There have been 9 revivals on Broadway recently
For shows that have ended their run, the gross income ranged from a low of $3.14 million to a high of $18.6 million. The median was $$6.8 million. This is a healthy Broadway! As a benchmark, the Broadway production budget for Exit Strategy is $3.38 million.
At the same time, there have been even more original plays:
16 and 4 more to open this spring.
Between the shows currently running and those that have ended, the average Broadway gross (not including the Harry Potter phenomena at $94.8 million so far) is $10.6 million with an average run of 18 weeks. The average attendance is 92% and average ticket price (including discounted and premium seats) is $95. WOW!!
There are still winners and losers every year.
The Play that Goes Wrong, the comedy which recently closed, ran for 22 months and grossed an outstanding $34.3 million. Three plays still running are doing very well: The Ferryman, To Kill a Mockingbird, and Network with a combined gross of over $48 million. At the other end, The Nap fell asleep (couldn’t resist the pun) at $1.8 million, and Choir Boy didn’t do too much better at $2.1 million.
In the final analysis, what’s important
Bottom line: plays are holding their own on Broadway. This is not to say that gross numbers are the last word – in the final analysis, bringing original work to a national audience is what’s important. Nothing compares to the impact of a live performance that has the power to move us, change how we look at the world, and inspire us. And theatrical investors make it happen.
Note: Statistics derived from playbill.com and Broadway League information and data conclusions presumed to be accurate but not guaranteed.
