The first-ever Broadway revival of Chess—led by Broadway-born stars Lea Michele, Aaron Tveit, and Nicholas Christopher—could be shaping up to be a major hit. Last week was its first week on the boards, playing just four previews, half of the typical eight. And it brought in $1.2 million. Transfer that performance to a full week, and you would have the second highest-grossing production currently on Broadway, behind only Hamilton (currently riding high thanks to the return of Tony-winning original star Leslie Odom, Jr. as Aaron Burr). We'll have to wait to see if the revival continues that trend at the box office, but even that from the first four previews is nice to see, and a reminder that Broadway creates powerful stars itself, too.
It also bears mentioning, this could be the harbinger of Broadway's next big comeback story. The musical ran nearly two years in London's West End, but on Broadway it ran less than one season—just 17 previews and 68 performances. Becoming a hit the second time around would be a surprising turn-around for the piece, which has mostly enjoyed a cult fandom in the intervening years thanks only to cast albums, and a handful of starry concert stagings. That story would also make the musical the second this decade to get such a treatment on the Main Stem, following Stephen Sondheim and George Furth's Merrily We Roll Along, whose own 2023 revival saw a similarly successful run compared to its first time out.
The biggest box office gains, however, went to Oh, Mary!, which got a new star in 30 Rock's Jane Krakowski last week. That new star power—along with that of fellow new cast members Cheyenne Jackson and A Strange Loop Tony nominee John-Andrew Morrison—led to an increase of more than a quarter-million in ticket sales, with average prices climbing to nearly $180, the highest figure in months.
Hamilton is continuing to fly high as Broadway's top grosser, bringing in $3.76 million last week. The top five top grossers were completed by usual suspects Wicked, The Lion King, Waiting for Godot, and Art, the latter with an uncharacteristic nine-performance week. Cumulatively over the 32 shows theatregoers had to choose from last week, we're continuing to see strong performances as we head into the holiday season. The Broadway-wide total of $38.19 million was actually down slightly compared to the week prior, but just by 3%, and that's with 91% of seats filled. We're still beating the same period from last season by almost 12%, which indicates we're in fantastic territory.
Take a look at the full report here.
The $1 Million Club (shows that earned $1 million or more at the box office):
- Hamilton ($3.76 million)
- Wicked ($2.27 million)
- The Lion King ($2.05 million)
- Waiting for Godot
- Art
- Mamma Mia!
- Death Becomes Her
- Just in Time
- MJ The Musical
- Oh, Mary!
- Maybe Happy Ending
- Chess
- Aladdin
- Buena Vista Social Club
- The Outsiders
- Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
- Moulin Rouge! The Musical
- Ragtime
- The Great Gatsby
(19 of 32 currently running productions)
The 90s Club (shows that played to 90% or higher of their seats filled over the entire week):
- Just in Time (103.17%)
- Hamilton (101.51%)
- Art (100.4%)
- Maybe Happy Ending (100.33%)
- Hadestown (100.29%)
- Mamma Mia! (100.06%)
- Chess (100%)
- Oh, Mary! (100%)
- Ragtime (100%)
- Waiting for Godot (100%)
- Wicked (100%)
- Buena Vista Social Club
- The Book of Mormon
- Death Becomes Her
- The Lion King
- Moulin Rouge! The Musical
- The Outsiders
- Aladdin
- The Queen of Versailles
- Operation Mincemeat
- & Juliet
- MJ The Musical
(22 of 32 currently running productions)
