Broadway’s “Beetlejuice” has dug its grave.
The Winter Garden Theatre will draw their curtains on the musical adaptation of Tim Burton’s iconic film come June 6, 2020, producers announced Monday. A nationwide tour will then launch in 2021.
The $21 million production broke box office records over Thanksgiving despite mixed reviews, earning $1,589,839 by Dec. 1 and amassing just under $35 million to date. Sales were helped by a performance on the CBS Tony Awards telecast in June, featuring star Alex Brightman in the titular role.
But the runaway hit with audiences who cherished the 1988 original film still couldn’t hold down the high demands of Broadway, with the Schubert Organization, who runs Winter Garden, pushing “Beetlejuice” out to prepare for next fall’s buzziest revival: “The Music Man,” starring Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster.
Dates and stops for the late 2021 tour of “Beetlejuice,” directed by Alex Timbers, have not yet been confirmed by the show’s producers, Warner Bros. Theatre Ventures and Langley Park Productions. Sources told Hollywood Reporter that producers are also looking to move to another Broadway house, though that option would be unlikely given the show’s big budget.
The original cast recording, featuring Sophia Anne Caruso as Lydia, as well as Kerry Butler, David Josefsberg, Adam Dannheisser and Leslie Kritzer, was also the top-streaming Broadway album of 2018-2019, reaching 100 million streams last month.