Broadway sees jumps in attendance and box-office haul for 2010-11 season

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The 2010-11 Broadway season in New York saw a jump in attendance and box-office dollars over the previous season, according to a new report from the Broadway League. The report, released Tuesday, states that attendance rose 5.4% from the 2009–10 season and grosses jumped 5.9% over the same period.

For 2010-11, Broadway shows brought in a total of $1,080,562,880 and attendance of 12,534,595. The 2010-11 season began May 24, 2010 and ended May 29, 2011.

The Broadway League noted that the most recent season comprised 53 weeks, whereas the previous season had 52 weeks. The report said that attendance through week 52 was up 3.1% over last year’s 52-week season. The 53rd week of the season incorporated most of Memorial Day weekend, which traditionally brings a bump in business to most shows.

The average paid admission for a show during the period was $86.21, according to the Broadway League.

Among the biggest hits on Broadway for the recent season were ‘The Book of Mormon’ -- which has played to full houses since opening in March -- as well as ‘War Horse’ and the revival of ‘Anything Goes.’ Older shows like ‘Wicked’ and ‘The Lion King’ continued to do strong business. A spokeswoman for the Broadway League said the end-of-season figures include box-office statistics for ‘Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark,’ even though the show failed to open in the 2010-11 period. The troubled musical began previews in late November. After a hiatus for revisions, the show reopened for previews this month, with a new opening date set for June 14.

A total of 42 shows opened on Broadway in the most recent season, including 14 musicals, 25 plays and 3 special events.

RELATED:

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‘War Horse’ on Broadway: What did the critics think?

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-- David Ng