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The real reason MRS DOUBTFIRE is closing in the West End... (and the shows that are replacing it)
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- [00:00]
Mickey Jo
Is this an example of a show that is not selling particularly well? Is the Shaftesbury theatre kicking out Mrs. Doubtfire in favor of an exciting new musical? Or is it secret option number three? It is. It's. It's secret option number three. Stay with me, I'll explain. Oh, my God. Hey. Welcome back to my theatre themed YouTube channel. My name is Mickey Jo and I am obsessed with all things theatre. I am an independent theatre critic, a content creator and a pundit here on social media. And today I'm going to be explaining to you why. Why the musical adaptation of the iconic film Mrs. Doubtfire is going to be closing in London and letting you know what the next show at that theatre is going to be, which was announced earlier today. Now, the reason I wanted to make this video specifically is because I feel like there's a lot of misinformation and confusion when it comes to closing announcements. I often see, you know, a show ending its run, a separate show from a different producer going into that same theater, and then people will comment something like, I can't believe they closed and X for Y, when in reality that's not necessarily what happened. And I also think a lot of the details around why a show might close aren't always made public, either because, you know, they're putting a certain PR spin on it or because there are just logistical reasons at play that they don't think would necessarily interest people. However, I think you might be interested to learn of the details around why Mrs. Doubtfire is closing specifically and why it wouldn't ordinarily happen have closed this early. There is a reason and I'm going to explain to you what it is in today's video. Now, as always, if you enjoy this, make sure you are subscribed to my theatre themed YouTube channel. There is a button somewhere down below that will make sure that happens. There is another button somewhere below my face that looks like a bell that will turn on notifications, which means YouTube will always let you know when I have posted a new video. I have many more videos coming this week because I'm a little behind and there are many things that we need to talk about. There are exciting new musicals coming out, there are reviews I need to share with you. There is vlog content coming up this weekend. I put post all about the theatre industry in the UK and in the US and increasingly a little bit beyond that as well. If that sounds like something you would be interested in. Make sure you're subscribed and if you're really interested, you can go find me on other social media platforms as well. I am ickyjoetheatre all over the Internet and if that isn't enough for you, you can also see me in person or via live stream. This coming Sunday 22nd September at 07:30 UK time in the evening at the Phoenix Arts Club, I will be chatting with a few exciting performer guests including Jody Jacobs, Evelyn Hoskins and rising star composer Jack Godfrey. It's just going to be a fun theatre community moment. Grab your tickets to come along in person or grab a ticket to watch via live stream. The link to do that is in the top of the description of this video. And you know what? Maybe I share more of the theatrical gossip I've heard at the live shows than I do when I'm talking to a camera on social media. I'm just saying. So if you want to know the rest of the shows I've heard about closing and opening in London over the next year, come along to the live show and ask me yourself. Finally, since this is a theatrical community, I would love to know what you think of this recent news. Are you Sad to see Mrs. Doubtfire closing in the West End? Are you excited for the new musical opening at the Shaftesbury Theatre? Comment down below with all of your thoughts and feelings. In the meantime, let's talk about what is going on here. Why is Mrs. Doubtfire closing? What is the next show coming in and what do I think is going to be the next show after that? Let's get into it. So this was sent out four days ago on Thursday 12th September Mrs. Doubtfire the musical announced via the show's PR team that they would be extending one final time to end the show's run in April 2025. So that block of tickets was not yet on sale. So there is some success in this as well. This is not the same as a lot of closures we see of shows that are struggling and having to close early and taking performances off sale. This is a show announcing sort of like one big push, one final success, but that that is going to be the end of their run. If you don't know, there are two different types of runs that a show can have. They can either be limited where it's scheduled spec only to play for a certain amount of time, much like hello Dolly was at the London Palladium this summer only for a set number of weeks, or they can be open ended, something like the Phantom of the Opera or Les Mis that are planning on going and going and going until Further notice, occasionally, New York theatre people get confused by the London system, because we only extend sort of like six months at a time, or a year at a time for very successful shows like, I believe, Hamilton, but definitely Matilda often do a whole year extension. That doesn't mean the show is planning on closing six months down the line. It's just those are the only performances currently on sale. A show will only be closing if it has announced that, which is what has happened here with Mrs. Doubtfire. Now, unusually, and this is a little fun, this closing announcement also came with a video, which we're going to watch together. Here we go. Hello, poppets.
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Gabriel Vic
You know, there comes a time in a woman's life when she gets certain energies.
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Mickey Jo
Oh, gosh.
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Gabriel Vic
I'm talking about travel, dears. I've had a lovely time in London, I really have. But I've decided I'm going to take.
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Mickey Jo
Myself on a world too interesting, like.
