Broadway Grosses: Week Ending 5/1/22

[Rob]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 1:56pm

Click below to access all the Broadway grosses from all the shows for the week ending 5/1/2022 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: POTUS: OR, BEHIND EVERY GREAT DUMBASS ARE SEVEN WOMEN TRYING TO KEEP HIM AL (7.1%), HOW I LEARNED TO DRIVE (6.7%),

Down for the week by attendance was: BEETLEJUICE (-23.5%), WICKED (-23.2%), MRS. DOUBTFIRE (-21.7%), HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD (-19.5%), HANGMEN (-18.7%), DEAR EVAN HANSEN (-16.4%), COME FROM AWAY (-14.7%), THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA (-13.1%), FOR COLORED GIRLS WHO HAVE CONSIDERED SUICIDE / WHEN THE RAINBOW IS ENUF (-11%), MJ THE MUSICAL (-10.9%), AMERICAN BUFFALO (-10.5%), CHICAGO (-9.9%), TINA - THE TINA TURNER MUSICAL (-9.3%), HAMILTON (-9.1%), SIX (-8.9%), THE BOOK OF MORMON (-7.9%), THE SKIN OF OUR TEETH (-7.7%), ALADDIN (-7.1%), PARADISE SQUARE (-6.7%), MR. SATURDAY NIGHT (-6%), BIRTHDAY CANDLES (-5.7%), THE LION KING (-5.2%), THE MINUTES (-4.9%), COMPANY (-4.8%), HADESTOWN (-4.6%), TAKE ME OUT (-3.9%), A STRANGE LOOP (-3.9%), FUNNY GIRL (-3.4%), MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL (-1.9%), THE MUSIC MAN (-1.8%), THE LITTLE PRINCE (-1.6%), PLAZA SUITE (-0.5%), MACBETH (-0.3%),

Click Here to Visit the BroadwayWorld Grosses...

[ljay889]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 1:58pm

Yikes

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:00pm

What the hell is happening to Beetlejuice? 

[DAME]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:09pm

What the heck is happening to Company?

[EDSOSLO858]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:10pm

Please tell me there are multiple typos in this report. 

[JBroadway]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:15pm

Almost half the shows experienced a 6-figure decline, with only 5 shows seeing an increase from last week. Could it be that we've been in the midst of a tourism surge, and now things are dropping off to their normal levels? After all, many of the hits are still selling quite well.

Or is this a result of increased COVID cases? 

I imagine we're also seeing some shows decline due to heavy comping around press/awards, but that wouldn't explain the drop across the board, which even the long-running shows experienced. 

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:16pm

So many shows are opening all at once, it seems inevitable that Company falls behind.

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:17pm

Yesterday, NYC went to yellow status regarding Covid cases so perhaps that has something to do with it. 

[Bill Snibson]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:17pm

DAME said: "What the heck is happening to Company?"

Again, the majority of people that wanted to see Company have seen it by now. It is now a tricky task of getting a broader market interested in this show. There is currently a lot of inventory on Broadway to choose from and almost every show has competitive pricing too. I’m hopeful that the Tony noms and Tony wins will breath a little extra life into Company which btw is not to be missed. 

[Phantom4ever]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:24pm

The crime increase in New York is keeping people away. There was just a stabbing at 44th and 8th Av. Granted it happened at 3 in the morning but people are going to hear that there was  stabbing in the heart of the Theater District. Why take a chance on safety seeing a Broadway show with all the streaming options we have? 

Don't get me wrong, I'm not cancelling my trip, but this is the vibe that is out there--and it's not just Fox News sounding the alarm trying to scare people. 

[Jarethan]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:29pm

SJP and MB must be pretty impressed with themselves; God knows it is not the desire to see Plaza Suite that is responsible for those incredible grosses.  Same for Hugh J and Daniel C.

Re Beetlejuice, it is probably just the week — I think this is the first week that Hamilton did not sell out, and it was off by 9% — but it may also be a confirmation that it is only going to do well when kids are out of school.

I am surprised that Tina help up as well as it did…do not pretend to understand it’s box office track record.

I feel very sorry for everyone who invested in any new shows without stars; even there, Billy Crystal has to be disappointed.

 

Makes me wonder when ‘the Covid effect’ will be over.  As I previously opined, I think a lot of people are not buying tickets to very well reviewed shows because they don’t see them as ‘must see’ when numbers are on the rise and they have to wear a mask.  I also think that there are some previously regular theatergoers — not the zealots on this board— who got used to not attending live theatre and have not yet been incented to ‘get back on the theatre going horse.’

Updated On: 5/3/22 at 02:29 PM

[OhHiii]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:29pm

Sutton Ross said: "Yesterday, NYC went to yellow status regarding Covid cases so perhaps that has something to do with it."

Yesterday would have exactly zero effect on grosses for a week that ended the day prior...

Seems we always forget that really apart from new shows, the general trend after Spring Breaks are over is the entire street's grosses take a hit. That was true pre-pandemic. Generally, the upturn comes back in June heading into the Summer. It's easy to see these trends in the year over year graph on the grosses page.

This season's shows that get nominated on Monday will see a boost ranging from minimal (most of the plays) to a meaningful turning of tides (A Strange Loop).

