Spamalot set a new house record at the Shubert Theatre, grossing $1,407,585.62
for the week ending January 1, 2006 (beating the record that the musical
set during Thanksgiving -- $1,142,071.43 ).
The record-breaking
gross at the Shubert, which has been home to such Broadway musicals as A Chorus Line and Crazy for You, caps a very successful year for Spamalot.
Directed
by Mike Nichols (Tony Winner for Best Director), Spamalot has a book by
Eric Idle, and music and lyrics by John Du Prez and Eric Idle.
Spamalot, which won the 2005 Tony Award for Best Musical; the 2005
Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Musical; and, the 2005 Outer Critics
Circle Award for Outstanding Musical, has played to standing-room-only
capacity at the Shubert Theatre since opening on March 17th.
On
December 8, the original cast recording of Spamalot, was nominated for
a Grammy Award. "The recording is the fastest-selling new cast album
this season," according to press notes.
On December 20, Olivier Award-winning actor Simon Russell Beale joined Spamalot in the role of King Arthur. The actor is appearing with the permission
of Actors Equity Association pursuant to an exchange program between
American Equity and UK Equity. Lauren Kennedy also joined the show as The Lady of the Lake.
A national tour of Spamalot will begin performances in Boston on March 5,
2006 and details of London and Las Vegas productions will be announced
shortly.
Lovingly "ripped-off" from the internationally famous comedy team's Monty Python and the Holy Grail,Spamalot
received the 2005 Tony Award for Best Musical as well as Best Director
for Mike Nichols and Best Featured Actress in a Musical for Sara Ramirez. It also won the Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle awards for
Best Musical. The
show's score is by Eric Idle and John Du Prez with a book by Idle, and
in addition to Ramirez, it opened with Tim Curry, David Hyde Pierce, Christopher
Sieber, Michael McGrath, Hank Azaria, Christian Borle and others as its loopy
knights. Produced by Boyett Ostar Productions, Spamalot boasts
choreography by Casey Nicholaw, set and costume design by Tim Hatley,
lighting design by Hugh Vanstone and sound design by ACME Sound
Partners.Telling the legendary tale of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, and their quest for the Holy Grail, Monty Python's Spamalot
features a chorus line of dancing divas and knights, flatulent
Frenchmen, killer rabbits and one legless knight. For more information, visit www.montypythonsspamalot.com. For tickets to the Broadway production of Spamalot, call 212
239-6200, 800
432-7250 , or visit www.telecharge.com.