Broadway Grosses: Week Ending 11/19/23

[Rob]

Posted: 11/21/23 at 12:48pm

Click below to access all the Broadway grosses from all the shows for the week ending 11/19/2023 in BroadwayWorld's grosses section.

Also, you will find information on each show's historical grosses, cumulative grosses and other statistics on how each show stacked up this week and in the past.

Click Here to Visit the Broadway Grosses...

Up for the week by attendance (% of capacity) was: MELISSA ETHERIDGE: MY WINDOW (5.7%), HERE LIES LOVE (4.3%), JAJA'S AFRICAN HAIR BRAIDING (3%), ALADDIN (0.7%),

Down for the week by attendance (% of capacity) was: BACK TO THE FUTURE: THE MUSICAL (-11.7%), SOME LIKE IT HOT (-9.5%), CHICAGO (-9.4%), HARMONY (-9.3%), SIX (-9.2%), GUTENBERG! THE MUSICAL! (-9.1%), SPAMALOT (-9%), A BEAUTIFUL NOISE, THE NEIL DIAMOND MUSICAL (-8.3%), SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET (-8.2%), KIMBERLY AKIMBO (-8.1%), SHUCKED (-7%), HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD (-5.3%), THE BOOK OF MORMON (-5.2%), WICKED (-4.8%), HADESTOWN (-3.5%), MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL (-3%), I NEED THAT (-2.6%), PURLIE VICTORIOUS: A NON-CONFEDERATE ROMP THROUGH THE COTTON PATCH (-2.4%), MJ THE MUSICAL (-2.3%), THE LION KING (-1.8%), HAMILTON (-1.6%), & JULIET (-0.7%), THE SHARK IS BROKEN (-0.5%),

Click Here to Visit the BroadwayWorld Grosses...

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 11/21/23 at 1:05pm

Thanksgiving & Christmas can't come soon enough for some of these shows!

[quizking101]

Posted: 11/21/23 at 1:17pm

Ooof. BTTF took an unexpected hit this week.

I’m excited that Purlie Victorious has grown in grosses to a comfortably safe amount where it looks like the extension is justified and may actually complete the whole run.

Sad to see HLL only filling up the house now that people who slept on it are flocking in now.

[EDSOSLO858]

Posted: 11/21/23 at 1:19pm

Back to the Future will bounce back big-time for the holiday weeks, I’m not concerned. 

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 11/21/23 at 1:29pm

Was this a scheduled vacation week for Josh Groban or was he out unexpectedly?

[EDSOSLO858]

Posted: 11/21/23 at 1:32pm

ErmengardeStopSniveling said: "Was this a scheduled vacation week for Josh Groban or was he out unexpectedly?"

It was scheduled. 

[BoringBoredBoard40]

Posted: 11/21/23 at 2:49pm

rough first week for OHIO

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 11/21/23 at 3:15pm

BoringBoredBoard40 said: "rough first week for OHIO"

Yes, though hopefully the producers expect losses during previews and the first few weeks post-opening and have budgeted accordingly, being that this is a brand new musical without famous IP or famous people involved.

$52,500 per performance and $66 per ticket isn't great. SHUCKED started at a similar level (actually had a lower ticket price), but the difference is that SHUCKED filled every seat during previews and did a lot of strategic discounting, and WOM carried it to better sales. The WOM for the first week of Ohio has been mixed and somewhat muted from my perspective.

Updated On: 11/21/23 at 03:15 PM

[barcelona20]

Posted: 11/21/23 at 3:27pm

Unless Ohio gets "best musical" type reviews, I can't see this making it to 2024. It's brutal for new shows without some known property these days.

[OhHiii]

Posted: 11/21/23 at 3:35pm

That Merrily is consistently one of the only shows selling every seat is astonishing. If only Steve were alive to see this.

[BoringBoredBoard40]

Posted: 11/21/23 at 3:45pm

barcelona20 said: "Unless Ohio gets "best musical" type reviews, I can't see this making it to 2024. It's brutal for new shows without some known property these days."

I mean I have to imagine they are budgeted to run for more then 6 weeks, the question is do you let a plane in a nosedive crash (burn all the money) or atleast have enough sense to let the pilot eject while they still can (return remainder of funds to investors) 

[BETTY22]

Posted: 11/21/23 at 3:56pm

Ohio number is heartbreaking. I really thought people would show up and support it.

It feels like it is almost impossible for a new musical to survive on Broadway that doesn't have a star or is based on a big film (thus, not really original) or is packed with pop hits (Neil Diamond, &Juliet, Hell's Kitchen)
 

Shucked is gone in a few weeks as is Some Like It Hot. KA is holding on, but I'm not sure for how much longer.

Sad news....

[OhHiii]

Posted: 11/21/23 at 4:37pm

Everyone with the doom and gloom about new musicals. We often forget that even pre-COVID only 1-2 new musicals (we actually have 3 new musicals and a VERY successful revival that will still be running past the new year from the latest season, Beautiful Noise, &Juliet, Kimberly Akimbo and Sweeney) in any given season lasted more than a year. That's still largely true looking at the two seasons we've seen since we came back. 

That said, it definitely is a tough market for new musicals, but staying power trends haven't exactly changed completely.

[DramaTeach]

Posted: 11/21/23 at 4:44pm

Honestly, my blah reaction to Kimberly Akimbo has left me cold about Ohio. Another small town, sweet show that’s supposed to tug at my heartstrings but leaves me cold (based on people’s reviews of Ohio) is one I’ll pass on, but I wish it luck.

