BROADWAY CLOSINGS - call it!

[Jay94]

What about long running shows? Will Memphis close soon?
Also, how long will new shows like Nice Work, Ghost, Once, Newsies last?

[dramamama611]

Rumor is that its Bring It On...as early as June.

[kyl3fong2]

I am still waiting for that announcement by Disney that they will make Newsies an open-ended run.

[Jonwo]

They'll probably announce the day after the Tonys if they win Best Musical.

I imagine Nice Work will do at least a year or so, probably depends on if they can find replacements for Matthew Broderick and Kelli O'Hara.

[dramamama611]

I haven't heard that either of the roles is so special that it woulld be all that difficult -- or are you referring to name recognition?

I wouldn't think they'd wait "that" long to extend....it only runs to mid-August now...you'd think they'd want the advance to start coming in.

[yankeefan7]

jay94 - "Memphis" is usually in the 70-80% range most weeks, don't know how much is discounted tickets but think it could hang in there for a bit. I believe Adam Pascal and Montego Glover (leads) signed until October which should help.

"Newsies" is a limited run at this time but if it wins a bunch of Tony's sure that will change fast. I have not seen it yet but it appears to be a show that could last for several years.

"Ghost" and "Leap" are probably gone in a few days/weeks. "Nice Work" IMO will probably last at least a year, reviews were ok and they may even do better once Broderick leaves.

[Tom5]

There's a lot more as to what will close a show than grosses. Lystrata Jones was pulling in less than 20% and ran for months. But the one show I would like to see close is "Leap Of Faith" because the producers cynically and dumbly jettisoned truly luminous Brooke Shields from it to save, I guess, a big salary.

[yankeefan7]

Tom5- actually I would love to see a "tired" show like "Chicago" close. When you start casting people like Christie Brinkley it is time to close the curtain - IMO.

[Copperfield2]

"But the one show I would like to see close is "Leap Of Faith" because the producers cynically and dumbly jettisoned truly luminous Brooke Shields from it to save, I guess, a big salary."

I like Brooke Shields but her presence in a musical doesn't make me want to go. She just has a so-so voice.

[rja16]

Lysistrata Jones played 30 performances over less than 4 weeks. I don't remember the last time running for four weeks was equivalent to running for months @tom. Over that time it was pulling in less than 20%. The reason it closed so quickly was because it wasn't making any money. If Leap and Magic/Bird continue to pull in percentages similar to Lysistrata,I can't see either running for over a month

[bdn223]

If anyone else has noticed the new Newsies commercial makes no mention of a limited engagement....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tj6x6AAs7e8&feature=plcp

so I honeslty elect the announcement to come early next week right after the Nominations..being like after the "resounding success and the critically "loved" Newsies has scored "#" Tony Nominations and due to it success it will now have a open-ended run"

[ACL2006]

Question: has Memphis recouped yet?? Leap will be closed by Mother's Day(May 13). Give Ghost some time at least, it is getting good word-of-mouth, let's wait until after the summer to see how it does. Porgy & Bess will close when scheduled - Sept. 30. I could see Nice Work having a good 2-3 year run, maybe David Hyde Pierce could replace Broderick in a year. Once is bringing in solid numbers and should have a solid run & should recoup quickly, especially if they bring in a bunch of Tonys. Newsies should announce an open-run by the time the Tonys are over with, regardless if it wins big or not.

[bdn223]

@ACL2006
No Memphis has not "officially" recouped yet

[dramamama611]

^which seems SO hard to believe....how high can their running costs BE?

Of course, I'm still suprised that this is still running!

[bdn223]

remember they lost a ton of money during their initial 7 months till the tony awards

[Gypsy9]

According to the New York Times, Mathew Broderick signed a one year contract. So those of you who are looking forward to his replacement will have to wait, assuming NICE WORK does good box office and runs.

[yankeefan7]

dramamamma61 - Agree that it is surprising because I would not think "Memphis" would be a high cost show. I am going to assume you did not like the show. I saw it last summer and enjoyed it. Not saying it was the best thing ever but still better than a lot of other things still running. I saw it with Chad Kimball and Montego Glover and they gave great performances. I know Adam Pascal replaced Chad Kimball and can't imagine him not doing a good job in the role.

[HopeChanged]

I am curious to see if Ghost dies from a lack of quality, as alleged by its critics, or lives from the masses/tourists it seems geared toward. I have not seen it (don't have the desire), but from reading reviews, it sounds like it's aimed at today's general public - folks with short attention-spans who need and feed on fast-moving, constant movement, change, excitement, etc. In other words, I'm wondering if it will be a critical failure but a hit with those seeking pop-entertainment.

[Jonwo]

I imagine Once will recoup in the next few months and Newsies I think by August or September, I can't see either show having high running costs.

[dramamama611]

No, I didn't care for Memphis. I really didn't like Kimball at all, I wanted to smack him upright if the truth be told. The story was "ok" but it just smacked of self importance.

Jonwo...the next few monts equals August/September! (It is practically May already!)

I would guess that Newsies is MUCH higher as it has a HUGE cast -- granted they are likely all (except for Jordan) working for scale, but there are a lot of them.

[Jonwo]

I imagine compared to Once, Newsies has higher running costs but I imagine it will recoup by the end of the year at least, Disney are very selective in announcing when their shows recoup, did Lion King and Beauty and the Beast ever announce its recoupment, I know Mary Poppins and I think Aida did announce their recoupments.

[massofmen]

wow i was wrong on Priscilla and Memphis and sister act.
I need to start accounting for when Theater owners invest in their shows so they won't kick them out (priscilla) and when producers don't really care about making money on broadway but need it for international shows and tours (sister act, although raven is selling).
I still canot figure out Memphis. Boggles my mind..Which i know isn't hard to do

[Patti LuPone FANatic]

"Chicago" has lasted for so long because people continue to watch it and the producers do what they have to do to bring in audiences. I may not like a particular show...but to wish that a show needs to close smacks of stupidity and arrogance. IMO.

[yankeefan7]

PattiLuponFanatic - Totally disagree and don't think it is stupid or arrogant. My point was Christie Brinkley could not handle the role and they had to change the choreography so she could do the show. I sorry, I think when you do that you starting to "dumb down" the show. My goodness, "Chicago" has been on Broadway for years and I don't think the name Christie Brinkley is going to cause a mad rush to the box office. Was Chicago selling out because Christie Brinkley was in the show? I bet their box office numbers were not drastically different. The woman is not very talented and there are many beautiful woman on Broadway so what is the big deal with hiring her. I know full well she was a famous model but that was quite a few years ago. I don't want anybody to lose their job due to a show closing, the producers just frustrate me when they do this IMO nonsense.

[yankeefan7]

dramamama611 - LOL, just wondering the reason you wanted to smack Chad Kimball.

[Marianne2]

The producers of Chicago have gotten their money back, so essentially, they can probably do whatever they want to keep the show running, if they want to and if they can stay in the theater.

I agree with dramamama11 about Chad Kimball. I saw Memphis when it was on PBS. Never in my life have I disliked a character in a show so much. Huey is worth punching because he annoyed the crap out me that much. Every time Chad opened his mouth to speak, I cringed and wanted to gouge my ears out with something sharp. This is coming from someone who generally likes most of what they see. This was the first show I can say I really disliked a lot.