Broadway Grosses: Week Ending 7/25

A Little Night Music is not doing that well anymore. Maybe their nut isn't that high. The reviews need to come out for Bernadette and Elaine and generate some more business.

There definitely seems like there are shows that will post a closing notice soon.

It's not as though no one knows that Bernie and Lainie are in the show is it? How would reviews substantially change sales? What it appears to say is that a lot less people want to see these gals (who are well known theatre stars who shouldn't need reviews to draw) on stage than wanted to see Cathy and Angie.

Ditto Normal, which seems to have dropped its gross by 30% - there's been plenty of press about the Mazzie/Danieley takeover; it seems that people just don't want to go see them.

You could argue, "people want to wait until they've had time to grow into their roles," but I wonder if there are really large numbers of audience members who think that way.

Well, there is nothing like a good review to boost ticket sales. In fact for a long running show, it usually requires rave reviews to turn something into a hot ticket (again).

Frankly, I don't know how much advertising NIGHT MUSIC or NEXT TO NORMAL has been doing lately. There are certainly a lot ot print ads for NIGHT MUSIC on telephone booths around Times Square but most of those popped up last week - but I'm not sure if they are currently running a television ad etc.

It won't ever do the business it was doing with CZJ and Lanbury, but I do think it will have a nice boost when reviews come out.

Updated On: 7/26/10 at 03:32 PM

The attendance for ALNM isn't horrible so it's not so much that folks don't want to go, they just aren't willing to pay top dollar to see it. Did the show re-coup?

---

NIGHT MUSIC never officially announced a re-coup - but not all producers make that announcement. Its been suggested that its almost certainly would have met its initial investment given the weekly running cost - even with hefty salaries going to Lansbury and Jones.

Awesome week for some of the long-runners. Chicago and Mamma Mia did great business, and Phantom went over the million dollar mark.

Pretty good week overall. I hope that Night Music gets a good boost from reviews, I'm seeing it August 30th, I PRAY it doesn't close before then. . .

It didn't quite fall off a cliff as some other shows have without their stars.

HEHEHE. Time will tell which revival turned out to be more successful.

I could be going crazy, but when I was there on Tuesday at The Addams Family, I was pretty sure there's a huge billboard in Times Square for A Little Night Music with Bernadette & Elaine, although it could still be Catherine Zeta-Jones & Angela Lansbury. I didn't pay too much attention to it..

I don't think it's that big of a sell... seeing Bernadette & Elaine starring in A Little Night Music? Obviously for the theatre fans, but the everyday tourist would obviously rather see something with a name (ie: Addams, or American Idiot), as discussed before in another thread.

There has been a lot of promotion for BP and ES in ALNM on magazines, press, billboards, etc.
I'm sure they will get rave reviews if the show is re-visited.
Catherine Zeta Jones is an A-list Hollywood/worldwide star who gave a great performance on Broadway, that's why the show sold out.

---