Sara Krulwich/The New York Times Stark Sands, left, and Billy Porter in “Kinky Boots.â€The new Broadway musicals “Kinky Boots†and “Matilda†may be the front-runners for the Tony Award for best musical to be announced on Sunday, but there’s no contest between the two shows at the box office so far. “Kinky Boots†has beaten “Matilda†nine out of the 13 weeks that they have been running head-to-head, including last week, when “Kinky Boots†grossed $1,340,238 while “Matilda†took in $1,157,633.
The decisive factor for “Kinky Boots,†according to the latest Broadway box office data released on Monday, is the show’s average paid admission - $117.26, compared to $101.06 for “Matilda.†While the musicals are playing in similarly sized theaters, with roughly 1,425 seats each, the “Kinky Boots†house benefits from having about 60 more orchestra seats, which usually fetch higher prices than many seats in the mezzanine sections.
Still, neither show is the top-selling new musical of the 2012-13 Broadway season. That honor goes to “Motown: The Musical,†which grossed $1,354,876 last week. “Motown†is in the running for four Tony awards, but not for best musical.
As for the best play Tony nominees, the Tom Hanks-led “Lucky Guy†continued on top last week, grossing $1,343,042, compared to $524,082 for “Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike†and $373,576 for “The Assembled Parties.†(The fourth nominee, “The Testament of Mary,†closed last month due to poor ticket sales.)
The top-grossing shows last week, in order, were “The Lion King,†“Wicked,†“The Book of Mormon,†“Motown,†and “Lucky Guy.†Overall, Broadway musicals and plays grossed $23.3 million, compared to $24.2 million for the comparable week last season. Audience attendance totaled 223,090 last week, compared to 257,495 for the same week in 2012.
