To Kill a Mockingbird, the adaption by renowned screenwriter Aaron Sorkin of Harper Lee’s classic novel, has become the highest-grossing American play in Broadway history.
The Variety website said the play brought in $1.702m (£1.35m/€1.5m) in box office receipts for the week of December 30, 2018, its second full week of performances. This overtakes the $1.623m pulled in by All the Way, the Bryan Cranston-starring drama about former US President Lyndon Johnson, during the week of June 22, 2014.
To Kill A Mockingbird has played to sell-out audiences at Shubert Theatre since performances began on November 1. Variety said its advance currently stands at more than $22m, adding that the play currently has an open-ended run, unusual for a non-musical.
Jeff Daniels, who stars as small-town lawyer Atticus Finch, has also agreed to appear in the show for a full year, in what Variety says is a long commitment for a film and television star. “I’ve never had, or seen, a new play perform like this one is,” said Scott Rudin, the Tony-winning producer behind To Kill a Mockingbird.
“We’ve had plenty of shows break plenty of records, but nothing we’ve ever had has been like this. The company of To Kill a Mockingbird has been together for quite a long time already, through numerous labs, readings, and a very healthy preview period. The success of this play – and the huge affection shown for it thus far – belongs entirely to them. It’s their hit.”
Image: Julieta Cervantes
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