To cite Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “Evita,” “and the cash saved rolling in!”
After The Submit first reported on Friday that the composer’s “The Phantom of the Opera” would shut on Broadway this winter after 35 years, the present took in $2 million in ticket gross sales by 8 p.m., producer Cameron Waterproof coat informed The Submit.
“The hills are alive with the sound of the music of the night time!,” Waterproof coat mentioned on a cellphone name from London.
The producer is happy the field workplace increase and outpouring of affection from followers all over the world, though The Submit scuttled his announcement plans (the information was set to drop subsequent week.)
Nonetheless, “Phantom” is unquestionably coming to an finish in New York on Feb. 18, shortly after a lavish bash for its thirty fifth anniversary.
“Everybody thinks these exhibits can go on eternally, however you’ll be able to’t run a giant present at these margins anymore,” the producer mentioned, including that the pre-pandemic operating price of “Phantom,” $800,000, has ballooned to $950,000 right this moment. And that enhance arrives throughout a particularly difficult time for Broadway.
“The 35-year run is much more miraculous when you think about how enormous it’s,” Waterproof coat mentioned.
“There comes a tipping level within the lifetime of any present,” he added. “The variety of shedding weeks was rising even earlier than COVID.”
This won’t be the final you see of the Phantom and Christine Daae. The musical might ultimately return to Broadway in a distinct type, the producer mentioned.
“I’m certain ‘Phantom’ will come again sooner or later,” he mentioned. “After I took ‘Les Miz’ off, it got here again twice!”
At greater than 13,000 performances since “Phantom” opened on Jan. 26, 1988 on the Majestic Theatre, its residence to this very day, it’s the longest operating present on Broadway. Subsequent in line is “Chicago,” which Waterproof coat famous, is less expensive to run.
Regardless of “Phantom,” an iconic Broadway musical, ending its storied run in February, the British producer feels assured in a affluent future for Broadway and the West Finish. Finally.
“The encouraging factor is that there’s nonetheless a terrific resilience and an insistence to come back to exhibits,” mentioned Waterproof coat, whose exhibits in London embrace “Phantom” (it’s doing nicely there, he mentioned), “Hamilton,” “Les Miserables” and “Mary Poppins.”
“It’s going to be a bumpy experience, however individuals are turning up!”
Read the full article here
