High Christmas ticket prices, bonus shows and large audiences led to a nearly 50 percent increase in the Broadway box office last week (through Jan. 1), including productions. Funny Girl, MJ, Six, Beetlejuice and & Julia among the shows breaking house records.
With 20 of the 33 shows adding a ninth holiday week performance to their regular eight-performance schedule, and total New Year’s week ticket prices up 14%, Broadway grossed an impressive $51,912,226, up 49% from the week ending December. 25. Voter turnout increased by 31% to 311,447. The average ticket price on Broadway with the premium holiday fare numbers was $166.68 compared to $146.02 the week before.
Overall, about 92% of the week’s Broadway seats were filled, compared to 84% for Christmas week.
And compared to last year’s New Year’s week box office earnings of $26 million, the industry is up a whopping 97%.
The full houses and higher prices ensured that the expected series of house records were broken. Shows that hit new box office numbers at their respective locations include:
- sixsold out at the newly renamed Lena Horne Theater and grossed $1,649,206 for eight performances, breaking the previous record of $1,626,478 Waitress in January 2018 at the then Brooks Atkinson Theatre. The average ticket price was $200, up from $160 the week before;
- Funny girl set a new box office record at the August Wilson Theatre, earning $2,405,901 for a week of nine performances. The revival set the previous house record with eight performances grossing $2,005,696 in December. The average ticket price last week was $235, up from $223;
- bug juice set a new record of nine appearances for $2,462,831 at The Marquis. The song was even made without star Alex Brightman in the title role (the actor suffered a concussion in a stage accident on Christmas Eve); the average ticket increased by $40 to $169;
- & Julia broke the record nine performances at the Stephen Sondheim Theater and grossed $1,639,788. The previous record of $1,546,950 was set by type in 2014 and a representative for & Julia note that success comes with a lower holiday rewards price ($325 compared to typeis $350). The average ticket price for & Julia was $177, only slightly higher than the $175 of the Carole King musical;
- MJ broke his 10th house record at the Neil Simon Theater with $2,223,069; average ticket was $200;
- Chicago beat its own holiday week record, set in 2017 at the Ambassador Theater before the pandemic, with a gross of $1,299,400 and an average ticket price of $132.
Also of interest The piano lesson was one of the week’s top-grossing non-musical plays at the Ethel Barrymore, grossing $1,140,437, making August Wilson’s revival the highest-grossing Broadway play of all time. Production has been extended to January 29. The non-musical Harry Potter and the Cursed Child grossed $2.7 million that week, a number the production says is the highest weekly total for a non-musical in Broadway history, beating its own record set in 2018.
Other shows at the $1 Million+ Holiday Club include: A beautiful sound, the Neil Diamond Musical ($1,425,882); Aladdin ($2,849,723, another house record); Almost known ($1,055,042); city of Hades ($1,279,810); Hamilton ($2,740,599); In the forest ($1,892,625); Moulin Rouge! ($1,975,132); Some love it when it’s hot ($1,176,786); The Book of Mormon ($1,680,124); The lion king (with a staggering new domestic record of $4,315,264, setting an overall Broadway record; average ticket price of $285); the music man ($3,971,531, average ticket also $285); The skim of the opera ($2,788,017); and Weak ($3,152,679).
A Christmas carol with Jefferson Mays playing his final week and dropping just over $200,000 by Christmas week to $522,424.
In the season to date, Broadway has grossed $965,623,088 with a total attendance of 7,442,244 at an approximately 87% seat load.
All figures courtesy of The Broadway League. Visit the league’s website for complete ticket listings.
pmc-u-font-size-14″>Writer pmc-u-font-size-14″>Writer: Gregory Evans
Source: Deadline
Bernice Bonaparte is an author and entertainment journalist who writes for The Fashion Vibes. With a passion for pop culture and a talent for staying up-to-date on the latest entertainment news, Bernice has become a trusted source for information on the entertainment industry.
