Disneyland and Disney World Close, Broadway halts performances

Disney will close the gates to the Magic Kingdom starting this weekend and Broadway shows will shutter performances in response to the coronavirus pandemic. 

Disney World Florida, Disneyland in California, California Adventure, Disneyland Paris and Disney Cruise LIne will all cease operations until at least the end of March, according to The New York Times. The three Disney hotels in Anaheim will continue to operate until Monday. 

Disney will continue to pay its employees during the park closures and refunds will be issued for hotel bookings during the weeks they go dark.

Broadway theaters also announced Thursday that they would take a break until at least April 12, effective immediately. New York has banned most gatherings of more than 500 people and will require smaller venues to cut their capacity by half. 

The move will likely cost tens of millions of dollars for Broadway investors and many of the plays and musicals will not be able to ride out the delays and losses.