To Kill a Mockingbird Just Became Broadway’s Highest-Grossing American Play Ever
To Kill a Mockingbird has proven a hit not just on literary bestseller lists, but on Broadway, too. The new Aaron Sorkin stage adaptation of Harper Lee’s classic just broke the record for the highest-grossing single week of an American play on Broadway, according to Variety.
During the week of December 30, To Kill a Mockingbird pulled in $1.702 million. The previous record holder, All the Way (featuring Bryan Cranston as Lyndon Johnson) grossed $1.623 million in the week of June 22, 2014.
The first performances of the play opened on November 1, but the record-breaking week of December 30 marked only its second week of full performances. Its cast has played for a packed house at each show, and has earned some great reviews.
While Broadway musicals like Frozen and The Lion King tend to bring in more money, it’s rare for a non-musical play to earn such big sales. The overall highest-grossing week in history for any non-musical on Broadway belongs to Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, a UK production that, unlike To Kill a Mockingbird, features big special effects and plays in larger theaters, Variety notes. It made $2.3 million over Thanksgiving.
To Kill a Mockingbird currently has no end date, so you still have time to catch a performance. Jeff Daniels, who is playing Atticus Finch, has signed on for at least a year, so now is the time.
[h/t Variety]