Broadway rang in more than a billion for the 2011 calendar year, with “Wicked” once again claiming the title of the year’s top grosser. Though the 2010 chart was dominated by long-running successes, In the year 2011, two big-earning newbies — “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark” and “The Book of Mormon” – show potential for longer runs.

The $1.08 billion total reps the cume from the 52-week period ending Dec. 25. (Next year will be one of the calendar’s periodic 53-week seshes.) The 2011 tally is up by some $44 million over the prior frame — no surprise, given rising ticket prices and increasing prominence of premium-ticket sales. Attendance, on the other hand, just barely showed an uptick — by about 25,000 theatergoers to 12.13 million.

Last year saw longtime top dog “Wicked” unseated multiple times from its habitual perch by both “Lion King” and “Spider-Man.” Still, “Wicked” finished first often enough to maintain its status as the highest-grossing Broadway show for the eighth year in a row, the only production ever to do so. “The Phantom of the Opera” also has been a top annual grosser for eight years, but those years weren’t consecutive.

For its part, “Lion King” can tout its unusually strong B.O. performance heading into its 15th year on Broadway. The show’s holiday-week tally of $2.4 million was its best ever on the Rialto; the same frame saw the tuner break house records in Las Vegas and on the road as well.

It was “Spider-Man” that provided the biggest shakeup in the year-end charts, overcoming much-publicized tech troubles and nasty reviews to gross $69 million for the year. There’s no guarantee the show will continue to maintain that momentum for another year, but given the $2.9 million tally logged by the musical for the week ending Jan. 1, it’s clear producers know how take advantage of high-demand periods.

There’s also “Book of Mormon,” with a $51 million total that placed it right behind the $52.3 million belted out by “Jersey Boys.” The Broadway edition of “Mormon” likely won’t approach the pile of money earned by “Wicked” or “Lion King” because of its venue’s substantially smaller seating capacity, but the strength of those figures suggest the Tony winner could be adding to the Broadway pot for a considerable while.

Read the complete news {Via Variety.com}

Wicked Broadway remained #1 for the week ending October 16, 2011, grossing $1,675,421 and had a 99.7% attendance rate. The 26 shows on the boards grossed $21,328,673, climbing 8.1% from the previous week’s totals.

Below are the Top 13 Grosses from BroadwayWorld.com for the week ending October 16, 2011.

1. Wicked – (GERSHWIN) $1,675,421
2. The Lion King – (MINSKOFF) $1,669,563
3. Spider-Man Turn Off The Dark – (FOXWOODS) $1,574,705
4. The Book Of Mormon – (EUGENE O’NEILL) $1,333,950
5. Jersey Boys – (AUGUST WILSON) $1,068,613
6. Follies – (MARQUIS) $1,037,906
7. War Horse – (VIVIAN BEAUMONT) $990,180
8. How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying – (AL HIRSCHFELD) $988,154
9. The Phantom of the Opera – (MAJESTIC) $898,830
10. Priscilla Queen Of The Desert – (PALACE) $860,673
11. Anything Goes – (STEPHEN SONDHEIM) $850,308
12. Mamma Mia! – (WINTER GARDEN) $847,844
13. Billy Elliot: The Musical – (IMPERIAL) $814,662

{Via BroadwayWorld.com}

In honor of the eighth anniversary on Broadway, Wicked Musical will celebrate “Wicked Day” on Sunday, October 30 with a special, one-time only “Ultimate Encore Performance.” To celebrate its eighth anniversary on Broadway, the Stephen Schwartz-Winnie Holzman musical Wicked will host a month-long roster of activities and promotions throughout October.

The production is currently inviting fans of the musical to vote on their favorite song from the show, which will be performed by the current Broadway cast immediately following the Oct. 30 matinee. The one-time-only performance will also be available for viewing via Facebook that evening for Wicked fans across the globe. Please cast your vote for which song will be performed at www.facebook.com/Wickedthemusical.

Wicked fans in the New York area will also be treated to some Wicked-inspired events, including an event at Neiman Marcus; a weekend at the Bronx Zoo; a Tasti D-Lite special; and a special Wicked night out with Satya Jewelry. For more information on “Wicked Day” events, visit www.WickedDay.com.

Buy Wicked Gershwin Theatre Tickets Online, Use Code AFF$10 to Get $10 off on Orders over $350!

