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So you have this massive theatrical production, one running concurrently in the West End and on Broadway. Based on the most successful Netflix series of all time that has generated more than a billion dollars in revenue, the show was hugely popular when it first opened at the Phoenix Theatre in London. Both productions seemed to have been doing well, especially since the release of the final season. However, earlier this week it was announced that the two productions would both close permanently within days of each other, which in the theatre industry is something that almost never happens. A bigger story behind the box office here, and specific factors relating to this particular show and its demographic, such that audiences internationally could suddenly decide they're done with it. Well, stranger things have happened and today I'm going to share with you the real reasons why Stranger Things is closing in the West End and on Broadway and thereafter could very possibly never be seen on stage again. But just before I do, a quick introduction for those of you who may be meeting me for the first time. Oh my God. Hey. Welcome to my theatre themed YouTube channel. Or hello to those of you listening to this theatre update on podcast platforms. My name is Mickey Jo and I am obsessed with all things theatre. As an independent critic, a content creator and a pundit, I break down the most exciting and talked about theatre news here on social media from an industry perspective so that theater fans around the world can figure out what's going on. And admittedly, a lot of people were very confused when Stranger Things announced that the First Shadow was going to be closing both at the Marriott Marquis Theatre on Broadway and at the Phoenix Theatre in the West End within days of each other at the very end of this year. And on the face of it, this looks like just another closing story. Over the past couple of weeks, I have similarly reported on the closing of Death Becomes her of Chess on Broadway between now and the end of the year, the end of the summer even. It's likely not the only closing notice that we're going to hear about other Broadway and West End productions, this industry being one that sees an awful lot of turnover. However, because Stranger Things, the First Shadow, has always sought and curated such a specific audience, the factors that have affected the success of this production have looked quite different. And over the past decade, there are only a couple of other instances that I can recall where an international show with multiple productions decided to close both or all of them within a very short period of time. And interestingly, the reason was sort of the same, but also completely different, but with no further ambiguity from me and allusions as to what I might be talking about let's get into it why is Stranger Things closing in the West End and on Broadway? So to begin with, let me deliver you the facts. And I knew something unusual had happened when I got two simultaneous press releases emailed into my inbox. One from the prs in London representing the West End production and another from the Broadway PRs. Though they distributed a joint headline, critically acclaimed Olivier and Tony Award winning Stranger Things, the First Shadow extends for a final time both in the West End and on Broadway. And because this news had to apply to both productions, there was some backlash to the use of the term extends here. Because, you know, functionally West End and Broadway production productions are doing the same thing. But West End productions will tend to announce a formal extension to a run and Broadway productions will just like put another month of tickets on sale at a time without calling it that. Meaning in New York, the lexicon that they would normally be used to is Stranger Things to close on Broadway rather than framing it as a final successful extension due to demand. But let's get into these details. So the critically acclaimed, multi award winning Stranger Things, the First Shadow will extend for a final time, completing its run at the Phoenix Theatre in London's West End on 27th of December 2026 and at the Marquee Theatre on Broadway on 3rd of January 2027. I'm not entirely sure why they are so close together, but a week apart. Often there is something to do with tax benefits for Broadway productions if they close, I believe just before the festive period I. E. Mid to late December. But this one is extending into that first week of January, which is also a very common time for closings because the holidays in New York very busy, lots of tourism, people will go and see a Broadway show, it's cold out on the streets. They need something as soon as we head into the dark depths of January when it's cold but without pretty lights in a tree in Rockefeller Plaza and nobody has any money because they just spent it all on going to see Broadway shows and buying everybody the gifts and expensive meals. Then people tend to see fewer shows. The production will have run for over three years in London and after opening to five star reviews in 2023, it went on to receive Olivier Awards for Best Entertainment and Best Set Design, the Critics Circle Awards for Best Set Design and Most Promising Newcomer and the Wats Stage Award