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Gabriel Vic
Taylor Swift or with bigger corsets.
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Mickey Jo
Fear not, puppets.
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Gabriel Vic
I won't be leaving London just yet. No, you can catch me here at the shaftesbury Theatre until April 26.
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Mickey Jo
So the first date of Fe's world.
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Gabriel Vic
Tour will be in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. They probably should have thought that, too. I was actually looking for the motives, on my belief they're rather exciting.
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Mickey Jo
Okay, so that was cute. And I will say, like, props to the Mrs. Doubtfire social team for making some of the most consistently interesting and fun and exciting social content, which Gabriel Vic as Mrs. Doubtfire, has been sort of central to with his brilliant performance. If you haven't yet seen the show, I would encourage you to go and see the show at the Shaftesbury Theatre, especially if you are, you know, looking for a show that really caters to a family audience. That's been a big part of the show's success. But we'll talk about that. For now, let's unpack what we just heard. Now, there's a statement here that's worded a little differently to what was in the video, so I will just repeat this. Following lots of speculation in the gossip columns, I have decided to make the following statement to the press. Now, that's just playful. There was not actually much speculation about Doubtfire closing, although I did allude to it in a previous video here on my channel. Don't say I never tell you about stuff. Roll footage. Mrs. Doubtfire the musical is still doing great business there. I wonder if that is going to tour around the uk, where it would continue to do great business. Anyway, back to the closing Statement. I have made it known loudly that I've had a lovely time here in London. I have loved that so many parents made my show their choice for their children's first visit to the theatre. That's very special. But I'm starting to get itchy feet, dears, so the time has come to have a little vacay. Fear not, though, poppets, I won't be leaving London just yet. You can catch me here at the shaftesbury Theatre until April 26th. See you soon, dears. Which is more than six months away. Another indication that this is a successful closing. They are landing the plane rather than parachuting out of it prior to reaching their intended destination. The latter is something that we would see for shows that are not selling well or for shows that are being and this happens more in New York, but unceremoniously kicked out of their theatres in favour of more profitable alternatives. But Mrs. Doubtfire, though it struggled to find success in New York largely due to post Covid timing and challenges, has been really successful here in London. In fact, I would wager it's been more successful than the producers expected it to be. And there are two things I attribute to the show's success, as well as the work of the producers and of the marketing team, and the quality of the thing itself and word of mouth. One of them is the West End landscape does seem to be very commercially driven at the moment. Look at some of the biggest hits. They're based on existing intellectual property. Stranger Things having been one of the biggest openings of the last few years. And also as a comparison with Broadway musicals and stage properties based on films seem to perform better here. London audiences value familiarity, especially as ticket prices begin to creep to be a little bit more expensive. Pretty Woman is another show that ran considerably longer in London and is now touring the UK than it did in New York. So I was not surprised by the success of Mrs. Doubtfire when it opened. The other really big factor to which I attribute its success is that this is a show that dads are willing to go and see. I've said this before, but if you can get the dads to go and see something, something, you can get the whole family to go and see something. And then you're selling like four, five, six times as many tickets as just interesting an individual. And I think Mary Poppins, having ended its run at the Prince Edward, was probably very advantageous for Mrs. Doubtfire as well. There were fewer other family shows to compete with in London. But before I tell you about the real reason for its closing, I want to glance a little bit into its future because there was that comment there about a world tour. Now a few shows are about to embark on a global tour. Moulin Rouge the Musical is one of them. Les Mis is another. I don't know if that was necessarily meant in that way. It could be teasing an Australian production or it could just be talking about a UK tour in a slightly more glamorous way, a slightly more tongue in cheek way. Because what I have been anticipating for some time is that Mrs. Doubtfire would end its run at the Shaftesbury Theatre before going out on a UK tour. And I think it's going to kill on tour. I think for those same reasons that I mentioned, it's going to be hugely successful touring around regional British theaters. But why is this happening? If the show was selling well and it really seemed to be, you can look at the ticket sales for the next few months. This is a show at a, at a not small theater that is doing very well. Why are they bringing it to an end if it was making money? And who has made this decision? Well, it all has to do with real estate and as you know, I'm Mickey Jo Theatre, I'm not Mickey Jo property, so you're going to have to stay with me here. But just prior to the arrival of Mrs. Doubtfire in London at the Shaftesbury Theatre, producer Jamie Wilson, who you will also know as the producer of the recent Sister act production in the, signed a 10 year lease with the Shaftesbury Theatre. Now, the way this works, you have producers and you have theatre owners and sometimes they are the