'Here Lies Love' to end Broadway run this November due to low ticket sales
Here Lies Love, a musical about Imelda Marcos, is set to conclude its Broadway run this month due to low ticket sales, according to a report.
Variety reported that Here Lies Love, which features an all-Filipino cast, will end after 33 previews and 149 regular performances because "tickets were not selling out." Citing The Washington Post, the media outlet said that the weekly cost of making the shows happen is $700,000 (P39 million), "which exceeded its weekly box office take of $500,000 (P28 million) to $620,000 (P35 million)."
It started running previews on June 17 and officially opened on July 20. The final show will take place on Nov. 26.
In a statement, the producers looked back on their journey to bringing the project to Broadway. "We asked ourselves: Can anyone produce on Broadway in a new way? Is there a new path forward? What does the template look like? Will audiences want something radically new? Who will those audiences be?”
“We have learned a great deal about the answers to those questions. Yes, new ways can work. Artistic excellence can be achieved. But the reality is, succeeding on Broadway means not only producing excellent work with artistic merit—it also means creating the audience for it. And how much time it takes to find and grow new audiences is out of sync with the tight timeframes for audience-building and awareness," they said.
Here Lies Love narrates the former First Lady's rise and fall from power after the EDSA People Power Revolution by transforming the theater "into a dance club where the audience is immersed in the story."
Headlining the cast are Arielle Jacobs as Imelda Marcos and Jose Llana as Ferdinand Marcos Sr.
How to Get Away with Murder star Conrad Ricamora plays the assassinated senator Ninoy Aquino, while Tony Award winner Lea Salonga portrays the role of Aurora Aquino, the latter's mother. She also serves as one of the producers of the musical alongside Filipino-American personalities H.E.R and Jo Koy. Los Angeles-based Pinoy artist Garth Garcia is also a community investor in the play.
Directed by Tony and Golden Globe awards recipient Alex Timbers, the musical was initially set to run until January 2024.