May 15, 2020 - Economy

Disney pulls Frozen from Broadway as coronavirus continues to take its toll

Rashaan Ayesh

Signage at the opening night of Disney's new hit musical "Frozen" on Broadway — Photo: Bruce Glikas/Bruce Glikas/WireImage/Getty Images

Disney announced on Thursday it will be pulling "Frozen" the musical from Broadway after nearly a year as the coronavirus pandemic continues to take its toll on large events and shows, The Washington Post reports.

Why it matters: The show had been financially performing well and was bringing in $1.5 million a week. However, there is a worry that when Broadway comes back there won't be enough people coming to the shows, the Post writes. Most of Disney's Broadway audience is composed of families and people visiting from out of town.

The state of play: "Frozen" first opened in March 2018, and played for 851 performances. That's not much compared to other Disney hits such as "The Lion King," which has been running for 22 years, and "Aladdin," which has been running six years.

Broadway's 41 theaters will remain closed till September 6, but there is no set date when shows will resume.
Disney has been furloughing thousands of workers due to the pandemic.

"This difficult decision was made for several reasons, but primarily because we believe that three Disney productions will be one too many titles to run successfully in Broadway’s new landscape."

— Thomas Schumacher, president and producer of Disney Theatrical Productions, per the Post

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Disney pulls Frozen from Broadway as coronavirus continues to take its toll

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