A double-digit slip in the Nielsen ratings notwithstanding, the Tony Awards worked their magic at the box office, with this year’s winners, contenders and show-stealers reporting big increases in attendance and receipts.
Just a few examples: An Enemy of the People, Merrily We Roll Along and Stereophonic posted box office gains in the six figures.
In all, the 32 Broadway shows grossed $37,565,097 for the week ending June 23. That’s a 2% increase over the previous week, a more impressive bump than it seems at first glance: The previous week had 35 shows, including hefty money-makers Ben Platt: Live at the Palace, Uncle Vanya and Mother Play. The absence of those shows last week went a long way in explaining the 4% drop in attendance to 282,752.
Among the numbers:
- An Enemy of the People, which starred the Tony-winning Jeremy Strong, broke its own house record at Circle in the Square, taking in $1,545,913 for its final week of performances, an increase of $279,575 over the previous week;
- Best Musical Revival winner Merrily We Roll Along, starring Tony winners Jonathan Groff and Daniel Radcliffe (and nominee Lindsay Mendez) was up $329,797 last week, grossing $2,173,254 and setting a Hudson Theatre box office record for the eighth time; the show closes Sunday, July 7;
- Best Play Stereophonic, with a mostly unknown (or previously unknown at any rate) cast that includes Tony winner Will Brill, was a sell-out, jumping $218,535 to $1,018,115. Word is the David Adjmi play about a ’70s rock band recording their masterpiece album has an advance among the strongest currently on Broadway;
- Best Musical The Outsiders, another sell-out, jumped $283,453 to $1,307,257;
- Illinoise, the Sufjan Stevens dance-musical directed by Tony-winning choreographer Justin Peck, was up $88,688 to $847,502 in the wake of its well-received performance on the Tonys;
- Hell’s Kitchen posted a $112,926 increase to $1,800,888;
- Suffs grossed an excellent $942,785, up $89,895 over the previous week;
- Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club, which showcased itself on the Tonys with a polarizing performance by Eddie Redmayne, bucked the upward trend by dropping $68,914. But don’t read too much into that: The musical revival remained a solid draw, filling nearly all seats at the August Wilson and grossing an impressive $1,814,656;
- The Great Gatsby (Best Costume Design/Musical), was at 98% of capacity at the Broadway Theatre, up $177,786 to $1,333,401;
- The Notebook took in $760,670, a $96,784 increase over the previous week;
- Water For Elephants grossed $1,123,678, a boost of $120,85, at 87% of capacity at the Imperial;
- The Who’s Tommy was at 78% of capacity at the Nederlander, posting a $32,060 jump to $794,967.
Proving its ongoing appeal despite a Tony shut-out and lackluster reviews, The Wiz was a near sell-out (98%) at the Marquis, grossing $1,481,208, a $52,821 increase over the previous week.
Mary Jane, starring Rachel McAdams, had a planned seven-performance week, seeing a $73,906 drop (to $337,707) due to the missed show. Attendance was at a solid 96% of capacity.
In addition to An Enemy of the People, Patriots and The Heart of Rock and Roll played their final weeks, both reporting box office increases in excess of $120,000. Patriots grossed $452,357 and filled 85% of available seats, while the Huey Lewis jukebox musical took in $400,521 with attendance at 68% of capacity.
Appropriate, starring Tony winner Sarah Paulson, saw a drop in attendance with Paulson out sick for four performances; the Best Revival/Play was at 81% of capacity at the Belasco, down from 93% the previous week. Receipts still managed to jump by $47,993 to $926,098, with a muscular $140 average ticket price.
Season to date, Broadway, in the fifth week of the 2024-25 season, has grossed $179,386,328, up 11% over last year at this time, with total attendance of 1,435,330 up 8%.
All figures courtesy of The Broadway League. For complete box office listings, visit the League’s website.
The post Tonys Work Their Magic On Broadway With Box Office Bounding For ‘Enemy Of The People’, ‘Merrily We Roll Along’, ‘Stereophonic’, ‘The Outsiders’ appeared first on Deadline.
