Last night, news broke that Cats: The Jellicle Ball would close on August 8, several months before its scheduled final performance in January. In theater circles, the news has been met with dismay and some confusion; the reimagining of the 1980s megamusical has been critically acclaimed since its opening, and it won three Tony Awards just over a month ago. But the unfortunate reality is that the production’s grosses have fallen since the ceremony, and in the week ending on July 5—a holiday week, when many shows saw their grosses decline—the production brought in less than $700,000. Still, it’s an outcome no one wanted to see, and one that many have pointed to as indicative of a larger problem.
One such person is Andrew Lloyd Webber, the composer of the musical. “What is happening in front of all who care about the Great White Way breaks my heart,” he writes on Instagram this morning. “The truth is that, for any show, it makes practically no financial sense to come to Broadway with things as they are. Creators, writers and directors have been forced to take minimal royalties from new shows, often surviving on a fixed weekly fee rather than a royalty. It makes it impossible for young creatives to make a living from theatre alone. Investors count themselves fortunate indeed if they see a portion of their money back.” Though he notes that there are some long-running shows that still bring in decent grosses, “Broadway is in dire danger of rivalling Hollywood’s empty soundstages with increasingly dark theatres.” Continues Webber, “I beg the theatre owners, unions and producers to come together urgently to address what is a crisis coming to a head.”
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the production raised up to an $18 million capitalization, and doesn’t seem to have recouped the investment, and the early closure suggests that producers are wary that current ticket sales indicate that it will. There is one piece of good, or at least less-bad news: THR confirms that the production will be filmed and added to the New York Library of Performing Arts, but you’ll probably need an appointment to watch it.
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