[Mr. Wormwood]

Posted: 11/21/23 at 4:46pm

Yikes at OHIO. That's a really tough place to start and it doesn't seem like it's going to get the buzz/reviews of a little musical that could like Kimberly or even The Prom. Hoping for the best for it but I worry for it...

[quizking101]

Posted: 11/21/23 at 6:48pm

BETTY22 said: "Ohio number is heartbreaking. I really thought people would show up and support it.

I mean, it’s only the first week, but yeah, I don’t think it really has a promising future. There are large areas of seats unsold for weeks on end. This will probably be an Ain’t No Mo open-and-shut case. There wasn’t much buzz for this at all outside of niche theatre circles and so there was no momentum leading up to opening.

A big flaw is opening when all the bigger shows are competing for holiday dollars prior to the dead of winter. But maybe the spot on the Parade might help its fortunes a little bit?

I don’t know. I’m just rambling 

[KJisgroovy]

Posted: 11/21/23 at 7:16pm

"It feels like it is almost impossible for a new musical to survive on Broadway that doesn't have a star or is based on a big film (thus, not really original) or is packed with pop hits (Neil Diamond, &Juliet, Hell's Kitchen)"

I love new musicals. Nothing about this makes me want to see it. The songs sound generic, the advertising is bland, I don't know or care about any of the performers, the creative team are mostly unknowns, it's not coming off some high-profile tryout... why?  I've seen the documentary and it's lovely but what else could this possibly say? I might love this but I'm not gonna risk 150$ to see this unless something makes me feel like I must see it. I'd pay 45$ to see this in a small theater.

It's not enough to put something on Broadway. You have to give the audience something they want to see. Or have a plan to make them want to see it.  

[Mr. Wormwood]

Posted: 11/21/23 at 9:03pm

KJisgroovy said: ""It feels like it is almost impossible for a new musical to survive on Broadway that doesn't have a star or is based on a big film (thus, not really original) or is packed with pop hits (Neil Diamond, &Juliet, Hell's Kitchen)""

I feel like statements like this have been made for decades when an original musical flips. But in the last ten years we've had Hamilton, Dear Evan Hansen, Come From Away, Hadestown, Six, Kimberly Akimbo and more and none of those fit into the categories you laid out and yet were successful to one degree or another.

[RippedMan]

Posted: 11/21/23 at 9:28pm

Add to that Fun Home, etc. 

But all of that was pre-pandemic. We’ll see if Kimberly can make a profit. It seems to be limping along but not quite “hit” status. 

[Mr. Wormwood]

Posted: 11/21/23 at 10:33pm

RippedMan said: "Add to that Fun Home, etc.

But all of that was pre-pandemic. We’ll see if Kimberly can make a profit. It seems to be limping along but not quite “hit” status."

Well Six wasn't pre-pandemic either but I also think people were saying these same kinds of statements when shows like Mamma Mia or Aladdin or Moulin Rouge or Jersey Boys turned into huge hits and other original musicals flopped. It's always been a gamble and plenty of new original musicals have failed for decades but there are always success stories too. I don't think that will change.

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 11/21/23 at 11:55pm

What it all boils down to is every new show is a big gamble, and a producer doesn't fully know what they have until they're deep in the weeds on the show.

For every Come From Away there's a bunch of shows like Amelie or In Transit or Scottsboro Boys or The Last Ship.

For every Beautiful Noise, you have shows like Summer, Baby It's You, and Cher Show.

RE: the point about closing quickly vs using up all the reserve: it's important that shows be given a chance. Yes, producers should be able to see the writing on the wall, but running as long as possible on Broadway can still be an important thing even if it means losing all money vs returning a minuscule amount of capital to investors. It lets Tony voters and tour programmers see it an builds WOM for licensing. The longer it runs, the better the chances are for a tour or licensed productions or cast album or international plans. And on the rare occasion, a show can turn around.

Updated On: 11/21/23 at 11:55 PM

[quizking101]

Posted: 11/22/23 at 1:14am

Mr. Wormwood said: "RippedMan said: "Add to that Fun Home, etc.

But all of that was pre-pandemic. We’ll see if Kimberly can make a profit. It seems to be limping along but not quite “hit” status."

Well Six wasn't pre-pandemic either but I also think people were saying these same kinds of statements when shows like Mamma Mia or Aladdin or Moulin Rouge or Jersey Boys turned into huge hits and other original musicals flopped. It's always been a gamble and plenty of new original musicals have failed for decades but there are always success stories too. I don't think that will change."

Six was already a smash hit in the West End, had a cast recording, and had a mini North American tour in 2019 prior to landing on Broadway in 2020. The pandemic shuttered it on its original opening night, but the show had a devoted following that was growing by the time it arrived on Broadway.

[bear88]

Posted: 11/22/23 at 4:28am

I think we’re still waiting for a post-pandemic new musical hit that isn’t a jukebox or based on a famous film. I’m not saying the latter two don’t count or are guaranteed hits either, as we have seen, but the success of & Juliet and Back to the Future (if it’s a hit) are driven at least in part by other factors. Six is a special case, because of its pre-pandemic success.

How to Dance in Ohio was always going to be a tough sell. If it succeeds, it will be more like Kimberly Akimbo - driven by word of mouth, critical praise, low costs, and patience. 

[BETTY22]

Posted: 11/22/23 at 7:16am

bear88 said: "How to Dance in Ohiowas always going to be a tough sell. If it succeeds, it will be more likeKimberly Akimbo- driven by word of mouth, critical praise, low costs, and patience."

Well said.......fingers crossed. 

 

[LuckyDipster]

Posted: 11/22/23 at 8:12am

bear88 said: "Back to the Future(if it’s a hit)"

At what point will that be decided?  What does it have to do to be considered a hit?