Despite being one of the most raved-about musicals on Broadway in the past few months, "Here Lies Love" has been announced to be dimming its marquees this coming November 2023.
Written by Academy Award-winning writer David Byrne and DJ Fatboy Slim, "Here Lies Love" features the rise and fall of former Philippines First Lady Imelda Marcos during the dictatorship of former President Ferdinand Marcos.
The show's release was met with criticism, primarily from Filipinos, as many viewed it as a glorification of the life of the former dictator.
Why is 'Here Lies Love' Closing on Broadway?
According to a Variety report, "Here Lies Love" is closing on Broadway because of low ticket sales.
The final performance of "Here Lies Love" will be on Nov. 26, 2023. They would have performed 33 previews and 149 regular performances by then.
They started doing previews on June 17, 2023 and opened to the public on July 20, 2023.
The Washington Post reported that the immersive disco musical costs around $700,000 per week. However, the ticket sales for the show only grossed around $500,000 to $620,000, failing to break even the weekly expense.
"When we started this journey to bring this bold and original work to Broadway, we asked ourselves: Can anyone produce on Broadway in a new way? Is there a new path forward? What does the template look like? Will audiences want something radically new? Who will those audiences be?" the producers said in a statement. (via Playbill)
Among the star-studded Filipino-American producers of the musical were Tony-winning actress Lea Salonga, EGO-winner H.E.R., comedian Jokoy, and Black Eyed Peas member Apl. de Ap.
"As the first-ever fully binational producing team, we are deeply proud and honored to have brought this pioneering theatrical event to Broadway. The first all-Filipino acting company on Broadway received universal critical acclaim, celebrated by thousands of people from diverse backgrounds, including record numbers who experienced going to a Broadway show for the first time," they said in a statement.
'Here Lies Love' Reception
Although the musical was met with great critical acclaim, Filipinos on social media have expressed their apprehensiveness on the said musical.
"Just so everyone's clear, Here Lies Love is NOT a win for the Filipino Broadway community, NOT a win for the Asian Broadway community, and DEFINITELY NOT A WIN for all the Filipinos who lost their lives or were displaced by the Marcos dictatorship" a user said at the time.
"How disappointing that no context was made on the implications of this show for Filipinos, given the current Marcos presidency; history reduced to a disco spectacle," someone wrote.
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