HAMILTON Announces Chicago Closing Date

[TheSassySam]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 10:54am

https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/HAMILTON-Announces-Chicago-Closing-Date-20190516

 

The production will have played 1,365 performances.

[teatime2]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 10:59am

OMG!!! Is Broadway next????!? Hope they've been making their nut.

[kade.ivy]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 11:03am

Harry Potter to Chicago next (complete with a total overhaul of the CIBC)? Please?

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 11:06am

I'm surprised the ridiculous price points lasted as long as they did in Chicago.

[InTheBathroom1]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 11:20am

Mister Matt said: "I'm surprised the ridiculous price points lasted as long as they did in Chicago."

They didn’t, that’s why it’s closing. Tickets were significantly cheaper and easier to get than on Broadway or even on tour. 

[SomethingPeculiar]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 11:23am

Chris Jones predicted it would close at the end of 2018, so it lasted a full year past that! As he alludes to in that article (and in a new interview with Jeffrey Seller about the closing), it makes total sense to close before the going gets rough. The tours are hitting other midwest cities, and there's always the opportunity to return to Chicago.

The national strategy was also different from Hamilton than it was for Wicked, which did 3.5 years in Chi: "While the "Wicked" musical "sat down" in Chicago, it could not simultaneously be seen anywhere closer than St. Louis. In other words, its territory was protected."

Updated On: 5/16/19 at 11:23 AM

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 11:32am

Really happy to see the “bank” theatre to be returned to Broadway in Chicago. I hope they have other unannounced shows for next season because they were waiting for the theatre to be open *wink* my fair lady *wink*

[fashionguru_23]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 11:33am

The national strategy was also different fromHamiltonthan it was forWicked, which did 3.5 years in Chi:"While the "Wicked" musical "sat down" in Chicago, it could not simultaneously be seen anywhere closer than St. Louis. In other words, its territory was protected.""

That strategy was why the Toronto production of "Phantom" ran for 10 years. I know commercials were seen as far (to my knowledge, at least) as Cleveland for the Toronto production. I've always wondered why that strategy hasn't been used in Toronto in a while. (Eg. the Toronto production of Dear Evan Hansen, while the tours is making its stop in Buffalo currently).

[singer234]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 11:44am

Can attest to this, I got a 70 dollar prime orchestra seat day of.

[SomethingPeculiar]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 12:12pm

fashionguru,  I think the touring market is a lot different (and healthier) now than it was in the 80s/90s when Phantom played Toronto. Cleveland, for example, has a robust touring market, and its subscribers expect to get all the major shows. From the producers' standpoint, there's also the wish to get the show out as quickly as possible, while the interest is still there.

We're currently in the peak of Hamilton in America: there are 5 U.S. companies (NYC, two tours, San Fran, Chicago). I think there will be just 3 U.S. companies by early 2021: the SF company will continue through January, do 6-12 months in L.A., and then that company will close in 2021. 

I'll be interested to see how long DEH and CFA run in their Toronto sit-downs. Both are currently on sale through September 29. Maybe CFA does 2 years in Toronto (local pride), and DEH shutters in January?

[dramamama611]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 12:16pm

"More people have seen Hamilton in Chicago than any other city, including New York," said producer Jeffrey Seller."

 

Really?  Is its theater THAT much bigger?  Can anyone give me the number of seats?

[dmwnc1959]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 12:17pm

This was almost my birthday trip, along with Hamilton: The Exhibit, the latter I’m guessing may close and move along to another city when the musical darkens it’s lights there for the final time. Still glad I picked Broadway and NYC, but would have loved to have seen Miguel Cervantes in the role.

I also wonder if this will open up Chicago for more out-of-town Pre-Broadway engagements in summer/fall of 2020?

[TheSassySam]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 12:21pm

dramamama611 said: ""More people have seenHamiltonin Chicago than any other city, including New York," said producer Jeffrey Seller."



Really? Is its theater THAT much bigger? Can anyone give me the number of seats?"

 

CIBC has 1800 seats. Richard Rodgers has 1319.

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 12:22pm

dramamama611 said: ""More people have seenHamiltonin Chicago than any other city, including New York," said producer Jeffrey Seller."



Really? Is its theater THAT much bigger? Can anyone give me the number of seats?"

The theatre holds approx. 1800 people.... so yeah. I agree. He likely pulled that fact out of his behind.

 

sidenote: anyone know how well the exhibition is selling? I see it on gold star almost constantly for almost free admission. It seems like a bad move to open it more towards the end of the school year and also not partnering with field museum or one of our other museums.

Updated On: 5/16/19 at 12:22 PM

[Fosse76]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 12:45pm

Call_me_jorge said: "dramamama611 said: ""More people have seenHamiltonin Chicago than any other city, including New York," said producer Jeffrey Seller."



Really? Is its theater THAT much bigger? Can anyone give me the number of seats?"

The theatre holds approx. 1800 people.... so yeah. I agree. He likely pulled that fact out of his behind.

While it's probably not true, it wasn't entirely hyperbole. I did the math, and without knowing exact figures, it is pretty close to true. Based on the number of performances expected to have been performed, by the time the Chicago production closes, it will have been seen by 2,457,000 people. At the same point in time, the Broadway production will have been seen by 2,490,272 people.  That means only about 33,272 more people have seen it on Broadway. And again, since I'm not working with exact figures (just basing it on 8 shows a week for the length of run), it's very possible that the numbers are close and that Chicago will have been seen by more people. Even if the statement was hyperbole, it's close enough to be true. Hamilton had over a year's worth of performances before the Chicago company opened.

