By Christina Morningside | Posted on January 17, 2018 6:10 PM
Broadway Saw A Boost As The Weather Warmed, With Miss Saigon And Charlie And The Chocolate Factory Concluding Their Runs, Springsteen Back, And Bette Midler Bidding Adieu.
Springsteen Springs Back Onto The Scene
In the week ending January 14, 2018, the Broadway box office increased by $1,206,444 from the week before, bringing it to a collective box office gross of $32,948,206, which represents 85.24% of the industry’s gross potential.
With 29 shows running, which is the same number as the week before, the winter is still taking a toll on the box office compared to the late 2017 numbers, but the week has a better outlook along with the marginally warmer weather.
Slam Dunk Hit
This past week, Springsteen on Broadway came back after a hiatus, bringing in a weekly gross of $2,411,150 over 5 performances, which represents 101.1% of its gross potential. This is the best week yet for this slam dunk of a Broadway concert engagement, with the Boss proving that he is as popular as ever, especially in this intimate venue of the Walter Kerr Theatre.
With a top ticket price of $850, the average paid admission for Springsteen on Broadway this past week was $508.68, and the audience was filled up to 100.0% of its gross potential. If there is a seat to be had in this theatre, there will be a ticketbuyer to fill it. Springsteen has kept extending his engagement, and is now scheduled to remain on Broadway until June 30, 2018. After all, being situated in one place, even the chaos of Times Square, must be a relaxing change of pace for this megastar who has been touring around the world for many years.
Children’s Fare Slumps As Grown-Up Shows See A Boost
This past week, some of the shows geared towards children and families saw a decrease in ticket sales, while more adult fare saw an increase in ticket sales. Specifically, the biggest decrease this past week was seen by The Lion King, which went down by $681,306 to reach a weekly gross of $1,941,493, or 116.6% of its gross potential.
With winter break over and kids back in school, this show saw a big plunge. Likewise, the family favorite The Phantom of the Opera went down by $371,025 to reach a weekly gross of $862,596, Wicked went down by $280,388 to reach a weekly gross of $1,646,233, Aladdin went down by $249,640 to reach a weekly gross of $1,450,456, and School of Rock – the Musical went down by $193,154 to reach a weekly gross of $822,717.
"Hello, Dolly", A Triumphant Return
On the flipside, the biggest increase, besides Springsteen on Broadway in its triumphant return, was seen by Hello, Dolly!, a family friendly show that is nonetheless more popular with adults and the older crowd. This show saw an increase of $230,038, bringing it to a weekly gross of $2,436,208, or 148.5% of its gross potential.
That was also Bette Midler’s final week in the show, so it will be interesting to see how Bernadette Peters fares in comparison with next week’s numbers. In addition, Meteor Shower saw an increase of $226,015 in its penultimate week, bringing it to a weekly gross of $935,525. Miss Saigon concluded its run with a final weekly gross of $1,143,669, which is an increase of $86,332 from last week, and which represents 83.0% of its gross potential.
"Charlie And The Chocolate Factory" Concludes
Another show that concluded its run last week was Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, which actually decreased by $42,650 from the week before, bringing it to a final weekly gross of $1,234,419, or 88.8% of its gross potential.
