Broadway Grosses: Bradley Cooper & Hugh Jackman Return to the Stage, Box Office Madness Ensues

Five Broadway shows met or exceeded 100% capacity this past week, with two less than a percent shy. The two titles that came out on top are among the newest shows on the Great White Way: the Bradley Cooper-led The Elephant Man, which hit 102.78% capacity over four preview performances, and The River, starring Hugh Jackman, which trailed closely behind at 102.66% in its first full week of previews. We don’t mean to brag, but we’re pretty sure it’s the Hollywood hunks' Broadway.com Audience Choice Awards that are bringing in the crowds. Another production new to the boards, A Delicate Balance, which also showcases two screen stars and stage faves, John Lithgow and Glenn Close, continued to fill its house. Meanwhile, the Pulitzer-winning Disgraced continued its upward climb. The drama saw a six-figure increase from its previous week, plus a boost of over 13% in capacity.

Here’s a look at who was on top—and who was not—for the week ending November 9:

FRONTRUNNERS (By Gross)
1. The Lion King ($1,737,729)
2. The Book of Mormon ($1,638,827)
3. Wicked ($1,621,169)
4. Aladdin ($1,410,648)
5. It's Only a Play ($1,375,174)

UNDERDOGS (By Gross)
5. Side Show ($413,928)**
4. Love Letters ($393,746)
3. This Is Our Youth ($349,111)
2. Rock of Ages ($323,107)
1. The Country House ($209,004)

FRONTRUNNERS (By Capacity)
1. The Elephant Man (102.78%)***
2. The River (102.66%)*
3. The Book of Mormon (102.63%)
4. Beautiful: The Carole King Musical (100.07%)
5. A Delicate Balance (100.00%)*

UNDERDOGS (By Capacity)
5. The Last Ship (66.21%)
4. Once (64.81%)
3. Cinderella (60.02%)
2. Love Letters (59.53%)
1. This Is Our Youth (56.61%)

*Number based on eight preview performances
**Number based on seven preview performances
***Number based on four preview performances

Source: The Broadway League