Charlotte St. Martin, the executive director of the League, addressed the press just before 11 PM with a short statement. St. Martin said, "We are pleased to announce that we have a tentative agreement with Local One of IATSE ending the Broadway strike, and we're happy about that. Performances for all shows will begin tomorrow night — once again, that's Thursday, Nov. 29 — and schedules for all productions will be posted on [the League's official website at www.ilovenytheater.com]. The agreement is a good compromise that serves our industry. What is most important is that Broadway's lights will once again be shining brightly with a diversity of productions that will delight all theatregoers during this holiday time. We look forward to celebrating the season and welcoming our talented stagehands and the theatregoing public back to Broadway."

James J. Claffey, the president of Local One, made a very brief statement: "Brothers and sisters of Local One, you've respresented yourselves and your families and your union proud. That's enough said right there." Bruce Cohen, the union's spokesperson, later told NY1, "All I can say is we're glad there's a deal, and everybody should go back to work, and the public should go see a Broadway show."

It can be hard for the negotiations to get going, though, since the two sides may not immediately agree on basic ground rules. The bargaining teams have to decide whether to impose a gag rule with respect to the media or each organization's members. They may also discuss rules for caucusing, or stepping away from the table to talk privately with others on your team.

Once the actual bargaining begins, there's usually a lot of posturing and waiting around. The two sides can spend hours talking face-to-face and exchanging documents that bolster their arguments, but more often half the people are twiddling their thumbs. After one side makes an offer, the other goes into caucus and returns, minutes or hours later, with a counteroffer, which then prompts the first side to leave the room to work on its counter-counteroffer. Since these are compromises by committee, even small changes can take a long time. Note-takers on each side keep a record of what's said in case there's a disagreement down the line. In a complicated negotiation, several subcommittees might hold simultaneous talks on the side, each addressing a specific issue like employee pensions. Top negotiators can also hold one-on-one "sidebar" meetings that are separate from the main talks; this is actually how most deals are struck—over dinner or drinks, not across a conference table. (A sidebar meeting between Hollywood writers and producers in October couldn't prevent a strike, though.)

If negotiations drag on for a whole day (or night), both sides might agree to break for a few hours. But usually so much is at stake—in the case of the Broadway strikers, millions of dollars a day in lost revenue for the city—that no one stops for sleep unless it's absolutely necessary.

Union spokesman Bruce Cohen emerged from the talks just before 5 a.m., and spoke with NY1’s Stephanie Simon about the progress that's being made behind closed doors.

"Right now it's the 9th inning of the 7th game of the World Series. I'm optimistic both sides are still talking, even as the sun rises over Manhattan. People are getting their second wind. There's still hope that before people leave the building today, there will be an agreement,” he said.

James Claffey, Local One's burly young president, carefully prepared for a showdown. Claffey convinced his members the time had come for the union to stand up to the owners. He even convinced a reluctant Thomas Short, president of the local's parent union, that strong action was needed.

And this time, the Broadway owners and producers adopted a hard-line strategy against their workers. To begin with, they hired the Proskauer Rose law firm and its labor relations chairman, Bernard Plum, to fashion their strategy.

The city's organized labor movement hates Proskauer Rose.

This is the same firm that advised the Metropolitan Transportation Authority in labor negotiations that led to the disastrous transit workers strike two years ago.

"We are profoundly disappointed to have to tell you that talks broke off tonight, and that no further negotiations are scheduled," Charlotte St. Martin, the league's executive director, said in a statement.

"Out of respect for our public and our loyal theatergoers, many of whom are traveling from around the world, we regret that we must cancel performances through Sunday Nov. 25," she added.

Bruce Cohen, a spokesman for Local 1, the stagehands' union, said that before the talks broke off, the producers informed the union that what the local had "offered was simply not enough."

Members of Local One of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees assembled Oct. 21 to vote on whether they would authorize their union's leaders to call a strike against the League of American Theatres and Producers should that be necessary.

According to a press statement released by Local One, the 1,000 members of the stagehands union unanimously agreed to allow the leaders of the union to call a strike should the leaders feel that a necessary action.

Currently, there has been no strike called.