Broadway ended its 1988-89 season with a record box-office gross of $262 million, up 4 percent over the previous season's total of $253 million, according to figures released Tuesday.
The League of American Theaters and Producers also said attendance was 8 million, off slightly from last season's record-breaking 8.1 million, but still higher than the 7 million of two years ago."It was a good season. It had strong box-office dollars and solid attendance," said George Wachtel, the league's director of research.
Much of the box office strength came from long-running musicals particularly "The Phantom of the Opera" and "Les Miserables," each grossing more than $500,000 a week, and other veteran hits like "Cats" and "Me and My Girl."
The only new musical to demonstrate much box office muscle is "Jerome Robbins' Broadway" which has been running at slightly under capacity since it opened in January. The compilation of dance numbers from some of the choreographer's biggest hits has been grossing about $520,000 each week.
"Jerome Robbins' Broadway" also has a top ticket price of $55, the highest on Broadway.
The average ticket price rose from $31.10 to $33.90, up 6 percent from last year, the league said. Much of the rise, Wachtel said, was because theatergoers were paying full price for tickets to hot shows like "Phantom" and "Les Miserables."
Only seven musicals - including a revival of "Ain't Misbehavin' " - opened on Broadway during the 1988-89 season, compared with 15 the previous year. They included such flops as "Legs Diamond," "Chu Chem" and "Welcome to the Club," as well as such still-running shows as "Black and Blue" and "Starmites."