David Byrne and Fatboy Slim’s Broadway musical Here Lies Love will be closing at the end of November after struggling to find an audience. Based on the two musicians’ 2010 concept album, the show centers around the life of former Philippine first lady Imelda Marcos and began its current Broadway run in June.
The final performance will take place on November 26. It will have played a total of 33 previews and 149 regular performances at the Broadway Theatre. Despite the extensive renovations done to the theatre to accommodate the show’s dance club setting, ticket sales were not high enough to justify its relatively high weekly operating costs.
In a statement, the show’s producers said they had learned a great deal about the answers to questions about producing on Broadway in a new way. They said succeeding on Broadway means not only producing excellent work with artistic merit, but also creating the audience for it.
The production is estimated to have cost a total of $22 million, but for the week ending November 5, only 79% of seats were filled, grossing just over $750,000. Before this current run, the show had been staged at London’s National Theatre, receiving three Olivier nominations, before moving to Seattle in 2017.
The Broadway incarnation of the show transformed the theatre to a retro club, with the orchestra converted into a standing-room-only nightclub under a towering mirror ball and fuchsia neon lights in homage to Studio 54. Some controversy surrounded the show when it was revealed that the production opted not to use a live band, in an effort to pay tribute to authentic DJ culture. However, the producers eventually reached a deal to use 12 live musicians.
David Byrne and Fatboy Slim have been touring with their live show since 2018, and have just announced details of a UK and Ireland headline tour for June 2024. Fans of the show will want to catch the last performance of Here Lies Love on November 26th.
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