Grosses from last week are out and listed HERE
New shows playing at obviously below-the-nut (in some case, very, very below) include:
Lempica ($288K...yikes)
Heart of Rock and Roll ($371K...another yikes))
Illinoise ($728K...not bad but not good either)
Suffs ($630K)
VintageSnarker said: "Newsies didn't run that long."
Newsies came to Broadway as a limited run and ended up running for over 2 years. That's a decent run.
The8re phan said: "EDSOSLO858 said: "Matt Gould just confirmed tome thatLempickais closing early May."
'early May' starts tomorrow..............."
If they announce today they can close on Sunday.
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/14/20
Huss417 said: "The8re phan said: "EDSOSLO858 said: "Matt Gould just confirmed tome thatLempickais closing early May."
'early May' starts tomorrow..............."
If they announce today they can close on Sunday."
Would they do that with Tony press events coming up?
hearthemsing22 said: "Huss417 said: "The8re phan said: "EDSOSLO858 said: "Matt Gould just confirmed tome thatLempickais closing early May."
'early May' starts tomorrow..............."
If they announce today they can close on Sunday."
Would they do that with Tony press events coming up?"
With the show grossing 280K it would be egregious not to. Tony press events will not save this show. At this point nothing will.
Stand-by Joined: 7/17/19
Huss417 said: "The8re phan said: "EDSOSLO858 said: "Matt Gould just confirmed tome thatLempickais closing early May."
'early May' starts tomorrow..............."
If they announce today they can close on Sunday."
With the reviews they got, in days gone by, the show might have closed on opening night. I think the tenacity of the producers to keep the show open is what's really keeping the show open beyond April..
I just want Heart of Rock & Roll to last til May 16 when I am seeing it. Then I will have seen every single show from this season except Doubt.
Broadway Legend Joined: 11/12/14
To be fair, Illinoise was probably also comping some tickets for voters/press since they just had their opening, but the attendance remains high and word of mouth has been good so it'll be interesting to see the trajectory it takes.
Both Gatsby and Outsiders have fairly young fanbases but I think there's enough crossover appeal with the books/movies that adults would be willing to accompany them to the show (and even if Gatsby isn't exactly faithful to the source material, I think there's enough people that like the 20s sense of escapism in a spectacle show that the word of mouth won't tank it completely)
A lot of older folks love Gatsby and Outsiders too. What’s helping Outsiders/Gatsby is they’re both well known stories in the USA. I had to read both books back in middle/high school back in the late 90s early 00s.
Broadway Legend Joined: 11/9/04
rosscoe(au) said: "Let it begin
I’ll start , get rid of the crap called Back To The Future"
I see even after a pandemic decimated our industry, some of you all still completely lack class.
I think, in a very generalized sense, the days of "pack it up — little nominations/awards, we're closing tomorrow" are over — and for the better. It makes the industry look wildly more unsustainable than it actually is. Obviously money talks and will be the final factor (see Paradise Square and KPOP which closed <7 days), but for Lempicka or Heart to post a notice the day of Tony nominations if they can help it, unless there is literally no other choice, would be a) not only a slap in the face to everyone with stake in it, but b) a very bad look for the industry at large.
If I was a first-time investor with one of those shows and they posted their notice today — I know the first and only thing I'd be thinking is "gee, this Lead Producer is telling me that whether or not my investment is worthwhile really boils down to the specific number of Tony nods we get during awards season" when there is obviously much more nuance to it than that. Producers will do everything they can to continue facilitating relationships with their investors and championing their shows when they can help it.
If you were a first time investor and THAT'S what you thought despite seeing the grosses and knowing your break even point? You shouldn't be an investor. The day they announce closing means very little. It doesn't look any worse today v any other day. A flop is a flop. Getting Tony noms MIGHT have given them a reason to get more money to sustain.
dramamama611 said: "If you were a first time investor and THAT'S what you thought despite seeing the grosses and knowing your break even point? You shouldn't be an investor. The day they announce closing means very little. It doesn't look any worse today v any other day. A flop is a flop. Getting Tony noms MIGHT have given them a reason to get more money to sustain."
So many thoughts.
First, who the heck are these investors, generally? If you are putting money into a **Broadway show** — and truly need/deeply care about said money, you are an idiot. Full stop. Were I to have, say, tens of millions in excess cash, it would be a game to me, and there would be no urgent need to trample over people to post a closing notice tonight, after months/years of effort.
Second, if we *must* post closing notices hastily, Lempicka and HoRR don’t belong in the same boat. I would be much quicker to cut bait on the former. It is a show that needs critical acclaim to gain traction since, based on general reaction, word of mouth is unlikely to do it.
