Broadway was in full rebound mode leading up to Labor Day, as tuners and plays alike made strong recoveries over the previous, hurricane-soaked frame. All 23 shows reopened for a complete performance week, reporting a total gross of $18,454,882 through the week ending September 4.
The week’s $18.4 million gross marked a nearly 59 percent increase over the week ending August 28, when Broadway box offices took a huge hit due to hurricane-related cancellations. But as shows reopened, audiences also returned, and total attendance was tallied at 201,396 for the week leading up to Labor Day.
Five musicals made Broadway’s million dollar club for the week ending September 4. Unsurprisingly, “Wicked” led the pack with a gross of $1.60 million, but Disney musical “The Lion King” offered stiff competition with its $1.59 million draw.
Attendance rates were more of a wash across the board, with some shows reporting increases and others seeing decreases. But only “The Lion King” (100 percent) and “The Book of Mormon” (102.4 percent) reached or surpassed their capacity potential.
Overall, it was a week of much-needed improvement for Broadway, which considers Labor Day the end of its robust summer season. But the week’s biggest winner may have been “Anything Goes” — which saw attendance up 22 percent, as its gross increased 149 percent to $781,412.
As the summer season drew to a close, so did a few Broadway productions. Final curtains fell September 4 for “Baby It’s You!” ($407,517), “Catch Me If You Can” ($600,545), and “Master Class” ($346,806) — each reporting a gross on average with its previous summer frames.
The next scheduled closure comes September 10 for “Hair,” which ends a 10-week limited engagement on the Main Stem as part of its on-going U.S. National Tour. Meanwhile, the first opening of Broadway’s fall season is right around the corner as “Follies” opens September 12 at the Marquis Theatre.
All data provided by The Broadway League.
Broadway Gross Ticket Sales
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| Production (Theatre) |
Weekly Gross | Total Atten. | Prev. | Perf. | Total Capacity | Avg. Ticket Price | Atten. % |
| Anything Goes (Sondheim) |
$781,412 | 7,579 | 0 | 8 | 1,026 | $103.10 | 92.3% |
| Baby It’s You! (Broadhurst) |
$407,517 | 6,583 | 0 | 8 | 1,141 | $61.90 | 72.1% |
| Billy Elliot (Imperial) |
$711,702 | 8,002 | 0 | 8 | 1,421 | $88.94 | 70.4% |
| Catch Me… (Simon) |
$600,545 | 9,417 | 0 | 8 | 1,422 | $63.77 | 82.8% |
| Chicago (Ambassador) |
$495,473 | 6,136 | 0 | 8 | 1,080 | $80.75 | 71.0% |
| Follies (Marquis) |
$806,875 | 10,002 | 8 | 0 | 1,557 | $80.67 | 80.3% |
| Hair (St. James) |
$337,645 | 6,751 | 0 | 8 | 1,737 | $50.01 | 48.6% |
| How to Succeed… (Hirschfeld) |
$1,047,847 | 10,411 | 0 | 8 | 1,424 | $100.65 | 91.4% |
| Jersey Boys (August Wilson) |
$899,240 | 8,812 | 0 | 8 | 1,228 | $102.05 | 89.7% |
| Mamma Mia! (Winter Garden) |
$709,417 | 8,474 | 0 | 8 | 1,498 | $83.72 | 70.7% |
| Mary Poppins (New Amsterdam) |
$761,321 | 9,617 | 0 | 8 | 1,797 | $79.16 | 66.9% |
| Master Class (Friedman) |
$346,806 | 4,935 | 0 | 8 | 641 | $70.27 | 96.2% |
| Memphis (Shubert) |
$667,569 | 8,298 | 0 | 8 | 1,470 | $80.45 | 70.6% |
| Priscilla…Desert (Palace) |
$620,842 | 7,876 | 0 | 8 | 1,690 | $78.83 | 58.3% |
| Rock of Ages (Hayes) |
$348,861 | 3,993 | 0 | 8 | 583 | $87.37 | 85.6% |
| Sister Act (Broadway) |
$578,156 | 8,129 | 0 | 8 | 1,755 | $71.12 | 57.9% |
| Spider-Man…Dark (Foxwoods) |
$1,503,442 | 14,088 | 0 | 8 | 1,930 | $106.72 | 91.2% |
| The Addams Family (Lunt-Fontanne) |
$626,976 | 8,515 | 0 | 8 | 1,519 | $73.63 | 70.1% |
| The Book of Mormon (O’Neill) |
$1,272,792 | 8,752 | 0 | 8 | 1,068 | $145.43 | 102.4% |
| The Lion King (Minskoff) |
$1,592,469 | 13,422 | 0 | 8 | 1,677 | $118.65 | 100.0% |
| The Phantom of the Opera (Majestic) |
$762,551 | 9,574 | 0 | 8 | 1,615 | $79.65 | 74.1% |
| War Horse (Beaumont) |
$973,320 | 8,351 | 0 | 8 | 1,069 | $116.55 | 97.6% |
| Wicked (Gershwin) |
$1,602,104 | 13,679 | 0 | 8 | 1,809 | $117.12 | 94.5% |
