Phantom to smash Broadway records with 7,486th show

Published Wednesday 23 November 2005 at 17:55 by Judd Hollander

The Phantom of The Opera will play its 7,486th performance in New York on January 9, 2006, surpassing the record held by Cats and becoming the longest-running show in Broadway history.

The Cameron Mackintosh/Really Useful Group production opened at the Majestic Theatre on January 26, 1988 and has been at that venue for its entire run.

When shows such as Cats and A Chorus Line became the longest-playing shows on Broadway, they turned their then record-setting performances into theatrical events. Following in that tradition, the producers of Phantom are planning some surprises of their own.

While many of the details are still being kept under wraps, the January 9 show will be followed by a “one-night only onstage presentation being devised by the musical’s creators to uniquely mark this historic occasion.” Immediately following the performance, guests will attend a masked ball in the Grand Ballroom of the world famous Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.

The Phantom of the Opera had its world premiere in the West End on October 9, 1986 at Her Majesty’s Theatre, winning the Olivier and Evening Standard Awards. The New York production opened with a then record advance of $18 million and went on to sweep the 1988 Tony Awards, winning seven, including Best Musical. The original London cast recording was the first in British musical history to enter the charts at No 1. It has since gone both gold and platinum in Britain and the US, selling over 25 million copies worldwide.

Since its debut on Broadway, Phantom has grossed almost $600 million, making it the highest-grossing show in Broadway history. Total New York attendance stands at approximately 11 million. Worldwide, the show has grossed more than $3.2 billion, with an attendance surpassing 80 million.

The Phantom of the Opera has music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and is directed by Harold Prince. Lyrics are by Charles Hart, with additional lyrics by Richard Stilgoe, and the book is by Stilgoe and Lloyd Webber.