Six new productions helped boost Broadway’s bottom line this past week to $21,448,475, a hefty boost over the reporting period ending October 17 of $19,676,091. The season to date now totals $421,149,313, nearly identical to the totals at the same point last season of $421,049,485.
The shows that were able to surpass the million-dollar threshold this past week were Wicked at the Gershwin, The Lion King at the Minskoff, Billy Elliot at the Imperial, Jersey Boys at the August Wilson and The Merchant of Venice at the Broadhurst.
The box office draw of Academy Award and Tony Award winning actor Al Pacino helped “The Merchant of Venice” surpass $1 million after just seven preview performances. Ticket sales reportedly finished at $1,060,015, setting a record for a non-musical.
“The Merchant of Venice” was one of only two productions that met their Gross Gross Potential, with “Wicked” being the other. In its fifth week since opening to previews on September 21, the play Life in the Theatre at the Schoenfeld is falling way short of expectations at only about 26 percent of its Gross Gross Potential in spite of the star power of Patrick Stewart and T.R. Knight.
There are nine productions whose Top Ticket sold at $300 and a tenth, “Jersey Boys,” selling at $350. The Best Buy ticket as suggested by the Average Paid Admission category is Lombardi at the Circle in the Square Theatre at $36. Four productions met 95 percent or better capacity.
The play “Lombardi” was the only production that opened last week, officially opening on October 21. Another play, Driving Miss Daisy, opened this current week on October 25 at the John Golden Theatre.
In previews:
• The Scottsboro Boys, a musical, opens 10/31 at the Lyceum
• Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, a musical, opens 11/4 at the Belasco
• Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles on Broadway, a musical, opens 10/26 at the Neil Simon
• “The Merchant of Venice”, a play, opens 11/7 at the Broadhurst
• Colin Quinn: Long Story Short, a play, opens 11/9 at the Helen Hayes
• A Free Man of Color, a play, opens 11/18 at the Vivian Beaumont
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. % |
| A Free…Color (Beaumont) |
$89,433 | 1,626 | 2 | 0 | 1,043 | $55.00 | 77.9% |
| A Life in the Theatre (Schoenfeld) |
$255,749 | 3,988 | 0 | 8 | 1,071 | $64.13 | 46.5% |
| A Little Night Music (Kerr) |
$612,430 | 6,378 | 0 | 8 | 931 | $96.02 | 85.6% |
| American Idiot (St. James) |
$511,420 | 7,427 | 0 | 8 | 1,709 | $68.86 | 54.3% |
| Billy Elliot (Imperial) |
$1,122,640 | 11,288 | 0 | 8 | 1,421 | $99.45 | 99.3% |
| Bloody…Jackson (Jacobs) |
$388,676 | 5,852 | 0 | 8 | 1,030 | $66.42 | 71.0% |
| Brief Encounter (Studio 54) |
$353,195 | 5,873 | 0 | 8 | 1,002 | $60.14 | 73.3% |
| Chicago (Ambassador) |
$499,930 | 6,640 | 0 | 8 | 1,080 | $75.29 | 76.9% |
| Colin Quinn…Short (Hayes) |
$60,699 | 1,599 | 4 | 0 | 587 | $37.96 | 68.1% |
| Driving Miss Daisy (Golden) |
$684,506 | 6,013 | 8 | 0 | 804 | $113.84 | 93.5% |
| Fela! (O’Neill) |
$523,410 | 6,572 | 0 | 8 | 1,030 | $79.64 | 79.8% |
| In the Heights (Rodgers) |
$539,364 | 7,310 | 0 | 8 | 1,344 | $73.78 | 68.0% |
| Jersey Boys (August Wilson) |
$1,106,734 | 9,692 | 0 | 8 | 1,228 | $114.19 | 98.7% |
| La Bete (Music Box) |
$344,685 | 5,248 | 0 | 8 | 1,007 | $65.68 | 65.1% |
| La Cage aux Folles (Longacre) |
$579,843 | 6,491 | 0 | 8 | 1,057 | $89.33 | 76.8% |
| Lombardi (Circle in Square) |
$194,649 | 5,374 | 4 | 4 | 790 | $36.22 | 85.0% |
| Mamma Mia! (Winter Garden) |
$889,970 | 10,583 | 0 | 8 | 1,498 | $84.09 | 88.3% |
| Mary Poppins (New Amsterdam) |
$713,030 | 9,540 | 0 | 8 | 1,797 | $74.74 | 66.4% |
| Memphis (Shubert) |
$948,073 | 10,377 | 0 | 8 | 1,470 | $91.36 | 88.2% |
| Million Dollar Quartet (Nederlander) |
$524,390 | 6,322 | 0 | 8 | 1,214 | $82.95 | 65.1% |
| Mrs. Warren’s Profession (American Airlines) |
$252,797 | 4,392 | 0 | 8 | 740 | $57.56 | 74.2% |
| Next to Normal (Booth) |
$281,899 | 4,731 | 0 | 8 | 772 | $59.59 | 76.6% |
| Promises, Promises (Broadway) |
$991,306 | 11,036 | 0 | 8 | 1,747 | $89.82 | 79.0% |
| Rain (Simon) |
$633,030 | 9,143 | 7 | 0 | 1,448 | $69.24 | 90.2% |
| Rock of Ages (Atkinson) |
$473,009 | 6,452 | 0 | 8 | 997 | $73.31 | 80.9% |
| The Addams Family (Lunt-Fontanne) |
$986,444 | 9,660 | 0 | 8 | 1,519 | $102.12 | 79.5% |
| The Lion King (Minskoff) |
$1,411,468 | 12,512 | 0 | 8 | 1,677 | $112.81 | 93.3% |
| The Merchant of Venice (Broadhurst) |
$1,060,015 | 7,944 | 7 | 0 | 1,152 | $133.44 | 98.5% |
| The Phantom of the Opera (Majestic) |
$772,713 | 10,563 | 0 | 8 | 1,615 | $73.15 | 81.8% |
| The Pitmen Painters (Friedman) |
$229,838 | 3,771 | 0 | 8 | 650 | $60.95 | 72.5% |
| The Scottsboro Boys (Lyceum) |
$266,889 | 5,209 | 8 | 0 | 900 | $51.24 | 72.3% |
| Time Stands Still (Cort) |
$459,807 | 5,602 | 0 | 8 | 1,079 | $82.08 | 64.9% |
| West Side Story (Palace) |
$729,821 | 9,955 | 0 | 8 | 1,697 | $73.31 | 73.3% |
| Wicked (Gershwin) |
$1,573,370 | 14,455 | 0 | 8 | 1,809 | $108.85 | 99.9% |
| Women…Breakdown (Belasco) |
$383,248 | 6,368 | 7 | 0 | 1,002 | $60.18 | 90.8% |
