernedPhantomwill reopen as soon as is possible.

In the United States, Broadway shows have been shut down since March 12, and are officially closed at least through the new year, though most expect the shutdown to last longer than that.

Lloyd Webber also has been busy engaging with fans on social media and bringing experiences to at-home audiences with his "Composer in Isolation" video series and the introduction of "The Shows Must Go On," which made professional recordings of musicalsavailable on YouTube for a weekend at a time.

Virtual cabaret

Broadway From Home will present its first Coaches Concert at 8 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 15.

The virtual cabaret will feature Broadway actors singing popular stage tunes and serve as a benefit to help provide scholarships to the organization'sworkshops. The suggested donation is $15.

Set to perform are Broadway and Hollywood actors includingMolly McCook("Modern Family," "Last Man Standing"),Nik Walker("Hamilton," "Ain't Too Proud"),Sara Jean Ford("Phantom of the Opera", "Cats," "A Little Night Music"),John Krause ("Hadestown"),Jane Bruce("Jagged Little Pill"),Alan Wiggins("Pretty Woman," "The Lion King"),Tess Primack("Fiddler on the Roof"),Harley Harrison("The Finest Hours"),Perry Sherman("Fun Home"),Monica Rodrigues("The Buddy Holly Story") and more.

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Broadway From Home was created by entrepreneur and actorHarley Harrison Yanoff as "a solution for school-aged theater kids looking for at-home activities during quarantine and a way to employ out-of-work actors during theBroadwayshutdown."

It offers workshops including acting, singing, dance, improv, audition technique and more five days a week via Zoom. A portion of its proceeds benefit The Actors Fund and City Harvest.

To learn more about the organization and its virtual cabaret, visitbwayfromhome.com or follow them onInstagram (@bwayfromhome) andFacebook.

Ilana Keller is anaward-winning journalist and lifelong New Jersey resident who loves Broadway and really bad puns. She highlights arts advocacyand education, theater fundraisers and morethrough her column,"Sightlines." Reach out onTwitter: @ilanakeller;ikeller@gannettnj.com

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Andrew Lloyd Webber gets experimental COVID-19 vaccine: 'Ill do anything' for theater - Asbury Park Press