Matthew Broderick to miss performances of Broadway play after positive Covid-19 test

Matthew Broderick dropped out of starring in the Broadway play Plaza Suite on Tuesday after testing positive for Covid-19.

In a statement released an hour before showtime, producers of the revival of Neil Simon's classic comedy announced that the Ferris Bueller's Day Off actor had contracted the virus and would be replaced by his understudy Michael McGrath.

Broderick's co-star and wife Sarah Jessica Parker tested negative and performed opposite McGrath on Tuesday.

"Matthew Broderick tested positive before today's performance of Plaza Suite, despite strict adherence to COVID safety protocols. A second test has confirmed the diagnosis," the producers wrote in a statement on social media. "Everyone wishes him a speedy recovery."

They did not indicate when Broderick, 60, is expected to return to the stage.

Broderick's positive test comes just over a week after the play officially opened at the Hudson Theatre on 28 March.

Plaza Suite was originally scheduled to open in March 2020 but was postponed numerous times due to the pandemic.

Neither Broderick nor Parker has commented on the news.