‘Real Women Have Curves: The Musical' bows out of Broadway
News of this cancellation comes less than two months after the official show debuted on April 27 at The James Earl Jones Theatre in New York City. By the time the cast takes its final bow, they will have showcased 31 previews and 73 performances.
The musical, directed and choreographed by Sergio Trujillo, had received positive reviews from critics at the New York Times, Variety and others. However, it struggled to compete at the box office.
According to the New York Times, it grossed about $400,000 most weeks, which is below the expected amount for a large-scale Broadway musical. Since the show's debut, ticket sales failed to reach full capacity, according to data from Broadway World.
In a final effort to boost ticket sales, the ensemble performed the song 'Jugglin' live at the 78th annual Tony Awards on June 8. Yet by June 15, just over 63% of total seats had been sold that week.
The show received two Tony nominations; first for best original score, which was credited to Joy Huerta and Benjamin Velez, as well as best featured actress in a musical for lead matriarch Justina Machado.
Although the show won neither award, the producers expressed pride in representing immigrant communities on Broadway.
'We have been working on developing this show for the last five years and could have never predicted that when it made its way to Broadway it would be timelier than ever,' said producers Barry Weissler and Jack Noseworthy in a statement. 'Bringing this joyful immigrant story that explores the American Dream to the stage has been an honor and a responsibility that we don't take lightly, especially in today's political climate.'
The musical was adapted from Josefina López's 1988 play and the popular 2002 HBO film — which introduced audiences to the Emmy-winning actor America Ferrera. At its core, it centers on Ana García (Tatianna Córdoba), a driven teen with educational aspirations, who often bumps heads with her traditional and menopausal mother, Carmen (Machado).
Inspired by López's own experience, the story takes place inside a garment factory in the immigrant neighborhood of Boyle Heights, where workers race to complete orders as they bear the summer heat of 1987 amid looming deportation fears. It's a theme that hits close to home, given the recent ICE sweeps taking place in real-life Los Angeles.
'This story [came out] exactly at this time when we need a story to change the narrative about immigrants being criminals,' said López in April, referring to President Trump's hasty deportations of immigrants to El Salvador without due process.
López had hoped the musical could have a lasting effect on the conversation surrounding immigrants, similar to the impact Jonathan Larson's 1996 musical 'Rent' had on the national conversation surrounding HIV and AIDS. 'It takes getting to Broadway to change culture,' López said.
While audiences will only have a short window to catch a final glimpse of the musical, an original Broadway cast recording was released June 6 from Ghostlight Records and is now available to stream on all platforms.
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