NYC power outage wreaks havoc, Broadway, Dave Chappelle & JLo affected

UPDATE: Dave Chappelle added a last minute show at Gramercy Theatre TONIGHT, and tickets are on sale.

UPDATE 2: Chappelle also made a surprise appearance at Comedy Cellar Saturday night, and his Broadway show is rescheduled.

A massive power outage, believed to be caused by a transformer fire at West 64th St and West End Ave, as Fox News reports, wreaked havoc on Manhattan on Saturday night (7/13). Subway service on every line is impacted, and several stations having been closed entirely, including 59th St Columbus Circle, 47-50th Sts-Rockefeller Ctr, 34th St-Hudson Yards, and 5th Av/53rd St. Interestingly this falls on the 42nd anniversary of the infamous 1977 NYC Blackout.

On Broadway, most shows were cancelled for the night, including Saturday night’s edition of Dave Chappelle‘s Broadway residency at Lunt-Fontanne Theater. Would-be attendees took to social media to describe the scene; see their tweets and video clips below. The only Broadway venues to remain open are the Winter Garden Theater, Nederlander Theater, and Lyceum Theatre, according to the NYPD. The Broadway League is advising ticketholders to contact their point of purchase for information on refunds and exchanges.

At Madison Square Garden, Jennifer Lopez‘s Saturday night show was evacuated due to safety concerns following the blackout, The Hollywood Reporter says.

UPDATE: Jennifer Lopez’s Madison Square Garden show is rescheduled for Monday.

The NYPD is referring to the outage as the Times Square Blackout, and says Con Edison is still working to restore service. Stay tuned for more updates.