same. Andrew Lloyd Webber, through his company, the really Useful Group, and through LW Theatres, owns several theatres and also produces shows. So if he wants a new Android Webber musical to go into an Android Webber Theatre, that's very easily done. However, producers who are not also theatre owners are not attached to specific theater theaters. In the same way that, like the likes of Jamie Lloyd and the Jamie Lloyd Company, used to have a relationship with ATG and now sort of no longer do, then it can be a little bit harder. Which is why Jamie Wilson signed this 10 year lease with the Shaftesbury, meaning he had control over what shows go in there for 10 years, the first one being Doubtfire. But even at that time, that was not the only property that Jamie Wilson was working on. He was also bringing back Sister act, which went to the Dominion Theatre for the summer and he has another project arriving at that theater later this year because Jamie Wilson is also producing the Devil Wears Prada musical which will be opening at the Dominion in winter of 2024, which is in fact only a few short months away. And he's had a few other musicals in development as well. But I will tell you about those as they become relevant to the conversation. Because it is my belief Jamie Wilson did not expect Mrs. Doubtfire to run for as long as it has in the West End to catch on and as much as it has. And given that he now at this point has Mrs. Doubtfire doing well, Sister act is in the Dominion, Devil Wears Prada is going to be going into the Dominion. Even though he has this 10 year lease at the Shaftesbury, he again has the problem of having too many shows and nowhere to put them. So given that quandary, and this is all presumption on my part, he is faced with a choice. Do you let Mrs. Doubtfire to continue to run successfully for as long as possible and just hold these other projects waiting? As you know, you spend more and more of the years of this 10 year lease at the Shaftesbury, or do you close Mrs. Doubtfire, put it out on tour so you can launch another show at this theatre that you have control of in the West End. And that is what I think is happening, which is why we're seeing another of his shows going into that theatre next. And that is going to be Just for One day. Now, this is a musical that premiered at the Old Vic Theatre last year. Beginning of last year. Was it this year? My gosh, hold on. Did I see this show in 2024? Yeah, this opened on the 13th of February 2024. My goodness. So earlier this year, Just For One Day opened at the Old Vic and it tells the story of the Live Aid concerts. It's a jukebox musical and it uses the music of the artists who were involved in those performances. It's very nostalgic, it's very heartfelt. I made a video review of it here on my channel. I've also reviewed Mrs. Doubtfire if you want to know if that would be of interest to you. In between now and It's Closing, you can check out both of those reviews right here. But it built up something of a following and people were curious about whether or not it was be transferring into the West End. However, we are having this problem. There are not enough theaters for all of these new shows, especially because a lot of the stuff that is opening, a lot of the musicals that are opening in London over the last few years don't seem to be going anywhere. Anytime soon. You had Doubtfire come in an unexpected success, continuing to run more than a year. You've had Back to the Future, which has been running for a few years now. Moulin Rouge is going to continue to sell in the West End. Mean Girls is going to sell for a long time in the West End. Most of these shows longer than they have done or possibly will do on Broadway. And again, all based on films. So where do you put a show like Just For One Day? Well, the answer is it's going to struggle to find a home. Unless of course, you close Mrs. Doubtfire at the Shaftesbury, put it out on tour and let Just for One day go there. And that is what is happening. And it's not because anyone thinks that Just For One Day is better than Mrs. Doubtfire. It's not to do with anything other than giving it somewhere to launch in the West End. You know, if the timing is right for Mrs. Doubtfire, it could always tour around the UK for a long time. It could tour around the UK and then come back into the West End. But just getting these things launched right can be very important because the Old Vic is not a commercial West End theater. The run there was always limited and, you know, it had the opportunity to be nominated for and win Olivier's because it's part of the Society of London Theatre, which is a whole nother kettle of fish I don't have time to get into on this video and I barely understand because it's nonsense. But what we do know is that it didn't have the chance for a commercial West End run at that space. And that's what it's going to be getting at the Shaftesbury. And that's what was announced this morning by Sir Bob Geldof on the radio, no less, who usually hates Mondays. Apologies, that was not a musical theatre reference. Google if you're confused. I don't know who I think I am. Here we go. Just For One Day, the Live Aid musical to open in the West End next May with a special gala performance on 13th July 2025 to mark the 40th anniversary of of the iconic concerts in London and Philadelphia. So if you're wondering why Doubtfire is closing at this moment with that specific timing in April, it's to allow Just For One Day to start, begin previews, officially open, and then have this very well timed gala to celebrate the 40th anniversary of live Aid. It's all very carefully choreographed. This may have been in the works even since the show's run at the Old Vic earlier this year. In fact, it probably was. Interestingly, its West End return will not be the next time audiences will see Just For One Day. Because it's first going to Canada, it's going to be doing a little bit of a run in Toronto prior to the West End. That cast has not been announced yet. What we do know is that Craig Ells will be returning to the West