for Best new play. Louis McCartney, who originated the role of Henry Creel in both productions on either side of the Atlantic also, though it isn't noted here, won I believe, the Stage Debut award for his performance. And I know that because I interviewed him afterwards. Now, even though I'm reading from the Broadway press release, they've only actually shared the London statistics and awards success and everything. So we're going to have to do a little bit of digging for the Broadway data that's quite interesting. Although I will share the fact that they've given here before I jump off of this email, which is that nearly 1.6 million tickets have been sold across the West End and Broadway with over 1500 total performances. And you know, putting them in alongside cumulatively makes it pretty hard to tell if the two productions have had any kind of disparate success, which certainly when they first opened it seemed like they were going to. But more on that in just a moment. Let's head over to playbill.com who will have the dates that I'm looking for. Yes, so the first preview performance of Stranger Things, the first shadow on Broadway, was on March 28, 2025, with it opening on 22nd. So by the time of its closing it will have run a little under two years, which given the precarious nature of its Broadway arrival, isn't necessarily anything to be ashamed of. And I promise I will tell you this story. I have just noticed that we have a whole series of quotes here from the show's creators. The Duffer Brothers, creative producers and creators of the hit Netflix series, said when the legendary Stephen Daldry first came to us with the idea of making a Stranger Things play, interesting that it came from him, the renowned theatrical director that he is. We were stunned both by the fact that Steven wanted wanted to do this and that he believed it could work and boy did it work. We remain awed by what Stephen, Kate Treffery, Justin Martin and all the brilliant behind the scenes wizards were able to pull off cinematic theatre unlike anything else out there. Interesting term. We're going to come back to that. Their incredible work drew audiences from all over, a majority of whom had never even been to a Broadway show before. We're going to come back to that as well because it's important. We'd also like to give a standing ovation to the incredibly gifted actors who stepped into these roles, including the Tony nominated Louis McCartney and the fans who made each and every performance so memorable. Very classy statement there. Meanwhile, Bella Bajaria, Chief content Officer at Netflix, said Stranger Things, the first Shadow, represents an unprecedented collaboration between television and theater that it does, showing what's possible when a world class creative team brings a beloved and iconic series to life. On stage. It has been a privilege to share this production with audiences over the past few years and particularly rewarding to see it introduce so many to the magic of theatre. First time audiences remember that. We also have some words here from powerhouse theatrical producer Sonja Friedman, who days ago was name checked at the Tony Awards. We are incredibly proud of the ambition, imagination and artistry that every member of the company has brought to creating something truly groundbreaking. Together, they have pushed the boundaries of live theatre to tell this story with heart, adventure and spectacle. Partnering with Netflix has allowed us to go beyond what was previously thought possible on stage and create a truly immersive theatrical experience that brings audiences deeper into the world of Stranger Things while introducing hundreds of thousands, thousands of people to the thrill of live theatre. Every single comment here is talking about new audiences and that was one of the benefits of the play and they've talked about the reward of that as part of the theatrical experience. Was it also part of its downfall in some strange way? Believe it or not, we have three different statements. What was the closing a couple of weeks ago where nobody wanted to say anything? This is. Everyone's chiming in on this one. We're gonna, we're gonna go through it because I've started, so I'll finish. Writer Kate Treffery said, while writing Stranger Things, we always knew there was more to the story of Henry Creel, but never im imagined we would have the chance to tell it all. Being given the opportunity to dive deeper into this world through the medium of live theatre has been the thrill of a lifetime. And I am still in awe of what our incredible cast and crew was able to achieve. It has been a magical, terrifying ride. And to share the communal experience of every laugh, tear and scare with your audience is every writer's dream. Thank you to everyone who made this dream come true. Directors Stephen Daltrey and Justin Martin added to be entrusted with bringing the Duffer brothers incredible creation to the stage has been an utter joy. We are immensely proud of the talent and dedication of the cast and creative team over the past three years. Each and every member an integral part of the process of bringing this story to life. Finally, a massive thank you to the fans, many of whom have never stepped inside a theatre before, for welcoming us and joining us every performance in the West End and on