The Broadway musical Wicked has extended its booking period through to 1 Jul 2012. The musical opened at the Gershwin Theatre on 30 Oct 2003, following previews from 8 Oct 2003.

Long before Dorothy drops in, two other girls meet in the land of Oz. One, born with emerald-green skin, is smart, fiery and misunderstood. The other is beautiful, ambitious and very popular. Wicked tells the story of their remarkable odyssey, how these two unlikely friends grow to become the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good Witch.

Wicked currently features *Teal Wicks(Elphaba), **Katie Rose Clarke (Glinda), Tom McGowan (The Wizard), Kathy Fitzgerald (Madame Morrible), Richard H. Blake (Fiyero), Cristy Cand (Nessarose), Tom Flynn (Doctor Dillamond) and Etai Benshlomo (Boq). Jackie Burns as Elphaba from 27 Sep and Chandra Lee Schwartz as Glinda from 27 Sep.

Wicked has music & lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, book by Winnie Holzman, based on the novel by Gregory Maguire.

The musical is directed by Joe Mantello, with choreography by James Lynn Abbott, scene design by Eugene Lee, costumes by Susan Hilferty, lighting by Kenneth Posner and sound by Tony Meola.

The production is now booking through 1 Jul 2012 at Gershwin Theatre. Buy Wicked Gershwin Theatre Tickets Online. Use Code AFF$10 to Get $10 OFF on Wicked New York NY Ticket Orders over $350!

On Broadway, Wicked grossed $1,830,739 with 100% attendance rate for the week ending June 26, 2011. The 30 shows on the boards grossed $23,765,758, increasing nearly 4% from the previous week’s totals.

Below are the Top 13 Grosses for the week ending June 26, 2011.

1. Wicked – (GERSHWIN) $1,830,739
2. The Lion King – (MINSKOFF) $1,748,215
3. Spider-Man Turn Off The Dark – (FOXWOODS) $1,702,866
4. The Book Of Mormon – (EUGENE O’NEILL) $1,215,619
5. Mary Poppins – (NEW AMSTERDAM) $1,103,991
6. Jersey Boys – (AUGUST WILSON) $1,068,423
7. How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying – (AL HIRSCHFELD) $1,054,587
8. The Phantom of the Opera – (MAJESTIC) $1,006,430
9. Sister Act – (BROADWAY) $990,657
10. War Horse – (VIVIAN BEAUMONT) $960,285
11. Billy Elliot: The Musical – (IMPERIAL) $951,214
12. Mamma Mia! – (WINTER GARDEN) $892,334
13. Memphis – (SHUBERT) $864,550

{Via BroadwayWorld.com}

Broadway box offices were busy places last week – 11 musicals made more than $1 million of which Wicked was Big seller again.

The Broadway League said Monday that total grosses for the week ending Sunday soared to $28.9 million, up from $23.8 million the week before.

The numbers, boosted by vacationers, did not even need “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark,” which was on hiatus.

Making the millionaire’s club were perennial big sellers “Wicked,” “Mary Poppins,” “Jersey Boys,” “The Addams Family,” “The Phantom of the Opera,” “Billy Elliot,” “Mamma Mia!” and “The Lion King.” Two new hot tickets were “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying,” “The Book of Mormon” and the outgoing “American Idiot.”

Box offices returns improved once again this past week with ticket sales reporting $22,207,681. Ticket sales of the previous reporting period ending March 13 were $18,553,510, a difference of 3,654,171, Ticket sales are 2.7 percent ahead.

Five of the 31 current productions reported box office receipts in excess of $1 million including Wicked at the Gershwin, leading again at $1,670,779.

The other Broadway shows in the Million club are :
The Lion King at the Minskoff, $1,612,549,
Spider-Man: Turn off the Dark at the Foxwoods, at $1,405,868,
Jersey Boys at the August Wilson, $1,064,222
“Mary Poppins” at the New Amsterdam, $1,057,164

Attendance reported for the week overall was 88.27 percent, with 14 shows reporting 95 percent or better. The leading four were the musical “The Book of Mormon” at 101.76 percent, “How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying” at 100.42 percent, “The Lion King” at 100.04 percent and “Wicked” reporting 100 percent. “Million Dollar Quartet” at the Nederlander reported the lowest percentage of capacity at 55.51 percent.

The greatest musical Wicked ranked highest in achieving its Gross Gross Potential at 106.66 percent this week.

