Broadway Grosses: Week Ending 11/3/19

[Rob]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 3:10pm

Click below to access all the Broadway grosses from all the shows for the week ending 11/3/2019 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 was: DERREN BROWN: SECRET (7.5%), FROZEN (4.1%), TOOTSIE (2.8%), BEETLEJUICE (2.2%), SLAVE PLAY (1.5%), LINDA VISTA (1.4%), THE LION KING (1.3%), ALADDIN (1.1%), THE LIGHTNING THIEF (1.1%), BETRAYAL (0.5%), MOULIN ROUGE! (0.1%), THE ROSE TATTOO (0.1%),

Down for the week by attendance was: CHICAGO (-8.2%), WAITRESS (-7.5%), THE GREAT SOCIETY (-6.2%), THE HEIGHT OF THE STORM (-5.3%), THE INHERITANCE (-5.2%), THE SOUND INSIDE (-4.7%), MEAN GIRLS (-3.9%), THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA (-3.8%), THE BOOK OF MORMON (-2.6%), WICKED (-2.3%), COME FROM AWAY (-1%), FREESTYLE LOVE SUPREME (-0.8%), HADESTOWN (-0.6%), AIN'T TOO PROUD (-0.4%), AMERICAN UTOPIA (-0.3%), HAMILTON (-0.2%), DEAR EVAN HANSEN (-0.1%),

Click Here to Visit the BroadwayWorld Grosses...

Sponsored By: The Book of Mormon - The New York Times calls The Book of Mormon "the best musical of this century." The Washington Post says, "It is the kind of evening that restores your faith in musicals." And Entertainment Weekly says, "Grade A: the funniest musical of all time." Jimmy Fallon of The Tonight Show calls it "Genius. Brilliant. Phenomenal." The Book of Mormon, the nine-time Tony Award®-winning Best Musical.

[JBroadway]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 3:24pm

Oh dear! This was Harry Potter's first time ever dipping below $1MM! 

[Det95]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 3:29pm

With only one performance JLP grossed about $12k less than a full eight show week for The Lightning Thief.

[little_sally]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 3:29pm

The numbers for Mean Girls are concerning. 

[perfectliar]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 3:32pm

JBroadway said: "Oh dear! This was Harry Potter's first time ever dipping below $1MM!"
 

I thought they did last week, but I was wrong. I imagine it's because of that ticket giveaway they did a couple months ago.

Updated On: 11/4/19 at 03:32 PM

[n2nbaby]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 3:34pm

Concerning for Harry Potter, Mean Girls and Tootsie.

[little_sally]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 3:35pm

Is Harry Potter really in any kind of trouble? I just figured they've made enough money and WB can just keep it running for awhile.

[ACL2006]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 3:37pm

Don't see MEAN GIRLS or TOOTSIE lasting much longer.

[n2nbaby]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 3:40pm

little_sally said: "Is Harry Potter really in any kind of trouble? I just figured they've made enough money and WB can just keep it running for awhile."

I wouldn’t say “trouble” yet, but their nut has to be right at a million a week. 

[Wick3]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 3:43pm

Very happy for To Kill a Mockingbird with its highest weekly gross ever! I understand it was the last week for several members of the original cast.

[JBroadway]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 3:45pm

little_sally said: "Is Harry Potter really in any kind of trouble? I just figured they've made enough money and WB can just keep it running for awhile."

 

There have been a few threads discussing this in detail over past few months (linked below). But long story short: they haven't announced recoupment yet - though the math shows that they should be very close - and the high running cost is not their friend right now. None of us knows exactly what it is, but it is probably in the $900K range. So dipping below $1MM is not a good sign. Even if they can limp their way across the finish line (recoupment), it's bad news for their longevity. If WB (or whoever) wants to keep it running, that's their prerogative, but they might be doing so at a loss if grosses keep declining. 

https://forum.broadwayworld.com/readmessage.php?thread=1119253#

https://forum.broadwayworld.com/readmessage.php?thread=1119121#

https://forum.broadwayworld.com/readmessage.php?thread=1119409#

[binau]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 3:55pm

I know it's only one performance, but this seems like a strong start for JLP..

[Impossible2]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 4:16pm

There is no way Potter's nut is as high as you people think...

[Fredrich Yeager]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 4:20pm

Tootsie did a promotional 2 for 1 ticket sale this past week, I think, which I think probably accounts for their performance this week (improved attendance but reduced gross).

[JBroadway]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 4:25pm

Impossible2 said: "There is no way Potter's nut is as high as you people think..."

 

Genuinely curious to hear you expand on that! I don't have a good sense of running costs, really. I arrived at the $900K figure because everyone else had been estimating $1MM, but I put my estimate closer to $900K because I figured they wouldn't bring their potential gross below their running cost. 

What do you figure their running cost to be, and why? It's such a large cast, with children, and potentially a large stage crew as well. 

[Impossible2]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 4:43pm

JBroadway said: "Impossible2 said: "There is no way Potter's nut is as high as you people think..."



Genuinely curious to hear you expand on that! I don't have a good sense of running costs, really. I arrived at the $900K figure because everyone else had been estimating $1MM, but I put my estimate closer to $900K because I figured they wouldn't bring their potential gross below their running cost.

