There are plenty of nonmusical plays coming to Broadway this spring, but producers are fretting that few of them are selling.
Three of those plays — “Sweat,” “Indecent” and “Significant Other” — moved to Broadway because of strong reviews from former New York Times critic Charles Isherwood. But he and the paper have since parted ways, and there’s no guarantee that Ben Brantley, or whoever else reviews them for the Times, will be as kind.
First, the numbers.
The only play with a decent advance is “The Glass Menagerie,” starring Sally Field. Sources say it’s sold close to $3 million worth of tickets. That’s not bad, but it’s a far cry from the $10 million advance for Nathan Lane in the fall’s “The Front Page” or the $6 million for Cate Blanchett in “The Present.” (Despite wildly mixed reviews, “The Present” is on track to recoup its $3.5 million investment.)
A distant second to “Glass Menagerie” is Kevin Kline in Noël Coward’s “Present Laughter,” ringing up $1.5 million.
After that, it’s bleak. As of the beginning of this week, according to box-office figures obtained by The Post, none of the other plays had come anywhere near the $1 million mark.
“Sweat” has about $500,000 in the till. The revival of John Guare’s acclaimed “Six Degrees of Separation” is at $250,000. And a London import — “The Play That Goes Wrong” — has about $180,000.
“These are scary numbers,” another producer says.
A few factors are working against the plays. For one, there are too many of them chasing the limited audience of nonmusicals. And none of them features a proven box-office draw like Lane or Blanchett.
That has to cause investors in those shows some sleepless nights
They’re also up against a crop of high-profile musicals that are getting the lion’s share of press attention. It’s tough to compete against Glenn Close in “Sunset Boulevard,” Bette Midler in “Hello, Dolly!,” Jake Gyllenhaal in “Sunday in the Park With George” and Patti LuPone and Christine Ebersole in “War Paint.”
Having a rave review from the Times in their pocket would calm the nerves of the backers of “Sweat,” “Indecent” and “Significant Other.” But there’s no way the Times is going to rerun Isherwood’s notices. And it’s no secret that Isherwood and Brantley often disagreed. Isherwood championed “August: Osage County” to a Pulitzer Prize, while Brantley sniffed that it was a “melodrama.” Brantley thought Martin McDonagh’s “The Pillowman” was a masterpiece, while Isherwood called it a “haunted-house ride at Disneyland.”
The betting on Broadway is that Brantley will go for “Sweat” by Lynn Nottage. It’s about the struggles of the working class, and hits the right marks in the era of Make America Great Again.
But the futures of two other off-Broadway transfers, Paula Vogel’s “Indecent” and Joshua Harmon’s “Significant Other,” are up in the air.
If he’s in the mood, Brantley could wipe away much of Isherwood’s influence on the current Broadway season.
As a top Broadway producer says, “That has to cause investors in those shows some sleepless nights.”
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