Posted: 9/17/17 at 6:59pm
I've seen about 17 of these in theatrical productions although mostly on tour. How about you?
https://www.facebook.com/playbill/posts/10154939918195418
Updated On: 9/18/17 at 06:59 PM
Posted: 9/17/17 at 7:04pm
This is the list I follow (which is regularly updated by some blessed soul), if you don't want to wait for Playbill articles about longrunners:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_the_longest-running_Broadway_shows
Posted: 9/17/17 at 7:28pm
Is amazing to me that even if Phantom were to close tomorrow, it would be 8 years or so before a show surpassed it.
I really suspect that no show will ever surpass Phantom in my lifetime.
Posted: 9/17/17 at 8:29pm
Why did you decide on 31??? I have seen all of the 31 EXCEPT Oh Calcutta, the original My Fair Lady (have seen a number of productions, but not the original), and the plays that played before I was born. My personal favorite of the 31 is Les Mis; my least favorite (putting it politely) is CATS.
The thing that is sad about that list is focusing on the fact that non-musicals could once run longer than musicals. Now, we are lucky if a show without a star lasts 10 weeks.
I imagine that a lot of this has to do with the availability of non-live dramas via the 500 stations that are available 24X7.
Posted: 9/18/17 at 12:21pm
i like the wikipedia list better as well of all the shows on bway with 1000+ performances
the most interesting thing about the list is how different the long running shows seem to be and that there
does not seem to be any "formula" to make it to 1000+ show run, and that many of my all time favorites (sondheim-none, west side story, gypsy, color purple) never made it to 1000 shows
what do you all think the most common threads are that have gotten shows to the 1000+ club?
the most recent entrants to the 1000+ show club include:
Book of Mormon
Spiderman-turn out the dark
Once
Kinky Boots
Mathilda
Newsies
Gentlemans Guide
Alladin
Beautiful
Hamilton (in another 120 or so shows)
SO, in 10 shows, you have 5 best musical winners, 3 best scores, 4 best books, 2 disney shows, 6 original musicals, 5 movie adaptations, 4 jukeboxes, only a few best actor/actress awards, and yet all these shows recouped and got to 1000+ shows (about 420 shows/yr so 2 years and a few months)
Posted: 9/18/17 at 12:24pm
Phantom will stay open as long as ALW is alive. They could be losing a million a week and he'd keep it open to ensure it maintained its longest running show status.
Posted: 9/18/17 at 12:39pm
The number of bad shows on that list is depressing.
Posted: 9/18/17 at 2:17pm
After Eight said: "The number of bad shows onthat list is depressing.
After Eight's definition of a bad show is any show he didn't like, so who gives a s#@t?
DEH is virtually certain to crack the 1000 performance list. The more interesting question is how long it will run after that. We'll know much more when we see how sales go after Ben is out for good. My personal feeling is that the show is going to do just fine well after he leaves. It might not sell as many premium tickets after a while, and eventually the average ticket price might fall under $200, but I see the show running for at least three years, and maybe four or five.
"
Posted: 9/18/17 at 6:48pm
The Wikipedia page used to be only the Top 100 longest running shows, I think someone changed it so Newsies could squeak in.
And GGLAM didn't make it to 1,000 shows, they did 905 and 30 previews and over 6,000 deaths for Jefferson Mays.