Broadway. Finally, associate producer Shawn Levy of 21 LAPS concluded. This theatrical experience has been incredibly gratifying. The first Shadow has allowed us to expand and deepen the storytelling, characters and audience experience of our Stranger Things franchise. Stephen, Justin, Sonja, and Netflix have been brilliant partners, and we are forever grateful to them for transporting Hawkins on stage in such elegant and innovative fashion. And, of course, our deepest gratitude for the throngs of people who have joined us in turning Broadway and London's West End upside down. So, having read through all of that and acknowledged what there is to be celebrated about the achievements of Stranger Things on stage, against all odds, and you'll know that if you've seen the documentary about making the West End production, let us disembark from the press release and talk about how Strange of Things opened in the West End, how it opened on Broadway, why it nearly closed on Broadway a lot earlier, and why it's closing now. So integral, I think, to this entire conversation is the difference in how the show was marketed in London versus how it was marketed in New York, because they did something a little bit sneaky when the show was first opening in the West End. And this came prior to the final season on Netflix, it came prior to, I think, the final season even being announced on Netflix. Like, we didn't know when exactly the next season of Stranger Things was going to come, and fans were eagerly anticipating this news. In the meantime, a new part of the story opens, but they can't simply turn on their TVs to watch it. They have to fly to London. That is, if it is canonical and if it is important. And so when Stranger Things, the first shadow, opened in the West West End, though it was not a sequel, though it was a sort of an origin story, they were using that terminology rather than a prequel set years before expanding on Henry Creel and some of the other adult characters in the show exploring their adolescent years. When this was opening, they were very much conveying the messaging to fans that this was integrally important. There was at one point a suggestion that Stranger Things, the first shadow on stage, held the key to unlocking the mystery of the final season. And when it came time for the production to open in the West End, and when it came time for me to review it, I eagerly watched all of the seasons of Stranger Things in the weeks leading up to it. I was still finishing it when I was on the Underground on my way to go and see the play, but I made it through it. When they subsequently released the final season, I planned to watch it, but never really got round to it. I'm given to understand, however, that the characters and plot within Stranger Things, the first shadow on stage, may not actually have been as integral to the final season on screen as they had led us to believe. Meanwhile, as a year and a half after the London opening, the play opens on Broadway at the Marquee Theater, and there is plenty of advertising. They take over the Times Square 42nd street subway station. Only the messaging is very different. It's not about this being a prequel or an origin story. They certainly aren't saying, you have to go and see this if you're a Stranger Things fan or you're not going to get what's coming next. Which is what they were kind of implying in London. If not saying that directly, no, this time they led with Stranger Things, Things live on stage like it's Stranger Things that you love, but you can experience it live on stage, thinking perhaps that the way to win over New York tourists and entice them into a theatrical experience might be to lead with something a little less narrative focused and more experiential. Because a lot seems to suggest at the moment that that is what audiences are craving. Look at the success of A Masquerade, however, in its earliest days, that certainly wasn't working nearly as well. And you also have to question the extent to the most die hard Stranger Things fans had already seen the play in the year and a half that it had been open in the West End, because as soon as it pops up, if they care enough and if they have the means, they're gonna fly there. And also if they were told, you know, you have to see this because this is canonical and this is coming out before we release the final season, and this holds the key. They're gonna go and they're gonna try and figure out the key. And while it wasn't necessarily clear until the final season came out that this may not have been the exact truth, I dare say. I mean, I noticed when you. You can kind of perceive that it's not offering all that much additional lore, so much as riffing on a character backstory that was already depicted on screen in the episodes that had already been released. In other words, hugely impressive and thrilling as all of the stagecraft and effects may have been. You watch Stranger Things, the first shadow, and you think to yourself, well, we kind of already knew this, except for this new character who has been added in, who, I gather, didn't make an appearance in the final season anyway, who may have been name checked. But as much as anything else, it seems as though they kind of tripped up on references to the stage play that they realized after the fact didn't make that much