All articles tagged with #jellicle ball
Andrew Lloyd Webber says he’s gutted by the Broadway closing of Cats: The Jellicle Ball, blaming unsustainable production costs as the drag-competition reinvention ends five months early; the show began Off-Broadway in 2024, moved to Broadway in spring, earned three Tonys, and Webber hints at future Broadway projects like Evita.
Broadway’s Cats: The Jellicle Ball, the Tony-nominated revival, will release a cast album this winter through Atlantic Records, to be recorded later this month with the full company; the show is closing at the Broadhurst Theatre on August 8 and is produced by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Alana da Fonseca.
Deadline reports that Cats: The Jellicle Ball will close at the Broadhurst Theatre on August 8, 2026 after five months, spotlighting Broadway’s high-cost, low-royalty economics that have made it hard for new or daring shows to survive. Despite strong critical praise and Tony nominations, the production’s grosses declined from peak levels and could not sustain operations. Andrew Lloyd Webber lamented the market conditions and urged industry leaders to address Broadway’s financial crisis, while the show will be archived by the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts and no future stagings are currently announced.
After Cats: The Jellicle Ball closes on Broadway, Andrew Lloyd Webber warns that Broadway’s musical economy is in crisis due to mounting production costs, investor concerns and thin returns for new works, urging industry-wide action to preserve a future for bold theatre. Jellicle Ball had strong reviews and initial grosses (roughly $900k–$1M/week) but slumped after losing the Best Revival Tony to Ragtime; six originals debuted on Broadway last season, far fewer than in prior years. Lloyd Webber says he may bring Evita to Broadway next spring but remains wary about mounting new shows like The Illusionist, underscoring that Broadway must nurture new and daring work rather than rely on old hits.
Andrew Lloyd Webber warns Broadway is facing a financial crisis even as Cats: The Jellicle Ball announces an August 8 closing, citing stubborn royalty structures that undercut new-work profitability. He urges theatre owners, unions, and producers to act as industry-wide pressures deepen, pointing to a pattern where even well-attended, award-winning shows struggle to sustain long runs, while star-driven straight plays find more success and many musicals close.
'Cats: The Jellicle Ball,' a reimagined version of Andrew Lloyd Webber's classic musical set in the underground drag ball scene, is coming to Broadway's Broadhurst Theatre in March 2026, with previews starting on March 18 and opening on April 7, featuring returning cast members from its successful Off-Broadway run.