Entertainment
Jodie Comer stops Prima Facie Broadway show due to breathing difficulties amid New York’s bad air crisis-Tori Brazier-Entertainment – Metro
It comes after Canada’s devastating wildfires.
Jodie Comer was three minutes into the matinee performance of Prima Facie (Picture: Helen Murray/The Press Room via AP)
Jodie Comer halted a performance of her one-woman show on Broadway on Wednesday amid New York City’s bad air crisis.
The 30-year-old Killing Eve star stopped today’s matinee run of Prima Face after telling audience members she was having difficulty breathing.
According to an audience member, Comer started the show about 10 minutes late before stating from the stage that she was having difficulty with the smoky air due to Canada’s devastating wildfires.
Comer was said to be approximately three minutes into her 100-minute solo performance when she coughed, paused and then called out to the stage manager: ‘I can’t breathe in this air.’
The curtain was then lowered and audience members were asked to stay in their seats while a decision was made over whether or not to cancel the show, reports Deadline.
It was then decided that the Prima Facie performance would go ahead, starting from the top with understudy Dani Arlington going on for Comer, a representative of the show confirmed to the publication.
The actress, who has won an Olivier for her turn, reportedly said she couldn’t breathe (Picture: Getty)
However, some audience members were left confused unhappy over the situation.
‘We came to see Jodie Comer. She started show. Had to stop for air quality. Now want us to see understudy. What is refund policy? Exchange? We came and paid high price to see Jodie,’ one tweeted.
However, others praised Comer’s decision.
‘Truly thank you to Jodie Comer for modelling what to do when you become unwell. A friendly reminder that “the show must go on” should never be a threat, and sometimes, it mustn’t.
‘Sending love to her & everyone in the Prima Facie company. Be safe, y’all.’
Another added: ‘Also dani performing doesn’t make things any better if jodie can’t do it how do they expect the understudy who has to do the same thing to perform [sic].’
New York City is currently under an air quality red alert (Picture: Rishma Dosani)
Cyclists on 6th Avenue attempting to cope with the conditions (Picture: Reuters)
Comer is currently on Broadway with the show (Picture: Getty)
The National Weather Service has issued an air quality red alert for the New York City area after Canada’s blazing wildfires created smog, smoke and debris that has drifted southwards across the border.
Parts of 18 states were under air quality alerts this morning for both wildfire smoke and ozone, totalling around 98 million people.
This afternoon, New York City officially had the worst air in the world among major cities, according to Swiss monitoring company IQAir.
She plays defence lawyer Tessa in the play
Comer, 30, stars as Tessa in Suzie Miller’s one-woman play, and was recently nominated for a Tony Award for her performance, which is her Broadway debut.
Prima Facie is about a British defence lawyer who ends up in the witness box.
The play has secured four Tony Award nominations at the 2023 ceremony, including for best scenic design, best lighting design, best sound in a play, and Comer’s nod for leading actress in a play.
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