Dave Chappelle Live On Broadway Grosses Over 1.4 Million Despite Blackout

Dave Chappelle/Netflix. Photo by Lester Cohen

Comedian Dave Chappelle made his Broadway debut July 9th with Dave Chappelle Live on Broadway at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre.

Originally scheduled to close July 13th the residency was extended an additional week through July 20. Made possible by the In Residence on Broadway series which is a collaboration between Live Nation, The Araca Group, and Entertainment Benefits Group.

Saturday nights are the money makers on Broadway especially during the middle of July, in what we New Yorkers like to call tourist season. However, that all came crashing down when a power outage shut down most of the 41 Broadway houses this past Saturday. The blackout didn’t stop the show for most of those Broadway casts. They took to singing in the New York City streets, but the overall Broadway ticket sales took a 10% hit for the week.

Chappelle somehow came out unbothered by the blackout in his first week on Broadway at the Lunt-Fontanne. In just four nights on Broadway, the comedian raked in over 1.4 million, making him the 6th highest selling ticket of the week with an average ticket price of $243. He followed behind Hamilton at $2.67m  The Lion King at $2.39m, To Kill a Mockingbird at $1.7m, Wicked at $1.5m, and Moulin Rouge at 1.49m.

So, your Saturday night show is canceled, what do you do? Dave Chappelle does to impromptu sets at Gramercy Theatre and The Comedy Cellar.