Broadway Box Office Analysis- February 2025

February is typically one of the slowest months of the year for Broadway. The first two weeks were included in this year’s Broadway Week discounts, where even the longer running shows that do not typically sell discounted tickets run some special deals. In spite of the cold weather this season was a significant improvement from last year, with the total gross as a whole being up well over 20% for the month compared to February 2024. 

SHOW OPENING RECAP: February 15: Operation Mincemeat (previews); February 21: Buena Vista Social Club (previews); February 24: Othello (previews); February 25: Purpose (previews)

SHOW CLOSING RECAP: February 2nd: Left on Tenth, Cult of Love; February 16: All In: Comedy About Love, Eureka Day, Romeo+Juliet; February 23: A Wonderful World

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THE NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK

NEW SHOWS

All In: Comedy About Love- Average Weekly Gross- $1,590,168, Capacity 100%

All In closed on a high, their rotating cast of A-List celebrities kept grosses sky-high enough that they have announced a sequel show next season entitled All Out. They announced upon their closing that they recouped their initial investment. 

Death Becomes Her- Average Weekly Gross- $1,252,390, Capacity 98%

Death Becomes Her came into their opening with perhaps more hype than any other musical in the fall, and their grosses were almost immediately strong. And strong they have stayed through the tough winter months. They have a long road ahead of them however before they can reasonablu recoup on Broadway, given their large capitalization of up to $31.5 million per SEC filing. 

Romeo+Juliet- Average Weekly Gross- $1,169,338, Capacity 103%

This starry revival of Shakespeare’s most well known show closed on a high, breaking several house box office records at the Circle in the Square Theatre on its way to being the second play of the season to recoup its initial investment. 

Redwood- Average Weekly Gross- $870,571, Capacity 94%

The first musical to open in 2025, Redwood only played two full performance weeks this month. But when they have performances their capacity and average ticket price have both been relatively strong (especially given the number of tickets that were likely given out in the lead up to and on opening night). Things look pretty good for them so far, however their relatively lukewarm critical reception could yet prove detrimental to their box office returns moving forward. 

Maybe Happy Ending- Average Weekly Gross- $863,087, Capacity 96%

The last time the Belasco Theatre had a musical that regularly grossed more than $700k a week before Maybe Happy Ending was the 2014 revival of Hedwig and the Angry Inch starring Neil Patrick Harris. That combined with where the show started after it opened, makes these grosses perhaps the most impressive of any show on Broadway right now. There is still room for improvement of course, but this show is selling well in a traditionally difficult theatre. Even the vacation of one of their above-the-title stars did not dampen grosses much, another good sign for the show. 

Operation Mincemeat- Average Weekly Gross- $778,008, Capacity 100%

We have combined the two partial weeks of performances from Operation Mincemeat as they add up to one typical 8 performance week. These are good grosses, and selling out the first 8 shows is a good sign. Mincemeat has already announced a four week extension into July, and if these grosses continue it will hopefully not be the last. It’s still early to make definitive conclusions about this show, but all signs point to success so far. 

Oh, Mary!- Average Weekly Gross- $770,164, Capacity 90%

Betty Gilpin’s run as Mary Todd Lincoln continues at the Lyceum Theatre to decent success. Oh, Mary! has not enjoyed the same record breaking success since playwright and original cast member Cole Escola left the cast, but these grosses should be more than high enough to sustain them through the winter months. The upcoming run of Titus Burgess (which is already nearly sold out) as well as a return engagement with Cole Escola later this spring should do more than enough to bolster this shows grosses. This show could very well become one of a select few since the pandemic to return twice it’s initial capitalization to its investors if it can continue breaking records. 

A Wonderful World- Average Weekly Gross- $537,208, Capacity 75%

A Wonderful World had already announced their closing at the start of the month, and with grosses like these it’s not difficult to see why. Though they were selling better than the last musical to inhabit Studio 54, an average capacity of 75% along with below average ticket prices just isn’t going to cut it these days. Luckily for the cast and crew the final weeks were played to much larger crowds than the weeks preceding.

English- Average Weekly Gross- $456,583, Capacity 96%

2023 Pulitzer Prize winner English nears the end of its run at the Todd Haimes Theatre strong, their week ending February 23 was only $40k off of the highest grossing week at the Haimes since its renaming. 

Buena Vista Social Club- Average Weekly Gross- $447,171, Capacity 100%

The most recent addition to the grosses started out strong. Buena Vista Social Club only played three performances in the first weekend of previews, so it is a little early to draw any conclusions about the future financial success of the show. However, it’s certainly not a bad sign moving forward, though the picture will become more clear in the coming weeks. 

REVIVALS

Gypsy- Average Weekly Gross- $1,402,115, Capacity 85%

There was an outlier this month with Gypsy, Audra McDonald had to miss several performances last week, which significantly affected their box office performance. When Audra McDonald in in the show, capacity and grosses remain strong, though it remains to be seen if they can avoid following in the footsteps of Sunset Boulevard across the street and keep their grosses high

Sunset Boulevard- Average Weekly Gross- $1,298,703, Capacity- 90%

Sunset Boulevard had a meteoric rise earlier this season, posting a weekly high of nearly $2 million right after it opened in November. Since then, the hype has not held, or it at least has not translated well into grosses. Comparing to other recent star-driven revivals like Sweeney Todd or even Merrily We Roll Along, Sunset’s hype has died down much faster, this month they fell an average of $90k per week, closing out the month at $1.1 million for the week ending February 23rd. Those grosses are not ideal for a show of its size, they were capitalized at up to $17 million per SEC filing, and they just announcesed their closing in July. What was looking like a sure financial success just a couple of months ago may very well close at a loss now. 

