Watch Bruce Springsteen Play First-Ever Broadway Encore
Bruce Springsteen surprised fans at his Broadway show this week when he stayed on to perform an encore for the first time, and invited them to take photos during the bonus song.
He’s been at the Walter Kerr Theatre since October last year, with the run extended several times to a current end date of Dec. 15. On Tuesday night, after delivering the usual closing number, “Born to Run,” he said, “You’re a beautiful audience. You’re so good, you get the first encore ever. … Feel free to take a picture.”
He then performed “This Hard Land,” which appeared on his 1995 Greatest Hits album, though the song was first recorded in 1983 during the Born in the U.S.A. sessions.
Some fans who used their phones to record the moment then shared their clips on social media but ran into some trouble with automated copyright breach detection. YouTube removed some clips, citing a claim from UMPG Publishing, which controls the use of the song, regardless of Springsteen’s intentions. One fan uploaded an edited version of his clip to YouTube, noting, “At the end of the Broadway show, Bruce Springsteen personally told the audience that they were then allowed to film and take photos. The entire audience did so.”
In a new interview with the Star Tribune, Springsteen was asked if he would take the award-winning Springsteen on Broadway show on tour when it finally closes. “I’m here until December,” he replied. “We’ll see, we’ll see, we’ll see.” He also noted that, despite his reputation as a working-class man, “I’ve never worked five days a week until right now.”