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Hello everybody and welcome to a Broadway Grosses episode here on Broadway Radio. My name is Matt Tammani. I am bringing you all of the information of last week's Broadway grosses for the week ending on Sunday, January 4th of 2026. It was the 32nd week of the 20252026 Broadway season and in total there were 33 shows playing on the Great White Way. Last week they brought in $52,037,125 around the new year HOL, down about 4% from the genuinely more lucrative Christmas week. That was a little bit over $2.2 million that it dropped from the previous week, but still really good. Overall attendance in fact was up 3%. 313,513 people saw Broadway shows last week, while the average ticket price dropped $11.90 to come into $165.98. We had four different shows last week cross the $3 million mark. They were led by Hamilton at $3,332,754. Wicked was not too far behind at 3.29. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child was at 3.27 and then the Lion King was at 3.15. The Lion King actually set a new box office record for itself. This was the 34th time that they had set a new house record at the Minskof. Obviously they're not adding new seats. More people aren't coming. This has to the rise in ticket prices, but nonetheless impressive during its nearly three decade run. Although it didn't start at the Minsk off, it moved there. Eventually Mamma Mia came in in fifth at just under $2.6 million, followed by Aladdin and Stranger Things. The first shadow all north of 2 million. Obviously Stranger Things, the first shadow is getting a pretty decent bump thanks to the series finale over on Netflix. But what's interesting is that it did gross $2 million, but it only did seven shows last week, while a number of productions did nine shows last week, including Mamma Mia, The Outsiders 6 and 2 Strangers Carry a Cake across New York, joining Stranger Things by only doing seven shows during the New Year's week was the Great Gatsby. The other shows north of $1 million in descending order were MJ at 1.99 million chess, the Outsiders, Death Becomes her, the Great Gatsby Just In Time, Waiting for Godot, Ragtime Wall, Moulin Rouge maybe Happy Ending, Beetlejuice, the Book of Mormon, oh Mary, Hadestown, Buena Vista, Social Club and Juliet, Hell's Kitchen 6 and Chicago. Two shows wrapped up their Broadway runs last week. That starts with the Broadway revival of Waiting for Godot that was playing at the Hudson Theater starring Alex Winters and Keanu Reeves. It saw a nearly $243,000 bump to come in at $1.55 million. And Beetlejuice also wrapped up its, I guess extended tour stop. On Broadway, it saw a similar $311,000 increase to come in at $1.373 million. Some interesting things to look at in the news here. Although Bug was third from the bottom on the grosses list, of course it is still in previews. It actually opens on Thursday night. It is part of the Manhattan Theater Club subscription season, so those numbers are always a little bit wonky considering how not for profit theater companies report their box office and stuff like that. But it did have a 96.41% capacity, so it is doing well in terms of getting butts and seats. It did only gross $446,806 though. What's interesting is that only four of Broadway's shows did not hit 96% capacity last week. Two Strangers Carry a Kick Across New York was at 89.6, Chicago was at 88.5 and Stranger Things was at 88.4. The only one that was languishing behind, unfortunately was the excellent Liberation that only had 65.55% capacity at the James Earl Jones Theater. Unfortunately, this show, which I think is one of the strongest that we are going to see this season, has not found an audience just yet and it is unfortunately running out of time because it has been extended, but only until February 1st. So unless the word of mouth somehow creates some sort of resurgence, it does not seem like this show is going to be a huge financial success. And considering the fact that it's going to close long before Tony nominations, you have to at least be concerned that it's not going to be remembered. Now who knows, this is a show that had great acclaim off Broadway. I think it will on Broadway as well. But certainly if it had been a box office Juggernaut. Even if it was closed, that might have helped, but the fact that it will be closed months before the nominations come out is a little bit concerning. For its awards possibilities, comparing this week to the corresponding weeks last year, there's two ways to look at this. You can look at the week that corresponds on the calendar to last year. So last year, from December 30 through January 5, 2024 to 2025, there were also 33 shows on Broadway, but the grosses were only at 45 million dollars. So there was a significant 15%, or almost 7 million dollar increase. There's also an 8% increase in terms of attendance by nearly 23,000 people. And the average ticket price was up a little bit more than $10. Now, if you compare it to week 32 of the season from last year, it does show some declines. But what's different about that is that in 2024, Christmas week fell in week 32. So it's not exactly apples to apples in terms of that comparison. Last week's week 32 was actually 7% up from where we were in week 32 of 2025, 2026. But