Broadway's 2008 Numbers Strong Despite Weak Economy

It was a monster year on Broadway . . . even without Young Frankenstein.

Plays and musicals on Broadway brought in more than $940 million in 2008, including welcome year-end news, according to The Broadway League Executive Director Charlotte St. Martin. While the numbers were about even with 2007, the total doesn't count Mel Brooks' latest effort, Young Frankenstein, which closed January 4 and did not report sales figures. The numbers are released each year by The Broadway League.

In terms of people in seats, there were 12.3 million paid attendees last year with theaters filled to an average 75.6 percent of capacity. But League officials say the best indicator of Broadway health is playing weeks in theaters, and in 2008 there were 1,653.

And the holidays offered particularly encouraging news. “Even though the last few months of the year were challenging, these last two weeks encompassing the Christmas and New Year’s holidays grossed nearly $2 million dollars more than the same two-week period last year," St. Martin said.

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