Cats: The Jellicle Ball posted its best box office numbers ever last week as the show enters its final life on Broadway. With its early closing date of August 8 fast approaching, the production was at standing room only for the week ending August 2, grossing $1,405,709. That’s an increase of $216,278 over the previous week.
Cats composer Andrew Lloyd Webber announced the show’s closing last month, citing high production costs and the current financial climate, setting the final performance at the Broadhurst Theatre for Saturday, August 8, five months before its previously announced extension of January 17, 2027.
Also getting a boost from last-chancers was Every Brilliant Thing starring Tracee Ellis Ross, which closes Sunday, August 9. Grosses for last week were $657,451, with attendance at 99% of capacity, the strongest showing since Ross took over the role July 7.
In all, Broadway held fairly steady last week, with the 29 productions (one fewer than the previous week with the absence of Joe Turner’s Come and Gone) grossing a total $33,889,856. That’s down just about 3% from the previous week, and up 13% from this time last year. Total attendance last week of 263,897 was off 3% from the previous week, up 11% year-to-year.
In addition to Jellicle, other sell-outs for the week were Death of a Salesman, grossing $2,222,450 for its usual seven-performance schedule and the second-highest earner of the week); Hadestown ($939,448); Hamilton ($2,363,268, the week’s top earner); MJ ($1,856,296); Ragtime ($1,887,495) and The Outsiders ($1,043,759). Like Every Brilliant Thing, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child came close to sell-out at 99% and a gross of $1,898,022.
Filling between 95% and 98% of their seats were Aladdin ($1,388,771); Buena Vista Social Club ($718,828); Just in Time ($720,590); Moulin Rouge! ($1,011,637); Oh, Mary! ($1,042,300); Operation Mincemeat ($697,160); Schmigadoon! ($1,153,867); The Book of Mormon ($854,751); The Lion King ($2,160,847, third highest earner); The Lost Boys ($1,516,003) and Wicked ($1,411,466).
At fewer than 85% of seats filled were Six, Stranger Things: The First Shadow, The Great Gatsby and Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York). The Rocky Horror Show was at 86% for a gross of $814,352 and Titanique was at 88% for $822,795.
Ragtime‘s $1,887,495 gross, by the way, broke its own house record for the third time at Lincoln Center’s Vivian Beaumont Theater. Ragtime also carried the week’s top ticket price at $224.06 (Hamilton was #2 at $220.35, while the overall Broadway average was $128.42.
LCT’s Off Broadway venue, the Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater, had a record of its own, with The Whoopi Monologues setting a house record with a gross of $271,690, LCT reports.
In the 10th week of the 2026-27 season, Broadway has grossed $351,725,557, down about 5% from last year at this time, with total attendance of 2,863,791 down 1%.
All figures courtesy of The Broadway League. For more box office information visit the League’s website.
