A funny thing may have happened on...

A funny thing may have happened on the way to the forum, but the Orange County Performing Arts Center’s production of Stephen Sondheim’s musical comedy isn’t liable to send anyone laughing all the way to the bank, according to preliminary box-office reports. The 12 Center performances of “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum” Aug. 7 through 12 drew a paid attendance of about one-third capacity, or 12,000 tickets, and produced gross ticket receipts of $360,000, Center officials said Monday. The production reportedly cost between $500,000 and $600,000, with expenses shared by the Center and its partner in the show, the La Jolla Playhouse. The two facilities, however, agreed to treat box-office revenues separately.