RECOUPED SHOWS ON NOW

[vlegra]

Posted: 4/20/09 at 9:31pm

What shows that are playing right now On broadway have recouped??? I'm interested to see if Hair will soon recoup after it's record breaking run at the Al'Hirschfeld even though it's been running for a couple weeks.

Please Help Me

[Drunk Chita Rivera]

Posted: 4/20/09 at 9:37pm

In The Heights recouped back in February.

I'm sure Hair will recoup by the summer, maybe later, maybe sooner.

What is the deal with WSS? I know it has a HUGE ticket advance.

[henryt]

Posted: 4/20/09 at 10:18pm

WSS has not recouped yet.

[Robert Taylor]

Posted: 4/20/09 at 10:26pm

Off the top of my head:

-The 39 Steps, though there was probably more costs involved in its move that have not been recouped yet
-August
-Ave Q
-Chicago, Phantom, Jersey Boys, Mamma Mia!, Wicked and Lion King are givens
-In the Heights
-Mary Poppins

[yankees1253]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 12:57am

I bet Billy Elliot is close to recouping.

[boyfromoz2]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 3:39am

How about Little Mermaid? It's had a pretty successful run so far at the Lunt

[sking]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 4:21am

Depending on its advanced ticket sales(im assuming that IS figured in the totals) Ill bet Billy Elliot is NOT close. Assuming 750k a week costs(saw that figure once never confirmed) and $20 million upfront costs it'll take another 6 months or so to recoup at present rate...minus advanced sales. I think the money guys are not worried there though...lol.

[Yero my Hero]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 9:07am

What is the deal with WSS? I know it has a HUGE ticket advance.

I am pretty sure that advance ticket sales don't count towards recoupment, because the producers may have to give that money back if for some reason the performance does not happen.

The 39 Steps, though there was probably more costs involved in its move that have not been recouped yet

Advances can, however, help pay for a move, although it is risky. Recoupment is, by definition, the return of an ORIGINAL investment. If The 39 Steps recouped, then they recouped. That's it. Producers probably took out a loan or used their advance to pay for the move. They did not go back to their investors and ask for more money.

[WOSQ]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 9:30am

Advances do not count as monies recieved since the tickets have not been used. The chickens have not hatched so they cannot be counted as it were.

However the advances are held in an interest bearing account, and the interest earned is split between the theatre and the show. Exactly what that split might be is negotiable. The more the theatre wants the show, the more points they will give away.

Even with interest rates as lousy as they are these days, think of subsidiary income made from the continual huge advances (NY and the road) from Wicked or Jersey Boys for instance.

[orangeskittles]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 12:13pm

I'm sure Hair will recoup by the summer, maybe later, maybe sooner.

By the summer? Yeah, if the $350 premium seats are sold out every night and the cast is working for nothing but the priviledge of being on a Broadway stage. Name a single show that has recouped in 3 months before.

[frogs_fan85]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 12:15pm

The Seagull last fall played for barely three months in total and recouped.

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 12:19pm

Beat me to it frogsfan! The Seagull, All My Sons, and I believe Speed-the-Plow all recouped this fall after limited runs.

[orangeskittles]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 12:33pm

Shall I clarify? How many musicals?

[Robert Taylor]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 12:55pm

The fastest I can remember a musical recouping is "Hairspray," and that was eight months.

[orangeskittles]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 1:10pm

Yeah, and the Sweeney revival was about 8 or 9 months as well. I wish Hair the best, but let's be realistic.

[jennamajig]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 1:13pm

Oops, double post! Boltbus and its (at the moment) slow internet...


Updated On: 4/21/09 at 01:13 PM

[jennamajig]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 1:14pm

The Drowsy Chaperone recouped its entire $8 million investment in 30 weeks, and I think that is the fastest I remember hearing in recent memory.

[Drunk Chita Rivera]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 1:15pm

Does anyone know what the weekly cut is for In The Heights?

[frogs_fan85]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 1:23pm

Didn't the A Chorus Line revival recoup very quickly as well?

[WOSQ]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 2:37pm

The speed which shows recoup is dependent on many factors. With A Chorus Line for instance they went to San Francisco and played a large theatre to sell-out business for 6 weeks. They came into town partially recouped, went to sell-out and so the payoff was rather quick.

Other shows muddle along breaking even weekly but never paying off. Tommy comes to mind although there are many more.

Back in the day, producer Morton Gottlieb was known to over-capitalize. Same Time, Next Year which was not a big show, opened out of town and made money there. When it came in, the reserve fund was unused and the investors were paid off in a matter of a few weeks. The rest was gravy.

Gottlieb's production of Tribute with a big star (Jack Lemmon) used the same strategy and paid back the investors 100% on opening night in NY. This was a major publicity coup.

[winston89]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 2:37pm

Yes, A Chorus Line (the revival that is) did recoup pretty quickly if I recall. I don't remember exactly how long though.

[ACL2006]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 3:26pm

The A Chorus Line revival recouped in just 5 months.

[wonkit]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 5:43pm

At the time, the SWEENEY revival had the fastest musical recoup, as I recall. Don't know if any musical since has beat its record, though.

[wdwfreak]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 6:44pm

I am rather curious to as well as when the Little Mermaid will recoup as they are doing decent there. Was there an amount posted about its investment? Also, what about Shrek? Will it ever recoup?? Especially with a 25 million investment and $650,000 to run it weekly.

[frontrowcentre2]

Posted: 4/21/09 at 6:52pm

Talking about shows recouping, I found this as part of a larger article in Variety a few months back:

A key is finding the right threshold for breaking even.

Producer Hal Luftig learned that firsthand with "Legally Blonde." "If you look at our numbers, we rarely did below $550,000 a week," he says. "The problem was, we had a show that cost $650,000 a week."

So for the post-Broadway tour, producers and creatives retooled the physical demands of the show, scaling it back more than usual for a road production. Luftig estimates the road show now costs a little more than $300,000 to run every week.

Producers had cause to worry that auds would notice the scale-down: The tuner's Broadway incarnation aired several times on MTV. Even so, the tour has done strong biz.

"I promise you, nobody's walking out going, 'Oh, we miss the stair unit,' " Luftig says. "Find me someone who says their emotional experience is tied to the scenery."

A producer of the upcoming tuner adaptation of "Catch Me if You Can," Luftig adds he'll aim to keep a tighter rein on finances from the beginning, as creatives begin to conceptualize the staging of a new project.

"You have to start with everybody and explain the economics of this, and assure every department we're not going to let them look bad," he says. "Inexpensive doesn't mean cheap."