Winning the Tony Award for Best Musical has given Schmigadoon! a boost at the box office, but it might not be enough to propel the show to profitability.
In the seven weeks since the show received four Tony Awards, its weekly ticket sales have surged over 42 percent compared with the prior seven-week period. The musical has posted the largest increase after the awards of any musical nominated last season, as its weekly ticket sales surpassed $1.2 million and its attendance approached 100 percent capacity last week.
But, the bump might be too little and too late.
The musical operated at a loss most weeks during the first two months of its run, and it only has the keys to the Nederlander Theatre until January. Without another extension or more growth at the box office, Schmigadoon! might not have a long enough runway to recoup its $11.1 million initial capitalization costs.
Even with all of the attention from the awards show, the musical has still not yet made the maximum amount of money it can earn in a week, which is $1,346,000, according to the financial paperwork sent to investors. Its average ticket price is also still $13 below the projected average ticket price.
Yet, the show should see a sizable spike in ticket sales during the holiday season and in its final weeks of performances.
After Cats: The Jellicle Ball posted a closing notice two weeks ago, its ticket sales shot up to a peak of $1,189,431 with people paying to stand in the back of the Broadhurst Theatre last week. Despite receiving three Tony Awards and its performance at the ceremony attracting the third-most YouTube views of any show, the show had been shedding audiences after Tony Awards, filling only 85 percent of its theater during the last week of June.
While the recent buzz might seem like it could give Cats another life, the $16 million musical will shut after five months at a loss next week.
The outlook for the new musicals on Broadway does not appear to be much better.
Both Titaníque and Two Strangers have struggled at the box office since the Tony Awards. Weekly ticket sales for the musical adaptation of The Lost Boys have been more promising, rising to a peak of $1,486,528, but the vampire show was running in the red for weeks, and its budget ballooned past the initial projections.
Yet, unlike with Schmigadoon!, The Lost Boys has a bit more time to kill with an open-ended run at the Palace Theatre.
