After a rapid climb to the top and a surge of popularity following a major Grammy win on Feb. 15, Hamilton has been dethroned by The Lion King for the top spot for gross ticket sales on Broadway. Wicked, Aladdin, and The Book of Mormon hold the respective number three, four and five positions. The week following The Grammy Awards (Feb. 15) Hamilton grossed a box office total of $1,792,099. This week, the show dropped $41,175, and grossed a total of $1,750,924. The Lion King last held the number one position for the week ending Jan. 17, 2016.
Hamilton is currently playing at the Richard Rodgers Theater in New York City and is sold out until early next year, forcing fans to rely on the resale market. Despite the bump in overall gross sales, Hamilton tickets have only gotten pricier in the last few months. Tickets to Hamilton are averaging a whopping $718 for all upcoming performances. To compare, tickets to see The Lion King on the secondary market are averaging just $243, according to data provided by ticket aggregator TiqIQ.
Hamilton has become a revolutionary force on Broadway since its debut last July. The production has a groundbreakingly diverse cast made up of mostly Latino and African-American actors, including creator and actor Lin Manuel Miranda, and has achieved unrelenting popularity from well outside the Broadway sector. Hamilton's soundtrack debuted at #200 on the Billboard 200 Chart, and became the highest-charting cast album since The Book of Mormon in 2011. The album, which landed in the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Rap Album Chart, is only the sixth cast album to reach the Top 20 in the last 50 years, according to a report from The Oracle. The cast made history at the Grammys this year, and became the first act to perform on the telecast live from Broadway. Hamilton: An American Musical, won a Grammy Award for the best musical theater album.