sense. Now, while box office records aren't made public in London's West End, they are on Broadway. And we can take a look at the entire history of the Broadway grosses of Stranger Things. And in its first month of performances, there was a steady climb to just over a million dollars per week, which for a lot of productions and a few years ago would have been fantastic news. However, these days, everything is getting broadly more expensive for almost every show on Broad. Certainly for a show like Stranger Things, the First Shadow, which is going to have enormous weekly running costs. But that is where the grosses remained for a time, sort of teetering above and below the 1 million mark until the fall of 2025, the first week of September, when everything started to dip a little bit and they headed down more in the direction of about half a million dollars. Certainly a position where a show like this presumably would have been losing money money. Eventually, though, hope was on the horizon because the box office for Stranger Things, the First Shadow, was supercharged on Broadway, getting catapulted up into the two and a half million dollar range. That's where it peaked in the final week of 2025, coinciding with what? The release of Stranger Things Season 5 on Netflix. And here's the interesting thing. Up until that point in the lifetime of each of these productions, nobody knew how the Broadway or West End box office was going to be affected by a new season of the TV show coming, because it hadn't happened thus far. They had only ever existed in the interim between seasons four and five. So when season five was released, I mean, even before it was released, the Broadway grosses here show a marked improvement, just when the marketing machine for season five was beginning to rev up, and they incorporated that into the production as well. They played a trailer for season five at the end of the performance as part of this cinematic experience that we've already heard about. And from what I hear anecdotally about the West End production, it was a huge boost to their box office as well. However, it was also finite because this exciting new season of Stranger Things that, you know, rekindled so much interest in the franchise and the characters and the world that people could go and experience for themselves live and in person on Broadway and in the West End, this would also be finite because season five was the final season. And so after this, not only is there no new, exciting season of Stranger Things on the horizon and no more fuel to throw on the fire, as it were, the marketing narrative of each of these productions also found themselves somewhat adrift. The notion that you have to see the stage play to figure out the final season, because it holds the key that's not going to work anymore. Hell, the entire story of Stranger Things has been wrapped up in a neat enough bow at this point, so people don't feel the need to go and experience this sort of somewhat prequel origin story. And in those shared statements, we heard a lot about first time audiences about new attendees at the theater, and you have to imagine that all of the Stranger Things fans of those individuals who consume you would assume the majority of their entertainment on screen through streaming services. There is a subsection of those willing and able to travel to London or New York in order to go and see this play, in order to pay for tickets to go and see this, take their family, get a hotel, whatever that might mean. And that built in devoted audience with pre existing enthusiasm for a brand is part of the reason why producers in the theatre industry are so keen to adapt intellectual property for stage. However, they too are finite. And I'm so intrigued about the kind of IP that can endure on stage and the kind that can't, because Stranger Things, the first Shadow as a theatrical model seems very much to exist in parallel with another regrettable stage adaptation, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. I say regrettable partially because of the artistic merit of the play itself, but also because of where the money's going. Google it. I'm not going to tell you again. Better still, go watch my video about it from a couple of months back and find out some things. Anyway, Cursed Child seems to have an awful lot more longevity in London and in New York, but also globally around the world. There have been many international productions. They're still opening new international productions of this play and whether it's because the brand is a little more widely appealing, a little more family friendly, but also just, you know, the bigger these books that could be translated that were read around the world, people fell in love with this series and with with these characters. The movies were huge. Are they that much bigger? Were they that much bigger than Stranger Things that this has been so much more successful? Or is it because Cursed Child was first brought to the stage in a more financially forgiving time than we currently find ourselves in? Both in terms of how expensive it is to get all of these things on stage and the amount of income that people have to afford to buy tickets? It does still seem though, that there is a certain amount of unpredictability in bringing intellectual property to the stage. I don't