'Mormon' tops box office

"It of Mormon" hit No. 1 round the Broadway top the other day -- which is something from the miracle. Sure, Tony-sweeper "Mormon" ($1,455,329) is really a offered out hit since last spring, and sky-popular for tickets has pressed the normal cost paid out per ducat to the stratosphere. Nevertheless the show's overall weekly tallies are restricted because when large its venue, the Eugene O'Neill Theater, which at under 1,100 seats substantially hampers the gross potential when compared to, say, "Wicked," the extended-running hit in the theater of a single,800 seats. But the other day, "Mormon," undampened having a slow winter week that saved sales below componen at many productions round the boards, enhanced round the prior frame, broke another house record and showed up in this area before "Wicked" ($1,349,433), "Spider-Guy: Turn Off the Dark" ($1,268,002) and "The Lion King" ($1,226,681). In the mark in the ongoing curiosity about "Mormon," average cost paid out per ticket hit a walloping $166. That's means by front from the second-finest per-ticket average drenched for your week, $109, reported at Lincoln subsequently subsequently Center Theater's hit play "War Equine" ($860,311). Inside the chilliest frames of Broadway's annual winter slump, basically a really handful of productions the other day saw B.O. rise inside the prior sesh, as well as the handful to get this done -- "Sister Act" ($482,863), "Seminar" ($380,701) and "Wit" ($244,728), within the first days time after opening -- upticked only slightly. Despite everything, "Porgy and Bess" ($905,134) seems to own established itself just like a solid artist when faced using the Street's overall downward trend. It is really an open question if sales will further rise along with the tourist tide later this spring. Overall sales fell $2.4 million near to $15 million for 23 shows round the board. The B.O. declines aren't an unexpected to legiters, who spend the season girding themselves for your tough occasions that hit the main Stem following a holiday boom. A year ago at this time around around, sales had wound up near to $12 million for 19 productions running. Attendance also was lower the other day, falling by about 25,000 to 179,706. Still, that's well while watching 145,000 theatergoers drenched a year ago at this time around around, and last week's average capacity of 78% showed up in this area while watching 73% released this season. A year ago it absolutely was around this time around around that B.O. began to obtain on an outing. When the same is true inside the coming week remains to look. Contact Gordon Cox at gordon.cox@variety.com