Broadway Grosses: Audiences Flock to Pride Rock for Long-Running The Lion King
(Photo: Joan Marcus)
It's been almost 25 years since Disney brought the story of The Lion King to the Broadway stage, and it continues to be a fan-favorite. The long-running musical is often named a box office champion, but this week, it also earned a top spot for capacity by packing in the Minskoff Theatre to 99.68 percent. This marked the last week for Jelani Remy, who returned once again as the king Pride Rock for a limited time while Brandon A. McCall took a leave of absence. Also of note is that Dear Evan Hansen still welcomed audiences to 101.27 percent capacity although it was forced to cancel Saturday performances due to broken air conditioning. The Music Man, which usually snags the top spots on both counts, was on a scheduled hiatus last week.
Here's a look at who was on top—and who was not—for the week ending August 21.
FRONTRUNNERS (By Gross)
1.Hamilton ($2,198,662)
2. Into the Woods ($2,082,652)
3. The Lion King ($1,980,606)
4. MJ ($1,734,074)
5. Wicked ($1,590,189)
UNDERDOGS (By Gross)
5. Come From Away ($636,114)
4. A Strange Loop ($632,057)
3. Funny Girl ($588,032)
2. Chicago ($540,848)
1. The Kite Runner ($276,804)
FRONTRUNNERS (By Capacity)
1. Dear Evan Hansen (101.27%)*
2. Into the Woods (100.54%)
3. MJ (100.42%)
4. Hamilton (100.28%)
5. The Lion King (99.68%)
UNDERDOGS (By Capacity)
5. Mr. Saturday Night (77.12%)**
4. Funny Girl (74.06%)
3. Chicago (73.21%)
2. The Kite Runner (71.51%)
1. Beetlejuice (67.08%)
*Number based on six regular performances
**Number based on seven regular performances
Source: The Broadway League