*“The Color Purple,” the Broadway production that won the 2016 Tony Award for best musical revival, will close in January after just 14 months, due to a sluggish box office.
The show earned a Tony for lead actress Cynthia Erivo, but its initial box office boom began to wane after the holidays, when it last topped $1 million a week. According to Variety, its weekly totals ran a wide gamut, sometimes slipping down toward $550,000. In recent months, the production’s sales have come in between $600,000 and $700,000 per week.
Following its initial reviews when it opened in December, the revival earned a second batch of high-profile raves in May when Heather Headley took over for Jennifer Hudson in the production. Jennifer Holliday moved into the same role earlier this month, joining a cast that also includes Danielle Brooks (“Orange is the New Black”).
“The Color Purple” has yet to recoup it capitalization costs. If the production still hasn’t made it into the black by the time it closes on Broadway, producers will get a second chance to earn some money when a North American tour of the production launches in fall 2017.
“The Color Purple” will close at the Jacobs Theater Jan. 8.
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