{Via TicketNews.com}

On Broadway, Wicked grossed $1,401,082 and had a 96.5% attendance rate for the week ending January 23, 2011 and was 1.8% less than the last week. Wicked grabs the top seat again. The 19 shows on the boards grossed $12,343,580, dropping 10.69% from the previous week.

Below are the Top 10 Grosses for the week ending January 23, 2011.

1. Wicked – (GERSHWIN) $1,401,082
2. Spider-Man Turn Off The Dark – (FOXWOODS) $1,338,162
3. The Lion King – (MINSKOFF) $993,169
4. Jersey Boys – (AUGUST WILSON) $933,386
5. American Idiot – (ST. JAMES) $901,450
6. Billy Elliot: The Musical – (IMPERIAL) $739,234
7. The Addams Family – (LUNT-FONTANNE) $709,646
8. Memphis – (SHUBERT) $698,848
9. Mary Poppins – (NEW AMSTERDAM) $571,885
10. The Phantom of the Opera – (MAJESTIC) $557,476

{Via BroadwayWorld.com}

Mandy Gonzalez and Katie Rose Clarke, who star as Elphaba and Glinda, respectively, in Broadway’s Wicked, posed with Brett LaTorre, who was the production’s 5 millionth audience member to have his ticket scanned in at the Gershwin Theatre, which occurred at the 2pm matinee performance on Wednesday, September 29.

Katie Rose Clarke, Brett LaTorre and Mandy Gonzalez

View the Entire Gallery Here – Photos (© Jillian Nelson)

Brett LaTorre, Wicked's 5 Millionth Broadway Audience Member

Briana Yacavone and Brett LaTorre

Briana Yacavone, Brett LaTorre and Jonathan Warren

Briana Yacavone, Katie Rose Clarke, Brett LaTorre, Mandy Gonzalez and Jonathan Warren

Brett LaTorre of Sparta, NJ, received a special surprise when he took in the Sept. 29 Wicked matinee. LaTorre, who was celebrating his 21st birthday with his girlfriend and grandparents, was holding the 5 millionth ticket scanned for the show at the Gershwin Theatre.

He was given a special “Key to the Emerald City” as well as a free trip to London to see the West End production of Wicked and complimentary hotel accommodations at the luxury hotel Rubens at the Palace.

The cast currently includes Mandy Gonzalez as Elphaba, Katie Rose Clarke as Glinda, P.J. Benjamin as The Wizard, Andy Karl as Fiyero, Alex Brightman as Boq, Jenny Fellner as Nessarose, Kathy Fitzgerald as Madame Morrible and Timothy Britten Parker as Dr. Dillamond.

Click Here to Buy Wicked Musical Tickets and Find Wicked Tour Updates.

The Madame Alexander Doll Company has announced the upcoming release of two new dolls in its Wicked collection, based on the hit Broadway musical. One is a Citizen of Oz doll; the other is a Citizen of the Emerald City.

Both dolls can be pre-ordered at www.madamealexander.com. The Citizen of Oz is expected to ship in October, while the Citizen of the Emerald City is expected to ship in November. Each doll is ten inches tall and costs $124.95. The dolls are recommended for ages fourteen and up.

Madame Alexander’s Wicked collection also includes Town Crier, First Day at Shiz Elphaba, First Day at Shiz Glinda, and Elphaba. In addition, Madame Alexander has produced a ‘The Wizard of Oz’ collection which includes various characters from the story that inspired Wicked.

Winner of 26 major awards including the Grammy Award and three Tony Awards, Wicked is the untold story of the witches of Oz. Long before Dorothy drops in, two other girls meet in the land of Oz. One, born with emerald-green skin, is smart, fiery and misunderstood. The other is beautiful, ambitious and very popular. Wicked tells the story of their remarkable odyssey, how these two unlikely friends grow to become the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good.

Declared “The Best Musical of the Decade” by Entertainment Weekly and “A Cultural Phenomenon” by Variety, Wicked is based on the novel by Gregory Maguire, has music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, and a book by Winnie Holzman. The production is directed by Joe Mantello with musical staging by Wayne Cilento. Wicked is produced by Marc Platt, Universal Pictures, The Araca Group, Jon B. Platt and David Stone.

Wicked is performed at the Gershwin Theatre, 222 West 51st Street, between Broadway and 8th Avenue. Also currently playing on Tour in Milwaukee, WI and Columbus, OH. Buy Wicked The Musical Tickets Online.

{Via Broadwayworld.com}