Broadway ticket sales continued their decent as gross sales fell 4.4 percent through July 1 with the closing of two more popular shows — the Great White Way said goodbye to four productions over the past week and six more have announced they will close before the end of the summer.
According to figures posted by The Broadway League, receipts totaled $23.9 million with a decrease among 17 productions, a significant difference from the previous week when only 11 shows experienced a loss. The summer months seem to be negatively impacting sales on the Great White Way as families head for vacation or off to the beach rather than taking in a Broadway show.
“Wicked” continues to reign supreme with sales remaining above $2 million through Sunday. “Once” beat its best sales week ever with sales of $1,039,207, up $31,071 from its previous high of $1,008,136, according to figures posted by Playbill.com. The show also played to a packed house with capacity at 100.3 percent.
“Jesus Christ Superstar” ended its Broadway run on July 1 after 24 previews and 116 performances. The show closed on a high note with sales up $172,256 over the previous week for the highest increase of any production, with receipts totaling $678,052. “Memphis,” which just announced that it would close its doors on August 5, saw a decrease in sales of $21,577 for a total of $520,026.
According to J. William Bruce, a sales rep for Applause-Tickets.com, sales for the production are not likely to see an increase. “I think [‘Memphis’] had a nice run and a two-and-a-half year run in this day and age should be looked at as a triumph,” said Bruce in an email to TicketNews.
“Harvey” continued its upward climb with a $45,020 improvement over eight performances — the third largest increase of any show on Broadway. Currently in its third week of performances, the show is playing to a full house at Studio 54 at 101.4 percent capacity with sales totaling $629,617. “The Book of Mormon,” “Newsies,” and “The Lion King” also played to sold-out audiences, according to Broadway.com.
“Nice Work If You Can Get It” had the greatest decrease in sales, down $193,762 with sales falling to $804,816 after nearly reaching $1 million the previous week. “I am guessing [the sales] will be back to normal this week during the holiday,” Bruce told TicketNews. “Porgy and Bess” also had one of the greatest declines with sales down $66,530. Actress Audra McDonald is still absent due to inflamed vocal chords until July 3.
“End of the Rainbow” has struggled to bring in audiences and keep ticket sales afloat. The show, whose capacity decreased by 8.3 percent, has the lowest capacity on Broadway at 42.5 percent. Ticket sales are also the lowest of any show on Broadway at just $241,146 — the production experienced the second largest decrease, behind “Nice Work If You Can Get It,” with sales down $77,092.
J. William Bruce, sales rep at Applause-Tickets.com, previously reported to TicketNews that generally, musical Tony winners experience greater ticket sales success than Tony play winners. This seems to be the case as Tony winner for Best Play “Clybourne Park” continued to see a decrease in sales, down $45,588 to $394,874, although the show has not yet announced that they would be closing anytime in the near future.
To view the full listing of Broadway sales for the week ending July 1, 2012, visit The Broadway League.