know that I could have told you that the Devil Wears Prada as a musical in the West End would prove that much more popular than Mean Girls. And while we're talking about other shows, this is another small factor that we ought to consider. Alongside the fifth season of Stranger Things being released on Netflix and how that has impacted the box office at each location, have other shows opened in the West End on Broadway that have started to pull away some of those audiences? Now, I flagged that this production was described as cinematic because there is another huge Broadway production that takes a very similar approach and offers a very similar experience to audiences. That is the new musical the Lost Boys, which, for what it's worth, is also invoking a little bit of 80s nostalgia and is also playing with the kind of the adolescent perspective on horror and supernatural elements. Just like with Stranger Things, the First Shadow, it is delivering a cinematic experience, one that is inclusive of huge technical effects and awe inspiring stunts and incredible sound and lighting and illusion details. It's really incredible what they're doing on stage at the Palace Theater. Is it a little more impressive than Stranger Things, the First Shadow, or is it just the shinier, newer version that also happens to be a musical over in London? Meanwhile, the Hunger Games has opened, though that seems to be pretty much just pulling in audience members who are always going to want to see the Hunger Games on stage. I don't know if it's pulling the them away from Stranger Things, the First Shadow, the London production has been open that much longer, so it had to withstand the years before the final season came out on Netflix. So it's a little more understandable that it should be slowing down at this point. I also think to some extent, and this is really generalizing here, but do audiences show up in the West End as international tourists, perhaps wanting to see spectacle in the same way they do in New York? Are they craving something slightly different from their theater? Theater in each location? There is also Paddington as a reality in the West End. I've heard of several productions noticing a little bit of a dip at their box offices because Paddington has become the new family show, the new sort of awe inspiring, technically impressive show as well. It seems wild to suggest that audiences are picking Paddington over something like Stranger Things, but it might just be the case. And while we're talking about audiences and those Stranger Things fans, the ones who were desperate to see this in London when it first opened because they fe though they needed to, something has since been announced that may have further impeded the marketing for each of these shows, which is the fact that they have filmed the production on Broadway and it's going to be released on Netflix. Yes, they have done A pro shot. And so often I push back against the idea that a show releasing a pro shot is going to make audience members less inclined to go and see it in person, for the most part, it offers a very different experience. And however, when you have a show that is selling itself on its narrative and the plot and the story and the secrets revealed and offering a cinematic experience, yes, a huge part of that is the thrill of experiencing Stranger Things in person, in the theater. But there is so much that it can deliver as a pro shot on screen that is really going to take away from what they are promising audiences to try and entice them to travel to New York, to travel to London. And for years I've heard of very frustrated Stranger Things fans who couldn't do either of those things, who very excited that the pro shot is now going to be more widely available. So in this very specific instance in which it was, you know, screen entertainment fans who they were trying to bring to Broadway or the West End in the first place, I do think that the release of the pro shot is going to see those people sitting back down on their sofas and just waiting for it to come out, rather than pay however much money to travel across the country or to a different country. Now, I noted a couple of facts back at the beginning of this conversation. One was that this doesn't tend to happen particularly often. But there was another conspicuous example in the last few years that was the Broadway and West End musical Dear Evan Hansen, a show whose marketing identity also evolved and shifted pre and post pandemic, as audience appetites seemed to also shift in line with, you know, the life altering experience that we had all collectively shared. Essentially, the show was trying to shift the conversation around it from being about the adverse mental health depicted on stage to it being somewhat uplifting. But in 2022, the award winning West End and Broadway production productions would both close within about a month of each other, or about five or six weeks, each of them having not long reopened after the 2020 theatrical shutdown. And I said that the fact there was similar to the one with Stranger Things, but also completely different. And I do think the biggest factor in the closing of Stranger Things was this finite final accelerating boost from the last season coming out on Netflix that could only get them so far. And then the engine just sort