Closing-Week Surges Boost Box Office as Broadway Loses Three Shows

Short-lived final-week sellouts drove outsized grosses that may not cover rising running costs.

Overview

Death of a Salesman closed on Aug. 9 and led the week with roughly $2.51 million in gross receipts and the highest average ticket price on Broadway at about $239.61.
Cats: The Jellicle Ball ended its shortened run on Aug. 8 with standing-room-only houses, a final-week gross near $1.83 million and an average ticket price of $193.92.
Every Brilliant Thing closed the same weekend after announcing recoupment in May and posted about $886,815 in its final week at nearly full capacity.
Broadway’s 29 shows collectively grossed roughly $33.72 million with attendance near 257,464, but the season-to-date total remains a few percent below last year and the loss of these three top-grossing runs is expected to lower near-term weekly totals.
Industry figures show a recurring pattern where announced closings and star casting produce late spikes, yet rising weekly running costs and concentrated revenue among a few hits are forcing earlier closures and pressuring producers to rely on new shows previewing in the coming weeks to refill the schedule.