Shows That Cancelled Their Closing Dates?

[Littleshopofcarrie]

Posted: 11/1/13 at 6:00pm

Have any shows set a closing date and then cancelled the closing date a resumed to an open run?? If so, can anyone list a few??

[TheGingerBreadMan]

Posted: 11/1/13 at 6:03pm

NEWSIES was originally supposed to be a limited engagement but it was doing so well that they changed it to an open run.

[bwayalltheway]

Posted: 11/1/13 at 6:08pm

A Little Night Music had announced its closing at the end of Zeta-Jones and Lansbury's contract, then announced it would re-open in a few weeks with Stritch and Peters.

[g.d.e.l.g.i.]

Posted: 11/1/13 at 6:10pm

The original production of Hair (1968-72) was supposed to close May 21, but the closing notice came down (and went back up) several times. Hair played on for six more weeks, finally closing after the July 1, 1972 evening performance.

[best12bars]

Posted: 11/1/13 at 6:15pm

I remember The Fantasticks posted their closing notice, then never did.

Also, Andre De Shields told me "The Wiz" was so shaky going into opening night with so many changes prior to opening that they posted their closing notice on Opening Night.

Then the reviews came out, and the next day sales went though the roof.

EDIT: I should say that I don't think it was ever made public about The Wiz closing, but Andre said they all saw the notice go up.

It came down the next day.

... and ran for 1,672 performances, according to IBDb.com.

Updated On: 11/1/13 at 06:15 PM

[IronMan]

Posted: 11/1/13 at 6:22pm

The Bernadette 'Gypsy' posted a closing date for Feb of 2004, then extended until May. Many long-running shows will set a closing date, then extend if ticket sales boom, as the original 'Les Miz' did.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 11/1/13 at 6:22pm

I'm not sure if this is quite what you're asking, but the original Broadway production of A Chorus Line posted at least once and maybe two or three times.

Towards the end of the run, there were about 20 people in the audience, so they announced the show was closing. Suddenly when everyone heard A Chorus Line was closing, they rushed to get tickets for one last what I did for love. So they postponed the closing at least once.

[James2]

Posted: 11/1/13 at 6:30pm

Urban Cowboy was going to close the weekend after it opened, then announced it was going to stay open at the closing curtain call. It lasted another month and a half.

[ClapYo'Hands]

Posted: 11/1/13 at 6:31pm

The London production of We Will Rock You posted a closing notice a few years ago. It continues to run.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 11/1/13 at 6:33pm

The Ragtime revival...announced their closing and then stayed open for an additional 2 or 3 weeks.

Fuerzabruta (off bway) announced it's closing around this time last year and is still going

[Phantom of London]

Posted: 11/1/13 at 7:49pm

Rent posted notices, then took them down and played out a couple extra months.

i would love to be a producer on that one.

[Dollypop]

Posted: 11/1/13 at 7:56pm

The original production of EQUUS actually closed and then re-opened a month later at a different theater.

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 11/1/13 at 9:51pm

What was the deal with the last Rocky Horror revival? They closed and then reopened briefly or they went on hiatus? I was never terribly clear on that.

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 11/1/13 at 10:36pm

Rocky Horror closed briefly a few weeks after 9/11, then re-opened just before Hallowe'en. It ran through the first week of Jan, 2002.

[oasisjeff]

Posted: 11/1/13 at 10:45pm

Fuerza Bruta was closing in January... now it's closing this January...supposedly.

[After Eight]

Posted: 11/1/13 at 10:50pm

All the Way Home posted a closing notice for its first weekend, despite good reviews. Audiences came, however, and the producers let it continue. It ended up winning the Pultizer Prize and ran for over 300 performances. It was billed as "the miracle on 44th St."

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 11/1/13 at 11:20pm

Well, yeah, ghostlight, I knew 9/11 was a huge factor, I just didn't know if it was officially considered as having closed.

[IronMan]

Posted: 11/1/13 at 11:25pm

I forgot about 'Jane Eyre' which posted a closing date, then Alanis Morissette kicked in cash to keep it open for one more week- I have no idea why.

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 11/1/13 at 11:32pm

"Well, yeah, ghostlight, I knew 9/11 was a huge factor, I just didn't know if it was officially considered as having closed."

I don't know what to tell you. When they closed, they closed with the hope that they would re-open soon - and it did. It was the only show that closed after after 9/11 that re-opened. I would say yes, it officially closed. Taking a hiatus to me implies a definite return date, which Rocky did not have.

[bobs3]

Posted: 11/2/13 at 1:18am

CATS announced several closing dates but kept extending until it finally closed in Sept. 2000.

The producers of CITY OF ANGELS were prepared to post a closing notice on opening night then the reviews came in (all favorable) and the show did a over a million dollars in ticket sales the following day and the closing notice was pulled.

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 11/2/13 at 9:37am

I heard Ken Harper, the producer of THE WIZ once talk about about the path the show took to Broadway, and indeed it is true, that after a very troubled out of town tryout the show started previews in NYC with the closing notice posted for opening night.

But as Ken described it, it wasn't so much the reviews that saved the show (the reviews in fact were overall rather mediocre) but a gradual word of mouth reach that he actually credited to Stephanie Mills's mother. She apparently was very connected to the black church and gospel communities in the tri-state area and organized tour groups to see the shows in previews; this was a demograph that in the past had never really been seen as a viable ticket buying audience for Broadway and the producers were shocked at the power their influence had in increasing visibility for the show.

By the time the show opened it was already turning into an SRO hit, and apparently it was only then that fashionable with the traditional (i.e. white) Broadway audiences.

Stephen Sondheim is on record as saying he saw the show 8 times.

[philly03]

Posted: 11/2/13 at 2:43pm

To clarify for Jane Eyre - The show posted a closing notice two weeks after the Tony nominations came out (the show received 5, including Best Musical) after ticket sales didn't change.

Alanis Morisette, a friend of composer-lyricist Paul Gordon, put money into and bought a bunch of tickets for charity groups so it would last through the awards. It won none, though I'll always think Marla Schaffel (who won every other award that year) was robbed. The show closed the week after the Tonys.

[GlindatheGood22]

Posted: 11/2/13 at 5:53pm

I'd forgotten about Ragtime pushing out their closing date. If I remember closely there was even a rumor that they had canceled their load-out, implying that they weren't closing after all. I was so upset about that closing, it was the best thing I've ever seen.