What do you figure their running cost to be, and why? It's such a large cast, with children, and potentially a large stage crew as well."

It's a no name cast, other than those who've made a name for themselves in the show. The cast is really not that big either, with most of the non leads doubling and sometimes even tripling up at different points. There is no orchestra/band. Sure the effects are great, but they are pretty simple when you know how they do it and they aren't really a huge expense to pull off every night.

I'm sure the initial outlay for the show was pretty huge, especially in NY with buying out Cirque and re-doing the theatre, but I don't think it's weekly running costs are that over the top.

I would say around $750,000 if that. 

[haterobics]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 4:51pm

qolbinau said: "I know it's only one performance, but this seems like a strong start for JLP.."

Unless one can maintain that momentum, then it typically doesn't matter... shows with built-in audiences often have strong starts.

[Kad]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 4:55pm

I think Potter's doing fine. I think people were expecting it to be a Hamilton-esque hit and so when it wasn't, it was seen as struggling. 

[OhHiii]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 4:56pm

Impossible2, you’re grossly underestimating the cost of having a brand name for a show. Royalties alone to license the title are probably close to 6 figures. Couple that with the amount of insurance above and beyond a standard play given all of the tricks and flying, it’s EASILY close to a million. I’d bank on a number in the $900,000 range as someone suggested they wouldn’t lower their GP below their break even. 
 

If you look at their trends, they’re also doing a bit of smoke and mirrors with their GP and the second a weekly gross dips under the GP, that’s the magic (ha) number. 

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 5:03pm

Impossible2 said: "It's a no name cast, other than those who've made a name for themselves in the show. The cast is really not that big either, with most of the non leads doubling and sometimes even tripling up at different points. There is no orchestra/band. Sure the effects are great, but they are pretty simple when you know how they do it and they aren't really a huge expense to pull off every night. I'm sure the initial outlay for the show was pretty huge, especially in NY with buying out Cirque and re-doing the theatre, but I don't think it's weekly running costs are that over the top. I would say around $750,000 if that."


The cast has 40 people, which is ENORMOUS for a play. It also includes 26 stage crew, 16 wardrobe/hair, 5 stage managers, plus all the other personnel. The royalty situation is also going to be incredibly high because of the notoriety of the property. I would put its gross between $800k and $1m.

[GreasedLightning]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 5:04pm

I really didn’t think Mean Girls was in hot water until I checked Ticketmaster for tomorrow and Wednesday’s performances and saw that essentially the entire theater was unsold. Weekend looks better, but not great.

[Impossible2]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 5:09pm

OhHiii said: "Impossible2, you’re grossly underestimating the cost of having a brand name for a show. Royalties alone to license the title are probably close to 6 figures. Couple that with the amount of insurance above and beyond a standard play given all of the tricks and flying,it’s EASILY close to a million. I’d bank on a number in the $900,000 range as someone suggested they wouldn’t lower their GP below their break even.

If you look at their trends, they’re also doing a bit of smoke and mirrors with their GP and the second a weekly gross dips under theGP, that’s the magic (ha) number."

I thought it would be pretty high, but when I heard what London's is, there is no way NYC's would be that much higher. I won't say exactly what I heard it was, but it is not even US$500,000 a week. 

I believe the way it has been set up as a separate 'entity' and the producers involved, a lot of the normal royalty/name costs are not in effect. 

 

[jagman1062]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 5:34pm

ACL2006 said: "Don't see MEAN GIRLS or TOOTSIE lasting much longer."

Have you seen the TV ads for both shows in the NY Metro market?  The ad for MEAN GIRLS features Tina Fey, but she really doesn't do  much to sell the show.  The ads for TOOTSIE featuring laughing women are just annoying.  Neither show is served well by the advertising dollars.

[HogansHero]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 5:41pm

OK so yeah there is the usual nonsense in this thread from people who have no idea what they are talking about but have a good imagination. I'm gonna ignore most of that and just mention something I have said here before which is that if you look at the Potter producers, you will note that the show is essentially controlled by the putative recipients of two big weekly checks, ATG (the landlord) and JK Rowling (the underlying rights holder), and Colin Callender, who is along for the ride for reasons that have zip to do with recouping his investment. Now that we have that out of the way, the show is fine (at any of these imagined nuts) even if it being a blockbuster was a miscalculation.

[FlyHigh523]

Posted: 11/4/19 at 7:11pm

Impossible2 said: "HogansHero said: "OK so yeah there is the usual nonsense in this thread from people who have no idea what they are talking about but have a good imagination. I'm gonna ignore most of that and just mention something I have said here before which is that if you look at the Potter producers, you will note that the show is essentially controlled by the putative recipients of two big weekly checks, ATG (the landlord) and JK Rowling (the underlying rights holder), and Colin Callender, who is along for the ride for reasons that have zip to do with recouping his investment. Now that we have that out of the way, the show is fine (at any of these imagined nuts) even if it being a blockbuster was a miscalculation."

So instead of giving some facts and enlightening the rest of uswith somethingwe would all find interesting, you went your usual route of being an obnoxious insulting know it all prick?

Thanks for dropping by, it's always a pleasure x"

Have to agree. HogansHero, if you’re going to be impudent, you might as well back it up with the facts that apparently no one knows, since we have no idea what we’re talking about. Apparently.