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Lane, Broderick "Producers" Again
Springtime has sprung again for Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick.
Broadway's original Max Bialystock and Leo Bloom are officially coming back to The Producers for 14-week run at the St. James Theater that begins December 30 and stretches to April 4.
An encore by Lane and Broderick, which had been rumored for months, will provide a welcome box-office boost to Mel Brooks' mega-hit musical, which won a record 12 Tonys in 2001 and was the hottest ticket in town until the pair took their final bows in March 2002.
Sales have dwindled in the intervening months as the zingers lost a little bit of their zing with the likes of Henry Goodman taking over for Lane as Bialystock and quickly getting fired for his lack of chutzpah. And Steven Weber of Wings fame, who filled in for Broderick as Bloom, didn't fare much better.
Instead of selling out the 1,706-seat St. James on a nightly basis, The Producers has been doing solid but unspectacular box office. Last week, for example, the show generated $779,514 and played to 70 percent capacity with lesser lights Fred Applegate and Don Stephenson as Bialystock and Bloom.
By comparison, the zany onstage chemistry between Lane and Broderick helped The Producers regularly rake in more than $1 million a week--even after producers raised the ceiling price on ticket prices from $100 a pop to upwards of $480 for "gold circle" seating (the price increase was to help counter scalpers, who were charging even more).
With business off 20 percent, the producers of The Producers decided it was high time to take some action.
So after some finagling and schmoozing of their own, they were able to woo Lane and Broderick back to the title roles they made famous two years ago--Lane as the money-grubbing disreputable producer and Broderick as the hapless accountant who team up to make a bundle by conning little old ladies to invest in a sure-thing Broadway flop, Springtime for Hitler, which, of course, turns out to be a major hit.
The actors didn't come cheap, though. For their return services, Lane and Broderick will reportedly be paid $100,000 a week each, not exactly chump change.
Also back is original supporting cast member Roger Bart in the role of Carmen Ghia, assistant and partner of flamboyant director Roger DeBris.
Tickets for the 112 performances with Lane and Broderick will go on sale on November 16 (call Telecharge, 212-239-6200, or online at www.telecharge.com).
Prices for The Producers typically range between $30 and $100 for a regular show. However, with Lane and Broderick aboard, expect the VIP seating to be back in place.
A New Year's Eve gala performance will also come at a steep price, with prime orchestra seats expected to go for $1,500, which includes a special after-show champagne dinner in the all-glass lobby of the Minskoff Theater which overlooks the festivities in Times Square.
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