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Broadway ticket sales feel winter’s frosty sting
Cold weather hit the northeast and Broadway last week as the box office total was down to $13,882,638. It was a drop of $2,013,937 from last week’s total of $15,896,575 and an even bigger drop compared to the same week last season of $16,271,060. Overall, the season is still ahead of last year at $619,389,534 compared to $572,807,810. But that comparison may be skewed due to the strike that hampered Broadway in November and December of 2007.
Despite totals being down, not one of the 21 productions remaining had less than 50 percent attendance. Of the leaders, they rank in this order: Wicked at the Gershwin, Billy Elliot: The Musical at the Imperial, Jersey Boys at the August Wilson and The Lion King at the Minskoff. Of the five plays, Equus at the Broadhurst leads at the box office followed by Speed The Plow at the Barrymore.
Devotees of martial arts should love the new special, Soul Of Shaolin, which began previews at the Marquis on January 13 and opened this past week on the 15th for a limited run of 24 shows. It is a production of the Nederlander Worldwide Productions and The Eastern Shanghai Cultural Film and Television Group. According to Broadway World, it is in celebration of the Lunar New Year, the year of the Ox and marks the first time a production from the People’s Republic of China has appeared on Broadway.
OPENINGS & CLOSINGS:
The American Plan, a play by Richard Greenberg, opened to previews at the Friedman. Opening Night is scheduled for January 22. The play is based on Henry James’s novel, Washington Square.
Good news for lovers of the comedy, The 39 Steps. It will re-open at the Helen Hayes Theatre on January 21st. The book is by John Buchan, based on Alfred Hitchcock’s 1935 film. It is adapted by Patrick Barlow and directed by Maria Aitken.
The musical Spring Awakening at the Eugene O’Neill closed on January 18.
Broadway Gross Ticket Sales Week ending January 18, 2009
All data provided by The Broadway League
Broadway Gross Ticket Sales | |||||||
| Production (Theatre) | Weekly Gross | Total Atten. | Prev. | Perf. | Total Capacity | Avg. Ticket Price | Atten. % |
| August: Osage County (Music Box) | $371,918 | 5,274 | 0 | 8 | 979 | $70.52 | 67.3% |
| Avenue Q (Golden) | $319,716 | 5,359 | 0 | 8 | 796 | $59.66 | 84.2% |
| Billy Elliot (Imperial) | $1,149,588 | 10,315 | 0 | 8 | 1,421 | $111.45 | 90.7% |
| Chicago (Ambassador) | $476,811 | 6,904 | 0 | 8 | 1,080 | $69.06 | 79.9% |
| Equus (Broadhurst) | $484,133 | 6,646 | 0 | 8 | 1,206 | $72.85 | 68.9% |
| Hedda Gabler (American Airlines) | $267,728 | 5,208 | 8 | 0 | 740 | $51.41 | 88.0% |
| In the Heights (Rodgers) | $799,799 | 10,144 | 0 | 8 | 1,365 | $78.84 | 92.9% |
| Jersey Boys (August Wilson) | $1,039,863 | 9,643 | 0 | 8 | 1,222 | $107.84 | 98.6% |
| Mamma Mia! (Winter Garden) | $805,395 | 10,615 | 0 | 8 | 1,498 | $75.87 | 88.6% |
| Mary Poppins (New Amsterdam) | $724,209 | 10,990 | 0 | 8 | 1,797 | $65.90 | 76.4% |
| Pal Joey (Studio 54) | $388,250 | 7,327 | 0 | 8 | 1,002 | $52.99 | 91.4% |
| Shrek (Broadway) | $785,358 | 10,176 | 0 | 8 | 1,735 | $77.18 | 73.3% |
| Soul of Shaolin (Marquis) | $361,036 | 11,822 | 3 | 5 | 1,611 | $30.54 | 91.7% |
| South Pacific (Beaumont) | $928,947 | 8,173 | 0 | 8 | 1,041 | $113.66 | 98.1% |
| Speed the Plow (Barrymore) | $421,988 | 5,656 | 0 | 8 | 1,058 | $74.61 | 66.8% |
| Spring Awakening (O’Neill) | $715,399 | 8,455 | 0 | 8 | 1,090 | $84.61 | 97.0% |
| The American Plan (Friedman) | $142,116 | 2,928 | 8 | 0 | 650 | $48.54 | 56.3% |
| The Lion King (Minskoff) | $1,023,125 | 12,051 | 0 | 8 | 1,654 | $84.90 | 91.1% |
| The Little Mermaid (Lunt-Fontanne) | $720,959 | 10,012 | 0 | 8 | 1,520 | $72.01 | 82.3% |
| The Phantom of the Opera (Majestic) | $653,913 | 10,659 | 0 | 8 | 1,615 | $61.35 | 82.5% |
| Wicked (Gershwin) | $1,302,387 | 13,457 | 0 | 8 | 1,809 | $96.78 | 93.0% |