Eureka Day- Average Weekly Gross- $376,745, Capacity 85%

Eureka Day finished out their extended limited run at Manhattan Theatre Club’s Samuel J. Friedman Theatre on February 16. Across their entire run they had weaker box office returns than the previous few productions at the Friedman, in spite of their critical acclaim (though every play that opened on Broadway in a non-profit house this winter so far has earned a New York Times critics pick- the competition was fierce). Sadly in the weeks since President Trump has taken over as chaiman of the board of the Kennedy Center their planned run of this production has been canceled. 

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LAST SEASON’S HITS

The Outsiders- Average Weekly Gross- $1,391,147, Capacity 101%

Last seasons Best Musical winner continues to play to sold out crowds even during the seasons slowest months.

The Great Gatsby- Average Weekly Gross- $1,151,709, Capacity 92%

This month saw Ryan McCartan and Sara Hyland take over the roles of Jay Gatsby and Daisy Buchanan, each of which coming with a sizable fanbase of their own. Audiences have responded in kind, The Great Gatsby is one of only a few shows to do significantly better in February compared to last September/October, the other major slowdown on the calendar.

Hell’s Kitchen- Average Weekly Gross- $1,097,732, Capacity 93%

Hell’s Kitchen is losing steam the quickest of any of last year's shows (celebrity casting notwithstanding). Their run so far can be looked at before the winter holidays and after the winter holidays, where before the holidays they were consistently hovering around $1.3-1.5 million per week. Since the New Year they have yet to hit $1.3 million. Maybe they will perk back up as the thermometer picks back as well, but they are in a good position regardless. 

Cabaret- Average Weekly Gross- $1,061,688, Capacity 92%

Cabaret has held right around $1 million on average for their grosses for almost the entirety of Adam Lambert and Auli’i Cravalho’s run. 

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LONG RUNNERS

Wicked- Average Weekly Gross- $2,458,594, Capacity 100%

Wicked is still riding the high of the movie release, and they will likely continue to reap the benefits of it for at least the next year and a half. They already set the single week gross record between Christmas and New Years, and they will likely set it again next year. So far this year Wicked has increased their grosses by 47% year on year.

The Lion King- Average Weekly Gross- $1,775,847- 96%

Lion King slots in at a number two, and is so far holding steady compared to last year.

Hamilton- Average Weekly Gross- $1,752,442, Capacity 96%

Hamilton in its 10th year continues to play to sold out crowds, and typically still commands the highest ticket price of any musical on Broadway. They are slightly down this year compared to last, but the difference is negligible. 

MJ: The Musical- Average Weekly Gross- $1,259,564, Capacity 92%

MJ slipped more than most comparing this year to last. That said, they are still very much in a good place.

Aladdin- Average Weekly Gross- $1,202,029, Capacity 95%

Aladdin continues to hold their own. They have increased their grosses this year more than any show other than Wicked, an excellent place for them to be after 11 years of performances.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child- Average Weekly Gross- $1,048,739, Capacity 89%

Cursed Child introduced a revised book last fall to coincide with the launch of their tour. So far this year they are down 9%, and they were down 12% in the month of February. 

&Juliet- Average Weekly Gross- $1,023,108, Capacity 98%

The most recent addition to the list of long-running shows continues to do well. Relatively new celebrity cast members Joey Fatone and Charli D’Amelio are certainly helping the show as well. So far they are holding relatively steady compared to last year.

Moulin Rouge- Average Weekly Gross- $984,032, Capacity 93%

Moulin Rouge has had the most difficult time of any long running show this year. February in particular was difficult for them, they were down 25% year over year this February to last, and they are down 18% overall year to date. Boy George, who was a box office success for them last year, will be returning to the cast at the end of next month, as well as Jordan Fisher, hot off the heels of a successful year-long run as Orpheus in Hadestown.

The Book of Mormon- Average Weekly Gross- $933,084, Capacity 96%

The Book of Mormon was one of only three long-running musicals to improve their take home this February compared to last. 

Six- Average Weekly Gross- $797,726, Capacity 88%

Six is down about 7-8% this year compared to last so far. This is in line with where they have been trending over the last couple of years. 

Chicago- Average Weekly Gross- $793,149, Capacity 86%

Chicago’s celebrity casting cycle continued this winter with Erika Jayne as Roxie. Though it was not as lucrative a run as Ariana Madix’s run this time last year, Chicago continues to be just fine. 

Hadestown- Average Weekly Gross- $755,298, Capacity 98%

Hadestown clocks in as the lowest grossing long running show- though they are in the smallest house by some margin. Compared to last February, they struggled a little bit (down about 15%), though last February they had a very successful short stunt cast with Lola Tung as Euridyce. Luckily year to date they are roughly in the same space they were last year. 

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Top Five Shows by Average Ticket Price

1. ALL IN: Comedy About Love- $203.34
2. Romeo+Juliet- $178.50
3. Hamilton- $171.93
4. The Outsiders- $167.73
5. Wicked- 159.56

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THE MONTH AHEAD

Next month will see 11 new productions begin performances, as well as six official opening nights. Springtime on Broadway is almost here, and it’s shaping up to be crazier than ever.