again, Christmas and New Year's aren't exactly the same comparison in terms of Broadway ticket going. Overall for the season, Broadway has grossed $1,199,642,229. That is a 10% increase over the previous year. And total attendance is up 3% with 8,844,829 people having seen a Broadway show through this past Sunday. Now, As I said, 29 of Broadway's 33 shows saw 90% capacity or more during the New Year's week. The shows at 100% were Wicked, Gadot, Ragtime, oh Mary, Moulin Rouge and Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. And Juliet and Buena Vista Social Club were a little bit over that. Hadestown, Hamilton maybe Happy Ending and Mamma mia were between 101 and 102. The outsiders came in at 102.29. And then just in time back on top over at the Circle Circle in the Square Theater came in at 103.08% capacity. Now, of course, a lot of that has to do with Jonathan Grof's star power, but he's going to be wrapping up his run as Bobby Darin next month. We still do not know who is going to be replacing him. There was a lot of rumors, Grace and I talked about it on Today on Broadway last year about a certain crooning star turned singing competition coach taking over that role after Grof Sauce leaves. Those rumors have died down a bit and instead what I've heard more recently is the fact that a beloved Broadway star is going to be moving down about two and a half blocks and taking over that role. While I don't think he is as big of a star as the previously rumored replacement, that replacement, who, who knows, could still join the production at some point, has a much wider audience base. Having been a staple in concerts and recordings, especially during the holiday season and now on TV on a singing competition for the last few years, his audience is much bigger, much wider. Certainly appeals to the demographic of ticket buyer who would be coming to any Broadway show during the winter, especially Just In Time. But the beloved Broadway and occasional TV star that I have now heard is going to be taking over the role of Bobby Darin certainly has his fans and as has been shown with his current show, while they might be a bit younger than the more bubbly pop star that was rumored to take over, they do show up. So it'll be interesting to see if those ticket buying trends and capacity trends continue with Just In Time once Grof leaves. All right, that's all I have for you on this Grosses episode. Thank you for listening to Broadway Radio. I will be back every week either on Tuesday or Wednesday depending on when the Broadway League releases those grosses. Every week. Of course, if holidays are involved we will wait until they come out then. But I'll be bringing you the grosses every week so you can stay informed on all of the business and box office dealings on the Great White Way. Alright, thanks for listening. We will talk to you soon and we'll see you at the theater. It.
Podcast: BroadwayRadio
Host: Matt Tammani
Date: January 7, 2026
Episode Summary and Detailed Breakdown
In this episode, host Matt Tammani breaks down the Broadway grosses for the week ending Sunday, January 4, 2026, providing an in-depth look at the financial and attendance health of the current Broadway season. The report highlights top-performing shows, attendance trends, ticket pricing, and notable box office stories, while offering context by comparing this week to previous seasons.
Shows Crossing $3 Million:
Fifth Highest:
Notable Trend:
High Capacity Across Broadway:
29 out of 33 shows played to 90%+ capacity during New Year’s week.
Shows at 100% capacity or higher:
“Just In Time back on top over at the Circle in the Square Theater came in at 103.08% capacity. Now, of course, a lot of that has to do with Jonathan Grof's star power, but he's going to be wrapping up his run as Bobby Darin next month.” (03:30)
Shows Lagging:
Calendar Week Comparison:
Season-to-Date:
Lion King Box Office Record (01:14):
“This has to the rise in ticket prices, but nonetheless impressive during its nearly three decade run.”
Liberation’s Struggle (02:40):
“One of the strongest that we are going to see this season has not found an audience just yet and it is unfortunately running out of time…”
Attendance Milestone (02:58):
“Significant 15%, or almost 7 million dollar increase. There's also an 8% increase in terms of attendance by nearly 23,000 people.”
Just In Time & Jonathan Groff (03:30):
“Just In Time back on top…103.08% capacity. Now, of course, a lot of that has to do with Jonathan Grof's star power, but he's going to be wrapping up his run…”
This week's Broadway grosses reflect robust attendance even as the post-holiday drop in overall dollars proves seasonal norms. Star-driven vehicles, major franchises, and new entries all show the varied dynamics at play on Broadway, while deeper cut shows like Liberation highlight the challenges of gaining traction. The looming cast change for Just In Time and strong year-over-year growth suggest a vibrant but highly competitive Broadway marketplace.
“I’ll be bringing you the grosses every week so you can stay informed on all of the business and box office dealings on the Great White Way.” — Matt Tammani (04:54)
For weekly updates, tune in to BroadwayRadio’s Grosses episodes and stay informed on the pulse of Broadway’s financial and audience trends.