'The Pajama Game' was the only show in town to dress up a down week at the Broadway B.O.
Broadway biz took a downturn for the week ending Sunday, dropping nearly $1.9 million from the previous frame to $13,820,063 for 24 shows.
That tally still makes for a strong showing for the late-winter sesh, which hasn't gotten above $12.8 million in the past five years, and which in 2001 dropped as low as $10.4 million. But the week's 190,000 theatergoers was below the frame's attendance levels of the past few years.
The only show that rose for the week was Harry Connick Jr. starrer "The Pajama Game" ($391,711), up around $90,000 and playing to houses filled to more than 100% capacity.
All other shows saw sales slide. Both "The Producers" ($606,259) and "The Lion King" ($1,040,846) sank more than $200,000, while "Mamma Mia!" ($837,810), "Hairspray" ($559,094), "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" "($526,098), "Sweeney Todd" ($446,469), "Rent" ($430,901) and "The Light in the Piazza" ($329,788) were down by more than $100,000.
Heading into a final week of previews before its March 12 opening, "Ring of Fire" ($210,589) has yet to catch fire.
"Wicked" ($1,327,337), as usual, remained top dog on Broadway, while initial B.O. for its West End engagement, set to start perfs Sept. 7, broke £100,000 ($174,948) in its first hour on sale Sunday morning. That production's advance now stands at $2.97 million.
Contact Gordon Cox at
gordon.cox@variety.com