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Box Office: ‘Kong’ Eyes North America as Spidey Crashes

By Philip Boroff - 2013-09-30T23:00:00Z

The recent drop in U.S. stocks is a hiccup relative to the “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark” crash.

Grosses for the Broadway spectacle have tumbled by more than half in two months, dropping in eight of the last nine weeks, according to figures supplied by the trade association the Broadway League. In the week ending on Sunday, they fell 13 percent to $622,000. (As of Sept. 30, the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index of stocks was off 2.5 percent from its Sept. 18 record.)

“Spider-Man” sales are down from $1.4 million in the last week of July, which was the summertime peak. The roughly $75 million show has grappled with cost overruns and accidents involving performers, among other challenges.

“September has been notoriously bad for all concerned, but Spidey’s business is about to rebound,” Rick Miramontez, a production spokesman, wrote in an e-mail.

Some Broadway insiders speculate that “Spider-man” could swing out of the 1,932-seat Foxwoods Theatre and be replaced by “King Kong.” That musical opened in Melbourne, Australia, in June and would require a huge house to accommodate its giant puppet in the title role.

“There is discussion about coming to North America but no plans have been set,” Adrian Bryan-Brown, a spokesman for “King Kong,” said in an interview. “The specific venue has certainly not been determined.”

Broadway sales overall were little changed last week, at $19.4 million.

“Cinderella” fell for the seventh consecutive week, to $616,000. “Annie” bounced 7 percent from the previous week to $441,000, ahead of its Jan. 5 close. “First Date,” with television star Zachary Levi, had its worst week, $307,000.

“Big Fish” continued its pre-opening ascent, to $737,000. (Critics weigh in on Sunday night.) “The Glass Menagerie” rose 21 percent to $511,000, after its reviews included some raves.

Muse highlights include Greg Evans and Craig Seligman on movies, Patrick Cole on dining.

To contact the reporter on this story: Philip Boroff in New York at pboroff@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Manuela Hoelterhoff in New York at mhoelterhoff@bloomberg.net.

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