NEW YORK (League of American Theatres and Producers/ www.livebroadway.com) - With 31 productions currently playing in Broadway theatres, The League of American Theatres and Producers, Inc. has reported a gross of $748.9 million in New York for the 2004 calendar year.
This figure is up 3.2 % from the 2003 total of $725.4 million.
The number of tickets sold for Broadway in 2004 reached 11.3 million, an increase of 230,000 (2.2%) from 2003.
Calendar Year - Gross - Paid Attendance
2004 - $748.9 million - 11.3 million
2003 - $725.4 million - 11.09 million
Over 20 plays and musicals will be opening in the next 6 months, signaling a very strong Spring '05 season.
According to Jed Bernstein, President of the League of American Theatres and Producers, Inc. highlights for the 2004-05 calendar year include:
* The producers of Billy Crystal's "700 Sundays" have reported $600,000 in single ticket sales the day after the show's Broadway premiere, Sunday, December 5. The lofty sum looks to be a record for a play.
* The season featured exceptional vehicles for other individual performers including Whoopi Goldberg, Mario Cantone, Dame Edna Everage and Eve Ensler.
* Plays including "Twelve Angry Men" and "Gem of the Ocean" received critical acclaim.
* A sensational star turn with Brooke Shields stepping into the role of Ruth Sherwood in "Wonderful Town." Established hit musicals brought first time stars to Broadway, including Bruce Vilanch in "Hairspray" and Drew Lachey in "Rent." Harvey Fierstein, beginning January, will place his own unique stamp on the role of Tevye in "Fiddler on The Roof," replacing Alfred Molina.
* The legendary composer and lyricist Jerry Herman is back on Broadway, with "La Cage Aux Folles," and Stephen Sondheim returns with "Pacific Overtures."
Scheduled for Spring '05:
* Currently scheduled to appear in Spring Broadway productions are celebrities including:
- Denzel Washington in "Julius Caesar"
- Kathleen Turner in "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf"
- Jessica Lange in "The Glass Menagerie"
- Natasha Richardson in "A Streetcar Named Desire"
- John Lithgow in "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels"
- James Earl Jones and Leslie Uggams in "On Golden Pond"
- David Hyde Pierce, Tim Curry and Hank Azaria in Monty Python's "Spamalot"
- A revival of "Steel Magnolias," with an all-star cast including Delta Burke
- A one-man show starring Jackie Mason
- Christina Applegate in a revival of "Sweet Charity"
* Much-anticipated new musicals will include "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels," "Spamalot," and "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang." Pop-tuners featuring scores by Elvis Presley ("All Shook Up") and The Beach Boys ("Good Vibrations"), will join veterans including "Movin' Out" (Billy Joel) and "Mamma Mia!" (ABBA)
* The National Theatre of Great Britain will be represented by "The Pillowman," joining its acclaimed hit, "Democracy."
* Other new plays slated include "Brooklyn Boy" and "Doubt"
"Strong results for the year are partially a result of a dramatic upturn in overseas visitor attendance, with 1.2 million foreign visitors during the 2003-4 season, compared to 650,000 during the previous season." commented Jed Bernstein, President of The League of American Theatres and Producers, Inc.
"We are quite confident that if the Spring '05 season performs as well as we expect, that the overall 04-'05 theatre season will end on a very strong note."
Since the 2004-2005 theatre season began last June*:
* Broadway has attained $419 million gross box office to date for 2004-5 season, compared to $ 422 million at the same point in the 2003-04 season. This slight decrease in grosses may be attributed to an unusual number of one-person shows this season, which generally charge lower ticket prices. These shows have replaced a handful of musicals, which were running last fall but have since closed.
* Ticket sales have reached 6.32 million for 2004-2005, nearly flat with the 6.34 million tickets sold in the same period in 2003-04
* 18 shows have opened on Broadway since the beginning of the 2004-5 season, compared to 21 for the same period during the 2003-04 season.
The League of American Theatres and Producers, Inc., founded in 1930 and operating under the trademark "Live Broadway," is the national trade association for the Broadway industry. The League's 500-plus members include theatre owners and operators, producers, presenters, and general managers in over 140 North American cities, as well as suppliers of goods and services to the theatre industry.
Broadway industry programs initiated by the League include Kids' Night on Broadway, Broadway On Broadway, an annual outdoor concert in Times Square, The Broadway Line, a national toll-free Broadway information hotline (888-BROADWAY), Broadway Ticket Center, and LiveBroadway.com
(*) Broadway theatre season runs from June 2004 - June 2005
