Broadway actors are preparing for a possible strike as Actors’ Equity has yet to reach an agreement with producers on a new contract. 

Members of Actors’ Equity have been going to Broadway stage doors to deliver strike pledge cards and the union board has already voted to authorize a strike, which could shut down dozens of Broadway productions, if it were to come to fruition. More than 1,000 Broadway actors, and bold-face names including Darren Criss, Sean Astin and Alec Baldwin have signed a letter stating their solidarity with Equity. 

This would be the first Actors’ Equity strike on Broadway since 1968. However, this move is also a common tactic in negotiations. 

“A strike is a last resort, but Broadway producers who are bringing in billions must pay a fair contribution for health care benefits. What we’re asking for is exceedingly reasonable. If they can’t pay their fair share, instead of performing in the theater, we may be walking on picket lines outside the theater,” Al Vincent Jr. , executive director of Actors’ Equity, said in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter.

Actors’ Equity, which represents actors and stage managers, has been negotiating the production contract with the Broadway League, the trade association for producers, theater owners and general managers, since Aug. 25. The three-year contract expired Sept. 28.

Negotiations continue, with the next session scheduled for Oct. 8, but the two parties have also already agreed to two days of mediation next week. 

The main sticking in the negotiation is healthcare contributions, according to Actors’ Equity, which is asking for about a $4 million increase in contributions from producers, as healthcare costs rise.

As the negotiations have heated up, members of Equity have continued to point to the fact that last season was the highest-grossing Broadway season on record, bringing in $1.89 billion. But even in that announcement, League producers warned of rising costs for producing shows, and while grosses were high, as The New York Times reported, none of the musicals that opened last year made a profit. 

“We always prefer to negotiate with our union partners at the bargaining table rather than in the press. We look forward to reaching a fair agreement through good faith negotiations that benefits both sides and sustains Broadway as a destination for millions of people from around the world,” the Broadway League said in a statement to THR. 

In the letter to the Broadway League, thousands of Broadway members signed on to support Equity’s asks, which include healthcare, as well as humane scheduling, including “appropriate” paid time off, and safe staffing in the workplace. 

Signatories on the letter include Astin, recently elected president of SAG-AFTRA, Broadway bold names including Darren Criss, LaTanya Richardson Jackson, Philippa Soo, Adrienne Warren, Victoria Clark and Annaleigh Ashford, as well as those who have been on Broadway,  including recent Emmy winner Cristin Miloti, Taran Killam and Tatiana Maslany.

 “We call on you to meet this moment, to truly listen to your workers, and to join us in building an agreement that reflects respect, dignity, and care,” the letter reads. “We stand shoulder-to-shoulder with our fellow Equity stage managers, actors, and staff at the bargaining table. We are united, we are resolute, and we know Broadway is stronger when its workers are protected, supported, and heard.”

This is the first production contract negotiation with Brooke Shields as president of Actors’ Equity, though she is not on the negotiating team, which is led by Equity executive director Al Vincent Jr. 

While this would be the first major strike by Actors’ Equity in decades, the musicians’ union went on strike in 2003, which led to the closure of most Broadway shows for several days and IATSE went on strike in 2007, which disrupted shows for 19 days.

Negotiations on the previous Actors’ equity three-year contract lasted several months. In the prior contract, Equity saw salary increases, better paid sick leave benefits, a decrease in weekly rehearsal hours after a show opens and one additional personal day off for everyone, among other provisions. However, the contract fell short of all that the union wanted to achieve and members continued to voice concerns about the demands placed on swings, or actors who understudy several ensemble roles, among other issues.