Smaller productions seem to be changing the profitability calculus on Broadway. It's no surprise that blockbusters like Wicked and Spamalot would recoup their initial investments, however they took 28 weeks and 56 weeks respectively. That's still an achievement, especially considering shows like Ragtime and Jekyll and Hyde never recouped despite runs of 107 weeks and 192 weeks respectively. That's just bad producing.
But the conventional wisdom of the 80s and 90s said that you had to be big and splashy to make money on Broadway. Three recent shows belie that dictum. The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee went into the black after only 18 weeks. Sweeney Todd did the same in 19 weeks. Avenue Q got off to a relatively slow start, but eventually recouped in 45 weeks. Yeah, Spamalot did it faster, but my basic point is that you don't necessarily need to be a huge, expensive spectacle to make your money back. Intimate, funny, and innovative shows have shown financial viability as well, and from where I sit that's a good thing.
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