Death of the Great White Way

But wherever will the tourists go? Theater ticket sales plummeted after the closures of nine shows on Broadway. Last week South Pacific was one of the few shows to dance in front of a full house, while Speed-the-Plow made slight gains in attendance after star Jeremy Piven’s impromptu departure bizarrely blamed on mercury poisoning. Classics and holiday favorites Mamma Mia!, Shrek the Musical, The Little Mermaid, and Mary Poppins posted losses, while three additional shows closed Sunday: Gypsy, All My Sons, and Monty Python’s Spamalot. A sketch last weekend on Saturday Night Live starring the displaced actors, cats, and Music Man proffered ways to save Broadway—yet no conclusions were reached.