DOUBTFIRE tour recoups

[jacobsnchz14]

Posted: 6/6/24 at 9:34am

Producers of the North American tour of the “Mrs. Doubtfire” musical have announced a recoupment of its $5 million investment after 29 weeks on the road. The touring production launched at Shea’s Performing Arts Center in Buffalo, NY, on Sept. 24, 2023. It is currently booked through Nov. 2024, with upcoming engagements set for Los Angeles and San Francisco. ...

“‘Mrs. Doubtfire’ is one of the most beloved stories about putting family above all else in both challenging times and good times. North America has truly embraced our show, which encourages leading with love,” said lead producer Kevin McCollum in a statement. “Being able to share the power of laughter and love with audiences each night brings the company such joy. We look forward to ‘Mrs. Doubtfire’’s L.A. premiere next week, along with our characters’ “homecoming” to San Francisco for four weeks this summer.”

In addition to McCollum, the “Mrs. Doubtfire” tour is produced by Jamie Wilson, Gavin Kalin, Hunter Arnold, LAMS Productions, Nicole Eisenberg, Boyett/Miller, James L. Nederlander, Ayal Miodovnik, Sing Out Louise Productions, Bob Cohen, Isaac Hurwitz, Independent Presenters Network, Tim Lacyznski, Bard Theatricals and Lucas McMahon. Work Light Productions serves as the tour’s executive producer and general manager.

[BwayLB]

Posted: 6/6/24 at 9:37am

The tour has to be something good to see. If not I can wait until the show plays regional theaters

[quizking101]

Posted: 6/6/24 at 9:41am

DOUBTFIRE had the problem on Broadway of being split by the pandemic when audiences were still hyper cautious and the politely indifferent reviews/lack of Tony noms didn’t make it a must-see. 

With that being said, it’s a beloved IP that is very accessible for families and those who have nostalgia for the movie, and while Rob McClure isn’t Robin Williams - who is - he remains a gold standard in broad comedy in musical theatre

Updated On: 6/6/24 at 09:41 AM

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 6/6/24 at 10:40am

Good for them! I think it’s funny this show, technically, flopped 3 separate times on Broadway.

Anyone know if Girl From the North Country is anywhere near recouping?

[MatthewS1]

Posted: 6/6/24 at 10:42am

BwayLB said: "The tour has to be something good to see. If not I can wait until the show plays regional theaters"

I saw it in Chicago after having seen the show on Broadway and really enjoyed it. They made a bunch of changes with the West End transfer, and IMO they were all for the better. Rob is incredible as is the rest of the tour cast- I especially liked the girl who played Lydia. I'd highly recommend seeing it if it comes anywhere close to you

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 6/6/24 at 10:53am

quizking101 said: "DOUBTFIRE had the problem on Broadway of being split by the pandemic when audiences were still hyper cautious and the politely indifferent reviews/lack of Tony nomsdidn’t make it a must-see.

With that being said, it’s a beloved IP that is very accessible for families and those who have nostalgia for the movie, and while Rob McClure isn’t Robin Williams - who is - he remains a gold standard in broad comedy in musical theatre"


The tour also has the benefit of a lot of seats being pre-sold because of subscribers, and the producers receive a Guarantee in each city (plus a split of money above that).

And somehow the tour was only capitalized at $5 million, which certainly helps.

As discussed in the grosses thread yesterday, this can help chip away at the Broadway losses but may not ever bring them to full recoupment.

[RippedMan]

Posted: 6/6/24 at 11:08am

It looked hella cheap but it sold well here. Good for them. 

[AKarp2013]

Posted: 6/6/24 at 12:12pm

ErmengardeStopSniveling said: "As discussed in the grosses thread yesterday, this can help chip away at the Broadway losses but may not ever bring them to full recoupment."

And I'm assuming the London production (which seems to be doing extraordinarily well) helps as well? Correct me if I'm wrong.

The Beetlejuice tour recouped nearly a year after opening and it's still going extremely strong. The Broadway production's budget far outweighs the Doubtfire budget no doubt but would it be fair to say the Beetlejuice tour has a stronger chance of helping chip away at the Broadway losses? Similar to Addams Family, I predict both Doubtfire and Beetlejuice to do quite well once they too go to licensing.

[BroadwayAndSports]

Posted: 6/6/24 at 12:59pm

This show got a raw deal on Broadway. I'm happy for them, especially the composers and Rob McClure. 

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 6/6/24 at 2:09pm

AKarp2013 said: "ErmengardeStopSniveling said: "As discussed in the grosses thread yesterday, this can help chip away at the Broadway losses but may not ever bring them to full recoupment."

And I'm assuming the London production (which seems to be doing extraordinarily well) helps as well? Correct me if I'm wrong.

TheBeetlejuicetour recouped nearly a year after opening and it's still going extremelystrong. The Broadway production's budget far outweighs theDoubtfirebudget no doubt but would it be fair to say theBeetlejuicetour has a stronger chance of helping chip away at the Broadway losses? Similar toAddams Family, Ipredict bothDoubtfireandBeetlejuiceto do quite well once they too go to licensing."
 

I don't know enough specifics about the Beetlejuice vs Doubtfire finances to know which could return more over th enext 10-20 years, but re-posting this from yesterday's Grosses thread because a lot of it is applicable:

If a show loses everything on Broadway, it is close to impossible for the investors to get to 100% in the future.

• A tour is a separate entity from the Broadway capitalization. The original Broadway entity (the Mother Company) usually gets less than 5% of the tour gross. So to simplify numbers, let's say it's doing well on the road and grosses an average of $1 mil a week for a year, and 3% goes back to the Mother Company: That's $30,000 a week ($1.5 mil in a year), which isn't nothing, and there may be international productions as well with a comparable percentage, but it's a TINY fraction of a $15 million+ capitalization. For tours and other productions led by the lead producers of the Broadway production, the original Broadway investors will have the opportunity - but not obligation - to re-invest a proportionate (usually smaller) amount of that producer's share, so if a tour is more profitable than Broadway, that can be another way to earn more money, though at a risk. Some people don't want to reinvest.
• For licensing, the arrangement is typically as follows: for the first ten years, authors get 60% of the fee, the Mother Company gets 40%. For the next 8 years, the author share increases. After 18 years, the entire sum goes to the authors. That could be as little as a couple hundred bucks per licensed production being split among the investors.

Also remember: if a Bway show needs additional money to keep it running, that money comes in the form of a Priority Loan. With a Priority Loan, all money that would ordinarily go to the investor pool goes to the person who put up the loan. Once that loan is paid back, then the investors who put up the original $15 mil capitalization can start sharing in revenue. This is probably how HEART is continuing at a loss, and some people view a Priority Loan as a bad thing because of the way it can hurt the show's original investors.

So the revenue comes in at a trickle in a best-case scenario. They'll get more than $0. But it probably won't get close to 100% or even 75%.

The authors will always do better than the investors and producers (as they should!)