But with Heart: Do we really think they thought they were going to be a massive award winner? Why should this affect them? Average ticket price went from $37 to $67 or whatever… so what harm is there in giving it a few weeks for word of mouth, unless they really need to save their money — in which case see Point #1, they are idiots. 😀
Featured Actor Joined: 3/1/10
quizking101 said: "Theatrefanboy1 said: "Wow beat me to it.
im going to say
heart of rock and roll - closes within the next 21 days
lempicka - closes within the next 21 days
suffs - closes after july 4 weekend
great Gatsby - makes it through the summer. But not the year.
back to the future - makes it through to September long weekend
the notebook- closes by September long weekend
water for elephants - closes in January
the wiz - closes by September long weekend
Tommy closes out September long weekend
Hell’s Kitchen - doesn’t make it a year
the only one I really see having staying power is The Outsiders. It kind of is building that newsies fan base"
I think Lempicka got a major lifeboat with 3 Tony nominations to get them at least to the ceremony. HoR&R will be gone by 5/12.
Gatsby has name recognition and also the benefit of a Thursday matinee, which could bring in extra summer crowds. I think it has longer than just the summer.
The Wiz was always a limited run to August 18th, but I wonder if this will kneecap it into closing early."
The Wiz is fine and doing great business. It did over $1.6M last week and has a strong advance. Audiences are loving. It’s fine.
Leading Actor Joined: 11/18/13
Regardless of how long Suffs may run, the major prediction I will stick to is that it will become a MAJOR cash cow for all producers and Taub in the long term - for with that many roles for women, it will be THE most produced high school and college musical for a very long time.
Updated On: 4/30/24 at 10:34 PM
Yep, The Wiz is the most review-proof/Tony-proof show of the season with Back to the Future a close 2nd. I'm not ready to put Gatsby in that category yet. I think we could see it lose steam quickly.
iluvtheatertrash said: "rosscoe(au) said: "Let it begin
I’ll start , get rid of the crap called Back To The Future"
I see even after a pandemic decimated our industry, some of you all still completely lack class."
You’re an idiot if you didn’t think in this insanely crowded underwhelming season that closing notices weren’t forthcoming.
Broadway Legend Joined: 1/30/15
uncageg said: "VintageSnarker said: "Newsies didn't run that long."
Newsies came to Broadway as a limited run and ended up running for over 2 years. That's a decent run."
Sure, that's decent. I wasn't trying to slight Newsies but responding to this comment "the only one I really see having staying power is The Outsiders. It kind of is building that newsies fan base"
If Hell's Kitchen has a run like one of the more popular jukebox musicals, it could be around for longer than two years. I'm not championing any show on its artistic merits but thinking about what audiences will be drawn to. I don't know if Newsies is a perfect analogy either as the style of music is different and it was more family friendly and uplifting.
Broadway Legend Joined: 8/2/15
Well Lempika will be closing in two weeks. I guess up next with be heart of rock and roll. I wonder if they’ll be going next week. I still think great Gatsby will close up shop before the other Gatsby comes in next season.
Falsettolands said: "Regardless of how long Suffs may run, the major prediction I will stick to is that it will become a MAJOR cash cow for all producers and Taub in thelong term - for with that many roles for women, it will be THE most produced high school and college musical for a very long time."
Hillary has $$$ to burn and will throw it at this show when needed. She believes in it and it will find an audience and the word of mouth seems to be building. We shall see???????
Suffs needs to win the Tony award to stick around. The Great Gatsby is not going anywhere anytime soon. They have enough of an advance to last them for a year, and then probably stunt casting after the original casts contracts are up. They will be making over a million a week for the rest of the year. The Broadway Theatre will not be available next season.
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/10/11
Broadway Flash said: "Suffs needs to win the Tony award to stick around. The Great Gatsby is not going anywhere anytime soon. They have enough of an advance to last them for a year, and then probably stunt casting after the original casts contracts are up. They will be making over a million a week for the rest of the year. The Broadway Theatre will not be availablenext season."
What are you smoking????
Broadway Flash is Great Gatsby's Sean Spicer. (Please go on Dancing With The Stars)
What am I smoking? Did I lie?
Swing Joined: 6/11/23
Falsettolands said: "Regardless of how long Suffs may run, the major prediction I will stick to is that it will become a MAJOR cash cow for all producers and Taub in thelong term - for with that many roles for women, it will be THE most produced high school and college musical for a very long time."
This makes sense to me. In some areas, it can be tough to get many males to participate in middle or high school productions.
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