of naturally comes to a halt. With Dear Evan Hansen, it was to do with a screen release, but it wasn't necessarily a boost as, as a really big brand problem because the movie musical adaptation of Dear Evan Hansen was released hitting cinemas in September 2021. Less than nine months later, it was announced that both productions would close on either side of the Atlantic, just like with Stranger Things. Only this time it isn't because the screen release made people more excited about Dear Evan Hansen. Unfortunately, it had a very detrimental effect. The movie was not well received by film fans or musical theater fans alike, and it seemed to do more to tarnish the Dear Evan Hansen than to uplift it. However, at least the name recognition of Dear Evan Hansen and the makeup of the production, it being a fairly small cast, meant that it was going to enjoy multiple productions subsequently Non Replica productions around the world when the show was licensed, and there have been between that and come from away productions in so many different countries. There are constantly different Non replica Dear Evan Hansen's being announced, which is something that Strangers Things may not necessarily be able to look forward to. Now, as far as I can tell, it has not been announced that Stranger Things, the First Shadow, has been acquired by any of the theatrical licensing groups who liaise with different production companies and amateur and schools groups in order to legally put on shows. This because you can't just do any show you want anytime you need to actually hire the license. And I dare say at this point it seems as though they may not ever do this. They are still being very protective of the material of the play. Only a couple of ago the West End production courted some controversy when one patron was denied an access copy of the script by way of a disability adjustment. This being an alternative to, I believe, the much better infrastructure that exists on Broadway with regards to deaf and hard of hearing audience members. In any case, if they're still being this cagey about the script, if they still have not published a version of the script, I don't think they are necessarily ever likely to. And obviously the release of this onto streaming platforms will make the keeping the secrets of it all somewhat moot because it will instantly become more widely available. However. However, I do think this could be a situation where these two productions close. No further productions are ever licensed. It doesn't seem as attractive or financially viable given the scale of the thing to other international producers worldwide. In the same way that Cursed Child was, and so Pro Shop notwithstanding, it's very possible that we could never see Stranger Things, the First Shadow on stage again after the end of this year and the very beginning of the next. Which is wild to me because when we have these conversations about musicals, closing, or even other productions of plays, we talk about about like the tour that's going to happen and like, well, this is going to have a wonderful life in these regional theaters and high schools are going to do this. We could never get Stranger Things, the first shadow on stage anywhere, anytime after this. It could simply disappear, which is a really extraordinary thing to think about and a powerful reminder that theater is inherently temporary and ephemeral. Unless of course it gets recorded for Netflix. Finally, then, the last thing I suppose to consider here is the question of what is going to take its place both in the Marriott Marquis Theatre on Broadway and the Phoenix Theatre in the West End. And I do believe that the Phoenix Theatre is going to have a new tenant first. These West End theaters rarely sit empty for very long because it costs so much less to put a new show in. So something will pop up, even if it's quite short and temporary. Both productions are just about closing to leave new shows enough time to open and make it into to the awards season just before the cutoff. For the Oliviers in the West End, the cutoff is usually mid February. For the Tonys on Broadway, the cutoff is at the end of April. So very comfortably something will be able to open in the spring in New York and be Tony eligible for the 2027 Tony Awards. And we have a sense of some of the shows coming in over the next season. But all of a sudden there is all of this real estate opening up on Broadway and so it's getting harder to make match up the prospective shows to the theaters. We now know that Evita is going to the Winter Garden. Galileo is going to the Schubert. There is much talk of Paddington going to the Hirschfeld, even though he made a cameo at the Tony Awards. Nothing has officially been confirmed. Dream Girls is said to perhaps be going to the Lunt Fontanne is the latest I've heard. I know I alluded to something else in My Death becomes her closing video. That's because I had heard something differently. But these things tend to change very quickly. And I'm not a particularly useful Broadway insider to you at this exact moment in time because I haven't heard anything about a show going into the Marriott marquee. I dare say after in the Heights has its annual gala presentation at New York City center that may be looking for a more permanent Broadway home, perhaps for a limited