On Thursday, the Folger Shakespeare Library announced the postponement of the National Building Museum’s annual summer exhibition Shakespeare’s Playhouse a full year, to July 2021.

The exhibit, first announced in early January, was planned to feature an enclosed stage in the vein of 16th-century Elizabethan theaters (think London’s Globe Theater) in the museum’s Great Hall. Throughout its two-month run from July to September, there would have been stage combat workshops, Elizabethan-era ruff-making classes, and other programming.

The main event would have been the staging of the Shakespearean classic A Midsummer Night’s Dream inside the theater, designed at the University of South Carolina. It was to be directed by Robert Richmond, a professor in the school’s theater department, who also has directed several other productions at Folger.

As was the case in previous years with their giant maze, ball pit, and funhouse, this National Building Museum installation was highly anticipated. But as with nearly every large scale D.C. event scheduled for the coming months, the pandemic put an end to all of that.

In a statement, Folger Shakespeare Library director Michael Witmore said the decision to “defer” the exhibition and production until 2021 was due to making sure everyone could enjoy the programming. In the same release, the Folger Theater announced it was delaying its other 2020 production, The Tempest, to April 2021.

“We knew it had all the makings of a perfect match for our boards, our staff, and our audiences,” National Building Museum executive director Chase Rynd said of the exhibit in Folger’s release. “The Playhouse has been postponed for now, but the partnership remains steadfast as ever.”

However, the National Building Museum’s future remains shaky, announcing on Thursday that it would be partially furloughing its staff starting Friday, May 1.

In a statement, the museum cites “the continuing and profound financial impact the museum is experiencing due to an extended closure” for the cuts. Unlike other museums that have been dark during the pandemic, the Building Museum has been closed since December: Its three-month closure for renovations was set to end in March, but the pandemic forced it to stay shuttered.

The partial furlough will reduce staff working hours between 20 percent and 80 percent, according to the museum. There is no end date for the furloughs and the museum said it is unclear if more cuts would be needed in the future. Earlier in April, the museum furloughed all hourly staff that had worked in visitor services.

This announcement is the latest in a series of cuts the museum has made in the past several months. In February, the Building Museum laid off eight percent of its staff. Rynd told DCist at the time the cuts were due to a revenue drop related to the renovation project as well as broader financial challenges.

On Monday, the museum announced that Rynd would retire at the end of September after 17 years with the institution.

A National Building Museum spokesperson confirmed to DCist that there’s currently no set date for a reopening. Additional 2020 programming has been cancelled, including the museum’s annual children’s summer camp and fundraising gala, which has pivoted to an online fundraising effort. So far it has raised $25,000, according to the museum’s release.

Chelsea Cirruzzo contributed reporting to this story, which has been updated with information about National Building Museum Executive Director Chase Rynd’s forthcoming retirement.