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:30pm

Just a note: anything with an Opening Night last week had lot of comps + press performances, accounting for a drop (or a very nominal increase). And we're now in the post-Easter, pre-summer weeks.

Aside from that...

Safe to assume that anything grossing less than $450K a week is losing money (13 shows last week). And of course some shows' costs are much higher than $450K. Of note, I'm curious to know what AMERICAN BUFFALO costs to run. That's not a big theatre, and because of that it might require them to gross like 80% or more each week to just break even on the running costs, considering there are 3 big star salaries.

Re: BEETLEJUICE –– From simply the standpoint of producers' hubris and fandom's "demand," it would be hilarious if this thing fizzles out by the end of summer. They're making profit, but they can't afford to drop TOO much more. That show's got to cost $700K a week at minimum.

COME FROM AWAY, DEAR EVAN HANSEN, and MRS. DOUBTFIRE are done by end of summer at the latest. CFA and DEH have had damn good runs.

I think we are going to see a LOT of closing announcements within the next 2 weeks.

Updated On: 5/3/22 at 02:30 PM

[Jarethan]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:33pm

OhHiii said: "Sutton Ross said: "Yesterday, NYC went to yellow status regarding Covid cases so perhaps that has something to do with it."

Yesterday would have exactly zero effect on grosses for a week that ended the day prior...

Seems we always forget that really apart from new shows, the general trend after Spring Breaks are over is the entire street's grosses take a hit. That was true pre-pandemic. Generally, the upturn comes back in June heading into the Summer. It's easy to see these trends in the year over year graph on the grosses page.

This season's shows that get nominated on Monday will see a boost ranging from minimal (most of the plays) to a meaningful turning of tides (A Strange Loop)."

These drops are pretty extreme, particularly for Hamilton

[BroadwayRox3588]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:34pm

Jarethan said: "Makes me wonder when ‘the Covid effect’ will be over. As I previously opined, I think a lot of people are not buying tickets to very well reviewed shows because they don’t see them as ‘must see’ when numbers are on the rise and they have to wear a mask. I also think that there are some previously regular theatergoers — not the zealots on this board— who got used to not attending live theatre and have not yet been incented to ‘get back on the theatre going horse.’"

The Covid effect won't be over until the media stops treating it like the Black Plague. Which, considering how much they profit off the fear, will likely not be anytime even remotely soon.

[OhHiii]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:35pm

ErmengardeStopSniveling said: "COME FROM AWAY, DEAR EVAN HANSEN, and MRS. DOUBTFIRE are done by end of summer at the latest. CFA and DEH have had damn good runs.

I think we are going to see a LOT of closing announcements within the next 2 weeks."

CFA probably still broke even last week. If they lost money, it wan't much. It's a surprisingly cheap show to run and doubt they've asked for concessions yet.

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:35pm

Yesterday would have exactly zero effect on grosses for a week that ended the day prior...

Yeah no, that's ridiculous. Cases have been climbing for the last few weeks including last week. Thanks so much though. 

[MayAudraBlessYou2]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:37pm

We have entered the period after Spring Break, which always see a drastic drop. (Hence massive drops for shows who benefit from the school audience: Disney, Beetlejuice, Harry Potter). Though in a normal pre-pandemic season, the grosses would be higher overall. 

There are also SO many shows which have opened in a short period of time. There simply is not enough ticket buyers right now to support this many productions. So, as is also an annual trend, expect to see closing notices pop up for shows that miss out on Tony nominations.

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:37pm

It's all Covid and crime related looking at the numbers. That's the answer. 

[OhHiii]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:38pm

Sutton Ross said: "Yesterday would have exactly zero effect on grosses for a week that ended the day prior...

Yeah no, that's ridiculous. Cases have been climbing for the last few weeks including last week. Thanks so much though."

you're welcome :)

[OhHiii]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:39pm

Jarethan said: "These drops are pretty extreme, particularly for Hamilton"

Not saying the trends aren't exacerbated by other factors, but the trendline is indeed following industry trends from years prior to 2020.

[BwayFan252]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:43pm

Do you really think DEH is in trouble? I thought I remember hearing they felt pretty good until at least 2023. Obviously this week doesn't look good, but I wonder if the summer tourism bump will get them through the rest of the year

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:47pm

Phantom4ever said: "The crime increase in New York is keeping people away. There was just a stabbing at 44th and 8th Av. Granted it happened at 3 in the morning but people are going to hear that there was stabbing in the heart of the Theater District. Why take a chance on safety seeing a Broadway show with all the streaming options we have?

Don't get me wrong, I'm not cancelling my trip, but this is the vibe that is out there--and it's not just Fox News sounding the alarm trying to scare people."

100%

[OhHiii]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:56pm

Worth pointing out that, aside from three original productions (A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum, A Little Night Music, and Company), no other Sondheim Broadway production has recouped and turned a profit. As much as we love him, his shows aren't particularly accessible to a mainstream audience. Company, I would argue is one of the most likely to be appreciated by a wider audience, so we'll see if they can crack that nut. They'd need to start putting some bigger names in some roles, even some of the supporting that are a lighter lift than Joanne and Bobbie could help.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 5/3/22 at 2:57pm

Ouch to Paradise Square with the lowest avg ticket price for a musical, less than fifty bucks.  Looks like they ran out of people to paper the place with, too.  OOF.