After less than a year on Broadway, The Cher Show is set to close. The jukebox musical chronicling the life and career of Cher will officially end its run at the Neil Simon Theatre on August 18 after nearly 300 performances.
News of the show’s closure came as a surprise given its critical acclaim. It opened on Broadway last December following a world premiere in Chicago and earned generally favorable reviews. It was a resounding success among picked this year’s awards circuit by picking up Tony Awards and Drama Desk Awards for lead actress Stephanie J. Block and costume designer Bob Mackie. However, that success didn’t quite translate in terms of ticket sales.
According to Deadline, the musical filled roughly 58 percent of its total gross potential for last week, a surprisingly low figure for a week following the expected Tonys boost. The Cher Show is now the latest of several productions to get the post-Tonys axe, joining King Kong, The Prom, Hillary and Clinton, Be More Chill, and Gary: A Sequel to Titus Andronicus.
Despite the show’s closure, there is good news for Cher fans. The Cher Show will launch a North American tour in 2020, with the full list of cities and dates expected to be announced soon. For those who prefer to see the pop icon herself, Cher continues to be a steady performer in Las Vegas and currently on her Here We Go Again Tour through the end of this year.
The Cher Show details the singer’s life through phases, utilizing three actresses to depict Cher at various points in time – stretching from her childhood through today. It includes some of Cher’s biggest recordings, including “If I Could Turn Back Time,” “Believe,” “I Got You Babe,” “The Shoop Shoop Song” and “All Or Nothing.”
Grab tickets for one of the final performances of The Cher Show on Broadway and the musical’s upcoming tour here.