This summer, the 2003-2004 theatre season ended with a surprising rush of closings, both on and off Broadway. Some closings were expected, while others came as a surprise to everyone involved, often with less than a week"s notice. The turnover gave way to a string of summer openings that officially kicked off this year"s 2004-2005 theatre season with what looks like a year of heavy retrospection. But before you head down to the TKTS booth to pick up a pair of tickets to catch P. Diddy in A Raisin in the Sun, make sure you know what closed this summer.
At the Royale Theatre, the limited run of Lorraine Hansberry"s A Raisin in the Sun closed on July 11 as expected. It had the highest ticket sales of any play on Broadway this season, largely due to its stars, Phylicia Rashad--who won the Tony for her role--and Sean 'P. Diddy' Combs. The show was the third of the season to recoup nearly all of the $2.4 million invested. The only other shows to break even were Best Musical Tony Winner Avenue Q and the star-ridden Tennessee Williams play, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.
Other limited engagements were not as lucky. The Tom Stoppard play Jumpers, also closed on July 11, though it was expected to run through Aug. 22. Producers cited poor ticket sales as the reason for the closing. The production, an import from London with highly-touted British actor Simon Russell Beale, received mixed reviews. Most critics criticized the show"s seemingly endless philosophical rants and lack of narrative tension. When the play failed to garner any Tony awards, ticket sales sank.
But awards do not always yield box office success. This was the case with the Stephen Sondheim musical Assassins. The show earned unanimously rave reviews and five Tony awards, including Best Direction of a Musical (Joe Mantello) and Best Musical Revival. The show was originally set to close on July 4. However, after its triumphs at the Tonys, its producer, Roundabout Theatre Company, extended its run until October. In the summer months following the June 6 Tonys, ticket sales dwindled and producers announced an earlier closing. Rumors circulated that it was a ploy to boost attendance. If it was, it didn"t work. The show, with a cast that included Mario Cantone and Doogie Howser, M.D. alum Neil Patrick Harris, closed July 18 after a less successful run than expected. For now, Doogie, we"ll have to catch you in reruns.
Other unexpected cancellations included the Broadway production of Little Shop of Horrors (despite the best efforts of "N Sync-er Joey Fatone) and Caroline, or Change (penned by Columbia alums Tony Kushner and Jeanine Tesori). The latter closed after only 22 previews and 136 performances. Another show that closed early was the revival farce, Sly Fox, which closed on Aug. 29, after shake-ups due to factors such as cast changes, with Richard Kind (of Spin City) replacing Richard Dreyfuss on Aug. 17. With fear of the traditional drop in ticket sales in September and the impending Republican National Convention, producers called it quits. The same was true for the three-person chamber piece, Frozen, which won a Tony but closed in the week before the convention.
Even long-running Broadway shows were not immune to the closing trend. Thoroughly Modern Millie closed June 20, with Susan Egan in the role originated by Tony winner Sutton Foster. Most recently, the Disney production of Elton John and Tim Rice"s Aida closed Sept. 5, including in its cast original star (and Rent alum) Adam Pascal.
Off-Broadway, the closings were less frequent but equally controversial. Most surprising was the closing of Larry Kramer"s The Normal Heart, which had an extended run at The Public Theater and production by the Worth Street Theater Company. The show was in talks to move to Broadway when it posted its notice the morning of the final performance, surprising all involved. At a theater panel discussion hosted by The New York Times that same week, Kramer"s anger at the cancellation of his play was such that he announced, 'I can tell you, I"ll never write another play again.' The AIDS drama received laudatory reviews almost across the board; still, the producers cited little to no advance ticket sales as the reason for closing.
With all these closings, what"s left to see? Fortunately, the new season has begun with a promise of enough shows to fill the empty theaters. Lincoln Center Theater"s first show of the season is a retooling of Stephen Sondheim"s The Frogs, a musical based on the comedy by Aristophanes. The musical has a book by Burt Shevelove and Nathan Lane, who also stars in it. The show opened July 22 with Chris Kattan opposite Lane, but after failure to learn his lines and awkward delivery, director and choreographer Susan Stroman replaced Kattan with fellow Producers veteran Roger Bart. For those who never had the chance to see Assassins, The Frogs is a sure bet. It is scheduled to close on Oct. 9.
Replacing the stilted Alec Baldwin vehicle Twentieth Century at the American Airlines Theater is a revival of the Arthur Miller"s After the Fall. Starring Six Feet Under"s Peter Krause and Carla Gugino, the Roundabout Theatre Company-produced play opened July 29. Gugino has received glowing reviews for her Broadway debut.
The last of the summer Broadway openings came Aug. 19 with Dodger Stage"s Dracula, The Musical at the Belasco Theater. The new musical, which is based on Bram Stoker"s Dracula, has book by Christopher Hampton and music by Frank Wildhorn (The Scarlet Pimpernel). The cast includes Melissa Errico. Tom Hewitt, and Kelli O"Hara. With promises of a steamy, topless scene for Errico, producers are hoping to attract a wide audience for the ambitious show. At the very least, it"s a new work in a season heavy with revivals.
As fall approaches, New York theater producers are hopeful for the new season and anticipate a customary rise in ticket sales with the winter holidays. With the next crop of shows opening in October, make sure you know what"s still running before you throw on your 'I Love Joey' t-shirt in hopes of a stage door viewing outside Little Shop of Horrors. Don"t give up too quickly, though. Now that he"s out of a job, he might be free for coffee.