Business dips; 'Spring' 303g
Broadway grosses
Total B.O. of $20,351,593 for Week 29 (Dec. 11-17) dipped marginally from the previous week's $21,218,728, but was significantly up from the same frame last year, which totaled $17.2 million. A general hike in ticket prices is partly responsible, but attendance has climbed from 227,291 in the same week of 2005-06 to 258,335 last week.
However, holiday commitments cut into auds, causing downturns at many shows.
Among the exceptions, "Spring Awakening" bounced up to a whopping 66.2% in the wake of stellar reviews.
Lincoln Center Theater's trilogy "The Coast of Utopia" shifted to a two-play sked as part two, "Shipwreck," headed to opening night. Both plays are doing sellout business, grossing $348,314 for the week.
Sole new entry was Roundabout's "The Apple Tree," which garnered glowing reviews for star Kristin Chenoweth and earned $270,904 in its comp-heavy opening week.
Lackluster tuner "High Fidelity" closed 10 days after its official opening.
The 27 musicals grossed $15,370,043 for 89.3% of the Broadway total, with attendance of 200,632 at 82.0% capacity.
The five plays grossed $1,846,679 for 10.7% of the Broadway total, with attendance of 26,659 at 66.2% capacity.
Average paid admission was $76.61 for musicals, $69.27 for plays and $75.75 for all shows.