Updated On: 5/16/19 at 12:45 PM

[SomethingPeculiar]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 12:53pm

"The theatre holds approx. 1800 people.... so yeah. I agree. He likely pulled that fact out of his behind."

I think it's factually true that more people have seen HAM in Chicago than NY. Doing rough math, ~2.1 million people have seen it in NY over ~1600 performances (so far), but ~2.4 million will have seen it in Chicago by the time it closes.

Edit: yeah, what Fosse said!

Updated On: 5/16/19 at 12:53 PM

[schubox]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 1:09pm

Call_me_jorge said: "dramamama611 said: ""More people have seenHamiltonin Chicago than any other city, including New York," said producer Jeffrey Seller."



Really? Is its theater THAT much bigger? Can anyone give me the number of seats?"

The theatre holds approx. 1800 people.... so yeah. I agree. He likely pulled that fact out of his behind.



sidenote: anyone know how well the exhibition is selling? I see it on gold star almost constantly for almost free admission. It seems like a bad move to open it more towards the end of the school year and also not partnering with field museum or one of our other museums."

What is gold Star? I was thinking of doing. Quick Chicago trip to see Six and the exhibition, Im all for not paying $40 per person for the exhibition 

[Phantom4ever]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 1:48pm

Two weeks ago i got a $497 orchestra third row center seat at Hamilton/Chicago for $180, which is what I paid for a seat up in the balcony in 2016. It seems like everybody assumes that Hamilton Chicago tickets are completely sold out and very expensive, so nobody even tries to get tickets. Whenever I say that I saw the show, people look at me and ask how was I ever able to snag a ticket like I had to sleep in the cancellation line for a month or something. 

I wonder if this production will start touring?  Would it be the 4th concurrent North American Hamilton tour?  Has any Broadway show sent out 4 concurrent tours before?  Or perhaps it will be used for a world tour?  

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 1:54pm

They didn’t, that’s why it’s closing. Tickets were significantly cheaper and easier to get than on Broadway or even on tour. 

Tickets are significantly higher than for any other Broadway sit-down or tour that has run in Chicago.  That's why I'm surprised it has run this long already.  But I doubt it's true as judging from the current ticket availability, it's not selling out in Chicago any more, but grosses are publicized for the Chicago run, so it can't really be verified.

dramamama611 said: ""More people have seenHamiltonin Chicago than any other city, including New York," said producer Jeffrey Seller."

Really? Is its theater THAT much bigger? Can anyone give me the number of seats?"

CIBC has 1800 seats. Richard Rodgers has 1319.

If you count sight-lines, I doubt it's even close.  Probably a third of the seats at the Shubert (aka the Fill-in-the-Bank Theatre) are obstructed/partial view, which is why I was angry they put Hamilton in there in the first place (well, that and the ridiculous lobby).  It's not a crazy blimp hangar like Lyric or Auditorium where rear orchestra and beyond is like watching a 12-inch TV, but the Shubert really needs a massive overhaul and the Richard Rodgers is an excellent model for it.

Updated On: 5/16/19 at 01:54 PM

[InTheBathroom1]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 2:18pm

 wonder if this production will start touring? Would it be the 4th concurrent North American Hamilton tour? Has any Broadway show sent out 4 concurrent tours before? Or perhaps it will be used for a world tour?"

 

the production won’t tour.  It was made for that specific theatre and was not made to tour.  It said in the statement that they will likely focus on international expansion at this point.

 

[Fosse76]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 2:48pm

It's closing because they don't want to charge "normal" prices. They want to continue to charge the outrageous prices, and since they can't, they'd rather close. It's pretty much the same reason Wicked closed. Personally, I think it's the most ridiculous reason to close a show. Do they really think that they will really be able to charge more money in Milwaukee than they were able to charge in Chicago? The people who would have been willing to pay those outrageous prices already drove to Chicago to see the show there.

[oncemorewithfeeling2]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 3:39pm

Despite the ridiculous price issues (you can find day of cheap but for 3 months from now...whew), it’s worth a visit if you’re in Chicago. I saw the show there about a month ago and I felt it was holding up really nicely. The Lafayette/Jefferson, Paris Nix, was outstanding.

[SomethingPeculiar]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 3:46pm

Phantom4ever, there are already 5 US companies of the show: NYC, two tours, San Fran, Chicago (and also London). The costumes can be saved, but the set was built as an exact replica of Broadway.

By early 2021, excluding international productions, I bet there will be just the 2 tours + Broadway: the SF company will continue through January, do 6-12 months in L.A., and then that company will close in 2021. By that point, it will be almost 6 years after the Broadway opening, and SO many concurrent U.S. productions could negatively impact the brand. (And it's super expensive to run all those companies if they're not making money.)

[Phantom of London]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 6:39pm

Is this production not going to sit down in Toronto?

[ArtMan]

Posted: 5/16/19 at 7:39pm

schubox said: "






What is goldStar? I was thinking of doing. Quick Chicago trip to see Six and the exhibition, Imall for notpaying $40 per person for the exhibition"

Goldstar is a discounted ticketing company.  A lot of times they have really good discounts but their fees are really high.  Many times they have comp events but you still pay a ticketing fee.  I used them last year when I saw Trainspotting in NYC.  It was comp, but I payed a $9 ticket fee.  Still a great deal.  Just do a search of Goldstar Chicago and the events will come up after you filter through the choices.