Following a dip in gross during the previous week, Broadway gross and attendance saw a slight increase in the week ending Nov. 5. During the 24th week of the season, 18 of the 28 currently running shows saw a decrease in gross revenue.
Overall, the Broadway box office took in a gross total of $26,546,735, representing a 0.25% increase from the week prior. Attendance saw a larger increase, 2.09%, from the week prior, with Broadway shows welcoming 223,151 admissions. Capacity remained steady, with theatergoers filling 86.59% of seats.
Ten productions took in more than $1 million: “Aladdin,” “Back to the Future,” “Hamilton,” “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,” “Merrily We Roll Along,” “MJ,” “Moulin Rouge!,” “Sweeney Todd,” “The Lion King” and “Wicked,” the latter of which celebrated its 20th anniversary on Oct. 30.
Only two productions saw a gross increase of over $100,000. “Moulin Rouge!” earned $112,105 more than the previous week. “Here Lies Love,” which just announced a closing date of Nov. 26, saw an increase of $103,451.
As was the case in the week prior, the top-three earners were “The Lion King” ($1,986,734), “Wicked” ($1,834,506) and “Merrily We Roll Along” ($1,811,423).
The three productions with the highest average paid admission for the week remained the same: In its third consecutive week with an average paid admission over $230, “Merrily We Roll Along” was in the top spot at $234.40. The other two spots belonged to “Hamilton” ($168.05) and “Sweeney Todd” ($161.50). “The Shark Is Broken” saw the lowest average paid admission ($71.51), followed by “Spamalot” ($73.78) and “Jaja’s African Hair Braiding” ($76.65).
Thirteen shows filled their houses to 90% capacity or more: “& Juliet,” “Aladdin,” “Hadestown,” “Hamilton,” “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,” “Merrily We Roll Along,” MJ,” “Moulin Rouge!,” “Six,” “The Book of Mormon,” “The Lion King,” “Wicked” and “I Need That,” the latter of which opened on Nov. 2. For the seventh consecutive week, “Merrily” played to 100% capacity, and was the only production to do so.
In its first revival on the main stem, “Spamalot” earned $657,550 across its first six previews, filling the St. James to 89.86% capacity. “Harmony” remained in previews.
Year over year, Broadway is ahead of where it was during this time last year. Season to date, Broadway has seen 5,573,208 admissions, an increase of 5.6% from last season. Gross to date ($678,921,876) is up 1.4%.
