Phantom of the Opera to Close After 35 Years on Broadway

[danfrank]

Holy cow. While Lloyd Webber has largely relegated himself to the role of producer/impressario, presuming nothing opens and stays open from now until Feb 2023, the last time he didn't have a show on Broadway would've been the 19 months between the closing of Jesus Christ Superstar in 1978 and the opening of Evita in 1979.

Yes, it’s impressive. Personally I will be grateful for the break.

Sorry dude.

I know; it was too much to ask for.

[Okri]

Holy cow. While Lloyd Webber has largely relegated himself to the role of producer/impressario, presuming nothing opens and stays open from now until Feb 2023, the last time he didn't have a show on Broadway would've been the 19 months between the closing of Jesus Christ Superstar in 1978 and the opening of Evita in 1979.

Yes, it’s impressive. Personally I will be grateful for the break.

Sorry dude.

[Big Magilla]

The stunt casting might draw in the tourists, but I don't think there's much local repeat interest in it.

Looking over the replacements list on ibdb there have been bigger names in the Billy Flynn and Matron roles than there have been in the Roxy and Velma roles.

[dws1982]

Chicago has always got a lot of mileage out of stunt casting. Everyone from Melanie Griffith to Pamela Anderson to TV hosts from home repair shows to Cuba Gooding Jr to Billy Ray Cyrus has done time in that show. I suspect it's not too terribly expensive to produce either. But even with stunt casting, a quarter century run is beyond what I ever would've thought possible.

[Big Magilla]

Just as perplexing to me is the longevity of Chicago, the longest running revival of all time. With the closing of The Phantom of the Opera, it will become the longest running show on Broadway, having opened in November 1996.

The original version ran just a little over two years from June 1975 - August 1977.

Of all the legendary shows that are revived year after year, what is there about this one that people keep coming back to see over and over?

[Reza]

The songs were also a major factor in the show's success. Almost every song became familiar over the years which always helps while watching musicals. Lousy or unfamiliar songs make any show drag.

[dws1982]

I never understood the longevity of The Phantom of the Opera any more than I did that of Lloyd Webber's Cats. It was very popular with the old ladies from New Jersey who kept going to see it over and over on Broadway just for the chandelier. That doesn't explain its worldwide success, though.

It's popular with tourists and casual theatergoers who go to shows once every few years. Cats was way too weird and plotless to have the impact of Phantom, although it obviously had a huge one on its own. But Phantom had a reasonably compelling story (to regular audiences), was easy to follow, was mostly family-friendly but not something that feels like kids show, had cool pyrotechnics, and was, despite the silliness, very well-staged. The school I graduated from takes the seniors on trip every year to New York and Washington DC, and every year, since before I graduated until even last year, they would always see Phantom. I saw it on row D. I'm sure there are tons of similar groups.

[Big Magilla]

I never understood the longevity of The Phantom of the Opera any more than I did that of Lloyd Webber's Cats. It was very popular with the old ladies from New Jersey who kept going to see it over and over on Broadway just for the chandelier. That doesn't explain its worldwide success, though.

[danfrank]

Holy cow. While Lloyd Webber has largely relegated himself to the role of producer/impressario, presuming nothing opens and stays open from now until Feb 2023, the last time he didn't have a show on Broadway would've been the 19 months between the closing of Jesus Christ Superstar in 1978 and the opening of Evita in 1979.

Yes, it’s impressive. Personally I will be grateful for the break.

[Okri]

Holy cow. While Lloyd Webber has largely relegated himself to the role of producer/impressario, presuming nothing opens and stays open from now until Feb 2023, the last time he didn't have a show on Broadway would've been the 19 months between the closing of Jesus Christ Superstar in 1978 and the opening of Evita in 1979.

[Reza]

I'm absolutely shocked at Broadway ticket prices. Some shows at $200 per ticket. Absurd.

[dws1982]

Broadway’s ‘The Phantom Of The Opera’ Will Close in 2023 After 35 Years; Final Tickets On Sale “Shortly”

The Phantom of the Opera, Broadway’s longest running show, will close in February following its 35th anniversary in January, producers have announced.

“We are sad to confirm that after 35 years on Broadway, Phantom will play its final performance at the Majestic Theatre on Saturday February 18th, 2023,” the show has announced on its website. “Tickets are currently on sale for performances through January 22nd, 2023, and we expect the final block of tickets to be placed on sale shortly.”

The news comes as the musical, known for its falling chandelier, its half-masked title character and its most famous song “The Music of the Night,” has become an icon of Broadway over the decades but has been as susceptible as other productions to the soft Covid market and weak tourist climate.

The musical has long played at the Shubert Organization’s Majestic Theatre.

With music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, lyrics by Charles Hart, and a libretto by Lloyd Webber and Richard Stilgoe, and produced by Cameron Mackintosh and The Really Useful Group, Phantom opened in London’s West End in 1986 and, two years later, on Broadway, with direction by Harold Prince. The musical made stars of, or at least cemented the theater legacy, of stars Michael Crawford, as the Phantom, and Webber’s then-wife Sarah Brightman as Christine. Among the records set by the musical over the years is first Broadway production to hit 10,000 performances (in 2012). Reported estimates of the Broadway productions grosses over the years exceed $1 billion.

Among its trove of Tony Awards in 1988 were Best Musical, Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical (Crawford), Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical (Judy Kaye), Best Direction of a Musical (Harold Prince), Best Scenic and Costume designs (Maria Björnson) and Best Lighting Design (Andrew Bridge).

While the musical still grosses hundreds of thousands of dollars per week – $867,997 for the week ending Sept. 11, the most recent figure available – receipts for the long-running show could be as low as half (or less) of what could be earned at the Majestic, and certainly lag behind more recent musicals such as Hamilton, Into The Woods, MJ, Moulin Rouge! and Six, and even behind other Broadway stalwarts as The Lion King and Wicked. Average ticket price for Phantom last week was about $83, a bargain compared to the average prices commanded by such musicals as Funny Girl ($175), Hamilton ($197), Into the Woods ($112) and MJ ($152), among others.

The West End production of Phantom, which closed during the Covid shutdown in 2020 and returned with a slimmed-down orchestra, remains open.

Rumbles about Phantom‘s closing was first reported today by the New York Post, setting off considerable speculation on the internet. According to The New York Times, the cast, crew and orchestra were informed of the closing today.

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Why are we still paying $200 a ticket for Hamilton?