‘Motown: The Musical’ earns $1 million its first week on Broadway
Motown founder Berry Gordy has another hit on his hands: “Motown: The Musical” cracked the million-dollar mark after its first week of previews on Broadway.
The show grossed $1.03 million after seven performances starting March 11 at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre in New York, according to the Broadway League. “Motown” this week starts its eight-performance standard schedule, priming the production to become a regular among Broadway’s top earners.
The show charts Gordy’s career from boxer to music mogul, punctuated with hits from Motown heavyweights and a romance with Diana Ross.
PHOTOS: Best in theater for 2012
The production, which officially opens April 14, stars Tony nominee Brandon Victor Dixon (“The Color Purple”) and Valisia Lekae (“The Book of Mormon”) as Gordy and Ross. Raymond Luke Jr., Jibreel Mawry, Bryan Terrell Clark and Charl Brown round out the cast.
Another newcomer also hit the million-dollar mark for the week ending March 17. Nora Ephron’s soon-to-open drama, “Lucky Guy,” starring Tom Hanks and Maura Tierney, grossed $1.29 million at the Broadhurst Theatre.
Other top earners for the week included “Wicked” ($1.95 million), “The Lion King”($1.78 million), “The Book of Mormon” ($1.67 million), “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark” ($1.26 million), “Cinderella” ($1.1 million) and “The Phantom of the Opera” ($1.07 million).
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