Disney’s Frozen and Scott Rudin’s revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Carousel performed promisingly in an otherwise wet and dismal week.
Frozen was a near sellout, grossing $984,000 in five previews. Its composers, Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez, picked up their second Academy Award last night, for best original song with Remember Me, from the Disney film Coco, which shouldn’t hurt Frozen‘s prospects when it opens at the St. James on March 22.
Carousel did $702,000 over five previews. It wasn’t as packed as Frozen, but its average ticket, at $118, was about the same as the Disney adaptation of its animated film, which itself is based on a Hans Christian Andersen story. Carousel, with Joshua Henry, Jessie Mueller and opera star Renée Fleming, opens on April 12.
Another Rudin revival, Edward Albee’s Three Tall Women, with Glenda Jackson, Laurie Metcalf and Alison Pill, did a respectable $283,000 over its first four previews, with an average ticket of $98.
Patrons of Broadway’s hottest shows were seemingly oblivious to the weather. Dear Evan Hansen grossed $1.6 million, down just 7 percent from the previous week. Hamilton sold $3.1 million, down 1 percent from the week before.
But Hello, Dolly! with Bernadette Peters ($855,000), A Bronx Tale: The Musical ($570,000) and The Play That Goes Wrong ($249,000) posted their worst or near-worst sales since opening last season. It remains to be seen whether there’s still a sizable audience for Dolly, with the exit of Tony Award-winner Bette Midler, although Peters got strong reviews when the show reopened on Feb.22.
The immediate forecast is for more of the same. Heavy snow is expected in the metropolitan area on Wednesday.