End production after having played the role of Sir Bob Geldof at the Old Vic. We can assume that the cast who performed the show in Toronto is likely to be the West End cast, but that is not guaranteed. Also not guaranteed that any further members of the Old Vic production will be reprising their roles. Some of them have gone on to other shows, a few of them are in why Am I so Single at the Garrick now we have a couple of statements here. Sir Bob says, my comment before I saw Just For One Day was that it better not be shit. It's not. It is fantastic, he says in all caps joyous, largely true. And the music is beyond miraculous. And only some of it is his own. I have never been to a show where night after night there is a standing ovation at the intermission. Amazing. That's a good point. I was about to correct him and say there's always a standing ovation, but not at the intermission. So the man makes a good point. Jamie Wilson, much talked about producer, commented, Just for One Day was the fastest selling musical in the old fix history. You know, I didn't know that. The story of how the world united together through music has captivated audiences of all ages. We are thrilled to be able to bring this production to the Shaftesbury Theatre in the West End, opening on the 40th anniversary of the Live 8 concerts with the same timeless songs, renowned creative team and a hugely talented company. Speaking of that creative team, Just For One Day is directed by Luke Shepard, whose work was last seen at the Shaftesbury Theatre just a couple of musicals ago because he directed and Juliet. So is Just For One Day the live Aid musical going to be given the same chance to find success in the west end as Mrs. Doubtfire? Well, yes and no, because it has this opportunity for a commercial West End run. However, this is a limited run where Mrs. Doubtfire came in as an open ended run, which is one that can just go on and on. Just For One Day has already set an end date. Elsewhere online it has described itself as strictly limited and it says right here in the press release performances at the Shaftesbury Theatre will play through until 10 January 2026, which is also auspicious timing, let me tell you why. Now bear in mind, Just For One Day has already had its shot at the Best New Musical Olivier Award during its run at the Old Vic Theatre, so it won't be eligible again. Neither will Craig Ells for his performance. If they bring in different cast members then they would be eligible, but that doesn't usually tend to happen. So for the most part this is not a show that is eyeing Olivier Awards. Its end date is very specific though, because it allows a new show to come into the Shaftesbury mid to late January and open before the mid February cutoff for the Olivier Awards. So what I think is happening here is that we're going to get just for one day, for a few months and then that could also go out on tour. I think that would do very well on tour. And then after that a new tenant is going to come in and make that Olivier's cut off and make it very last minute, which is the best time to open for a show that really wants to bag awards. We see that a lot on Broadway. We see it happening more and more in London as well. And I think I know what that show is. Now, when I mentioned having predicted the closure of Mrs. Doubtfire in a previous video, it's when I was talking about the Notebook and I'm wondering if we might be seeing the Notebook before too long at the Shaftesbury Theatre where Jamie Wilson has a 10 year lease currently. Mrs. Doubtfire, the musical is still doing great business there. I wonder if that is going to tour around the UK where it would continue to do great business, allowing the Notebook to come into a house that he has control of. The Notebook, which recently closed early on Broadway and which Jamie Wilson and Kevin McCullum who have this producing partnership, this producing relationship at the very least were both involved with in New York and which I believe has always been slated for a West End run since pre Broadway. I think they have always had this in mind because they're also not blind to the reality that shows based on films are doing better in London. Doubtfire taught them that, if they hadn't realised it already. So even though the Notebook didn't necessarily find the critical or commercial success it may have been hoping to in New York, my expectation is that it's going to be the show that comes to the Shaftesbury Theatre opening in February of 2026, which is a little bit of time to wait, I grant you, but that I think is what Jamie Wilson has planned here. And that is as far as I think I can glimpse into the future with any kind of reliability. And it's really just because of this specific arrange that Jamie Wilson, the producer, has with the Shaftesbury Theatre. I wish it were that easy to predict the machinations of all of these different theatres. We still have a lot of other shows circulating, we have a lot of other theaters with gaps coming up very soon, and we don't know what's going into those theatres. But I will continue to do my best to try and keep you informed here on social media. That is everything we know about the closure of Mrs. Doubtfire and the opening of Just For One Day and my prediction for the arrival of the Notebook a little bit later. I hope that that has been helpful and informative. If there is anything else that you would like to know about the West End theatre industry right now, leave a comment down below and I will do my best to answer. Very soon, I hope to be making a video about what is the best show for you to see in London over the next few months, so make sure you're subscribed so you don't miss that one. I'm also hoping to head back to New York before the end of the year to see many of the new shows opening over there, so make sure you're following me here and on other social media platforms. In the meantime, I hope that everyone is staying safe and that you have a stagey day. For 10 more seconds, I'm Mickey Jo Theater. Oh my God. Hey, thanks for watching. Have a stagey day. Subscribe.