The producer of Hello, Dolly! starring Bette Midler recently raised its top ticket to $525, the most expensive seat on Broadway that isn’t for Hamilton.
Introduced after runaway advance sales, it’s the biggest price ever for a musical revival. As of a few weeks ago, Dolly’s costliest ticket on Telecharge or at the box office was $425. But like Hamilton, it’s exploding on the resale market. Prime Dolly tickets on StubHub exceed $2,000, with seventh row center offered for over $5,000, with fees.
Previews begin March 15 for an April 20 opening. Midler plays the role Carol Channing originated in 1964. It will be her first time singing and dancing on Broadway since a month of concerts in December 1979.
Tickets are more plentiful and less dear for Donna Murphy as the matchmaker Dolly Gallagher Levi. She takes over on Tuesdays beginning June 13, two days after the Tony Awards. Murphy is a Broadway star and five-time Tony nominee who’s won twice, for Passion and the 1996 revival of The King and I. The best tickets to catch her are $299, with rear balcony seats just $59.
Hamilton grossed $3.3 million last week, a record for eight performances, thanks to its $998 holiday tickets. The price set a new benchmark, said Scott Mallalieu, who runs group sales agency GreatWhiteWay.com. “Hamilton gets $1,000, Dolly gets $525, another show might charge $400,” he said. Dolly is produced by Scott Rudin. His revival of The Front Page is the bestselling play now onstage.
