Music
Wicked brought in a staggering $5 million last week, marking the highest weekly gross in history for any Broadway show.
That total, which was accumulated across nine shows last week, rather than the typical eight, is also a record for the show, which has been running on Broadway since 2003. The musical brought in $2 million more than the prior week and had an average ticket price of $290.61.
Wicked is typically one of the top box office contenders, but it has seen a particular resurgence in recent weeks amid the popularity of the film. The week between Christmas and New Year’s is also typically one of the highest grossing for many shows in the industry.
In addition to Wicked, several other productions played nine performances last week, including The Lion King, which brought in $4.2 million; Aladdin, with $2.81 million; and The Great Gatsby, with $2.62 million, breaking the box office record for nine shows at the Broadway Theatre. Hamilton played an eight-show week and still had the third-highest gross in the industry, with $2.93 million.
Many shows broke box office records last week, including The Outsiders, which broke the box office record for eight shows at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre for the 10th time. The musical brought in just over $2 million, with an average ticket price of $239.96. Elf The Musical also broke the box office record at the Marquis Theatre, with a gross of $2.2 million.
Amid the booming holiday box office, productions were also contending with a rise in illness, including at Gypsy, where the show had to cancel seven of its planned eight performances. The musical brought in $280,095 for the single performance.
Grosses for this Christmas week were up by close to 23 percent compared to this week last season, which had Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve within the same week. Overall, the 2024-25 season is up by more than 16 percent compared to last season and stands to bring in more over the remaining holiday week.