run, but we're already inundated with musical revivals in the next season. Perhaps they're going to wait a little longer. So certainly the kind of show that we usually see going into the marquee is often a slightly more commercial one. Had the show been closing earlier. I might have assumed that they would be putting Elf back in, but it seems strange to bring Buddy the Elf to New York in mid January. Back in the West End meanwhile, the crisis of real estate is entering its fifth year as there remain so many productions looking for homes. Is something rotten going to try and come into town after its tryout in Manchester is A Knight's Tale, a musical which had a triad in the Manchester last year. Still looking for a London home. There's also been talk of a new Great Gatsby play for the West End stage. There's been talk of a Quentin Tarantino play. Where are these going? There are also plenty of Broadway transfers that we're still waiting on. At one time I believe it was reported that Buena Vista Social Club may have been eyeing the Phoenix Theatre. There is also Death becomes her to consider. There is also a potential transfer of maybe Happy Ending or the Outsiders, not to mention the more recent successful Tony Award winning shows from this season. In any case, it seems guaranteed that on either side of the Atlantic we ought to be getting something pretty exciting and before too long in each of these houses. But if you want to see Stranger Things, the first shadow before it goes away, perhaps forever, then you've only got about seven more months, which is a decent stretch of time to be fair. Like closing notices have come around much more quickly than this, so those have been all of my thoughts and insights about Stranger Things closing both on Broadway and in the West West End. But as always, I would love to hear yours. If there are any perspectives on this that I haven't articulated, feel free to share them and your thoughts in the comments section down below. And if you enjoyed listening to mine, make sure to subscribe here on YouTube for more theater centric video content every single day. You can also follow me on podcast platforms where I say almost all of the same things, but without the snazzy hat and the dead kitten in the background. I mean the cats still that you just can't see it on podcast about you, you get the idea. Also, if you want to stay up to date with all of the shows that I'm seeing, which is hundreds of productions every single year, and all of the content that I'm sharing about them, you can sign up to my free weekly substack email newsletter at the link in the description. For now though, thank you for listening to this and as always, I hope that everyone is staying safe and that you have a stagey day for 10 more seconds. I'm Mickey Joe Theater. Oh my God hey, thanks for watching. Have a stagey day. Subscribe.
Podcast Episode Summary
Podcast: MickeyJoTheatre
Host: Mickey Jo
Episode: The Real Reason STRANGER THINGS: THE FIRST SHADOW is Ending on Broadway and in the West End
Date: June 12, 2026
In this insightful episode, Mickey Jo explores the surprising and almost simultaneous closure of "Stranger Things: The First Shadow" in both the West End and on Broadway. Despite critical acclaim and impressive box office statistics, both productions are set to end their runs at the end of 2026 and early 2027. Mickey Jo analyzes the unique factors behind this rare theatrical event, contrasting the show's initial hype and marketing strategies with changing audience dynamics, competitive theatre environments, and the implications of a forthcoming Netflix pro-shot release.
On the Initial Announcement:
“I knew something unusual had happened when I got two simultaneous press releases emailed into my inbox.” (03:35)
Marketing London's FOMO:
“There was at one point a suggestion that Stranger Things: The First Shadow on stage held the key to unlocking the mystery of the final season.” (21:20)
Cinematic Theatre:
Duffer Brothers: “We remain awed ... cinematic theatre unlike anything else out there.” (16:48)
The Show’s Box Office Life Cycle:
“The box office for Stranger Things, the First Shadow, was supercharged on Broadway... coinciding with what? The release of Stranger Things Season 5 on Netflix.” (32:40)
On Pro-Shot Impact:
“When you have a show that is selling itself on its narrative and the plot and the secrets revealed and offering a cinematic experience… [the] pro-shot is going to see those people sitting back down on their sofas.” (52:48)
Ephemeral Theatre:
“It could simply disappear, which is a really extraordinary thing to think about and a powerful reminder that theater is inherently temporary and ephemeral. Unless of course it gets recorded for Netflix.” (1:02:30)
Mickey Jo’s episode delivers a comprehensive industry autopsy of "Stranger Things: The First Shadow," demonstrating that commercial success does not guarantee theatrical longevity, especially for spectacle-based, IP-driven shows tightly linked to finite TV buzz. The show's closure is attributed not to failure, but to the natural limits of its fan-driven audience, the lack of ongoing narrative fuel, potent competition, and a final pro-shot undercutting international FOMO. For fans, the message is clear: straddle the curtain call now, as this ambitious theatrical experiment may vanish forever in just months.