The build-up to Christmas is being very generous with Broadway. In some cases, very, very generous. Among the most impressive box office developments last week was the welcome given to All In: Comedy About Love, based on the short stories of writer Simon Rich, read live by such performers as, initially, John Mulaney, Fred Armisen, Renée Elise Goldsberry, and Richard Kind (the cast changes each week).
For the week ending December 15, All In grossed $1,046,514 for five previews. The Hudson Theatre was sold out for the week with a hefty average ticket price of $216.22.
Also doing its best to impress the holiday gods was Elf, joining the rarified $2 million club with a gross of $2,033,784, with 94% of seats at the massive Marquis occupied.
Other shows grossing $2M or more were the usuals: Hamilton ($2,177,119), The Lion King ($2,497,970), and tireless frontrunner Wicked ($2,878,086). Two productions teetered on the $2M brink: Gypsy ($1,818,235, with press comps keeping the number down); and Sunset Blvd. ($1,900,669).
Solidly on the $1M+ turf were: & Juliet, Aladdin, All In: Comedy About Love, Back To The Future, Cabaret At The Kit Kat Club, Death Becomes Her, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Hell’s Kitchen, MJ, Moulin Rouge!, Oh, Mary!, Suffs, The Book of Mormon, The Great Gatsby, The Notebook and The Outsiders.
Sell-outs for the week were All In: Comedy About Love, Death Becomes Her, Hadestown, Hamilton, Oh, Mary!, Romeo + Juliet, Suffs, The Notebook, The Outsiders and Wicked. Topping 95% were & Juliet, Aladdin, Chicago, Gypsy, Hell’s Kitchen, Moulin Rouge!, Stereophonic, Sunset Blvd., The Book of Mormon, The Great Gatsby and The Lion King.
A couple numbers of note: Swept Away, which recently gave itself a wise two-week extension (to December 29) after posting an early closing, filled 99% of seats at the Longacre. And the excellent Maybe Happy Ending, after initially struggling to find its audience, was at 95% of capacity at the Belasco last week, with a very happy gross of $764,022.
Cult of Love, which opened to generally solid reviews on December 12, filled 91% of seats at the Hayes, grossing $315,283 for two previews and five regular performances.
Another recent arrival, the so-dubbed vaccine comedy Eureka Day, was in previews last week at the Friedman, filling 85% of seats and grossing $230,425. The positive reviews that followed its December 16 opening should spur some box office gains in coming weeks.
Two shows closed last week: The Notebook, filling the Schoenfeld with last-chancers and grossing a hefty $1,094,299, and The Roommate, grossing $501,497 with attendance at 87% of capacity (up from 77% the previous week).
Not sharing in the holiday love were Left on Tenth and The Hills of California, with attendance leaving their respective venues nearly half empty.
In all, the 36 Broadway productions on the boards last week grossed $43,720,381, with attendance at 314,951, both figures more than 38% greater than last year at this time. Average ticket price was $138.82, about $3 greater than last year.
Season to date, Broadway, in the 30th week of the 2024-25 season, has grossed $992,182,392, up about 15% over last year at this time, with total attendance of 7,971,644 also up about 15%.
All figures courtesy of The Broadway League. For complete box office listings, visit the League’s website.