Celebrity Autobiography closes on Broadway on 21 June after poor reviews and low attendance

• Celebrity Autobiography will play its final performance on 21 June at the Shubert Theatre
• Weekly grosses peaked at just $74,437, with attendance at 37% of venue capacity
• Average paid admission was $22.56, with audiences criticising the show's outdated material
  

Celebrity Autobiography, the Broadway production in which celebrities read aloud from the published memoirs of other famous figures, will play its final performance at the Shubert Theatre on Sunday, 21 June — approximately two months earlier than originally planned. The early closure comes after the show struggled to attract audiences following a largely poor critical reception.

Deadline reported the closure, noting that several major publications had declined to review the production at all.

A brief and difficult run

Celebrity Autobiography began preview performances on Saturday, 16 May, with its official opening night on Monday, 18 May. By the time it closes, the production will have completed 3 preview performances and 40 regular performances. Tickets had originally been on sale through 16 August.

The producers have said they will announce plans for Celebrity Autobiography in due course.

Weak box office figures

The financial picture throughout the run was bleak. Weekly grosses peaked at $74,437 for the week ending 7 June, reflecting an attendance of 3,300 — just 37% of the Shubert Theatre's capacity. The average paid admission across the run stood at $22.56.

The Broadway production has not announced whether it recouped its capitalisation, nor has the total capitalisation figure been disclosed.

Audience complaints over stale material

Audience members on various chat sites were vocal in their criticism, with many pointing out that the material felt outdated. A significant portion of the show drew on the romantic entanglements of Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, Eddie Fisher, and Debbie Reynolds — territory that had been covered extensively in previous international and regional stagings of the production going back years, and which had not been refreshed for its Broadway incarnation.

The rotating cast

The full list of rotating cast members who appeared in Celebrity Autobiography includes Caroline Aaron, Brooke Adams, Pamela Adlon, Scott Adsit, Lewis Black, Matthew Broderick, Danny Burstein, Mario Cantone, Bonnie Comley, Katie Couric, Mikey Day, Frank DiLella, Tate Donovan, Alexander Dreymon, Gina Gershon, Mickey Gooch Jr., Kathy Griffin, Jeff Hiller, Jackie Hoffman, Christopher Jackson, Gayle King, Leslie Rodriguez Kritzer, Stewart F. Lane, Robert Sean Leonard, Ralph Macchio, Ben Mankiewicz, Andrea Martin, Eric McCormack, Bobby Moynihan, Eugene Pack, Dayle Reyfel, Phil Rosenthal, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Tony Shalhoub, Molly Shannon, Kenan Thompson, Nia Vardalos, Bruce Vilanch, Kate Walsh, Allison Williams, and Rita Wilson.

Production team

Celebrity Autobiography is produced on Broadway by Rita Wilson, Eric Falkenstein, Douglas Denoff, and the show's original producer Angelo Fraboni, alongside EP Productions, Peter Martin, Willette Klausner, Ken Schur, Mickey Gooch Jr., Danielle Druz, Ben Frimmer, Bruce Robert Harris, Leah Lane, David Moore-Strictly Business Entertainment, Roni Jacobson/Jeffrey Bank, Mark F. Kaplan, Jordan Scott Gilbert, Playhouse Capital/Beth Rudin DeWoody, Alexander "Sandy" Marshall and Susan Palmer Marshall/The Broadway Investors Club, Catherine Adler, Chris Bolan, Robert Zimmerman, Barry Kohn, Meister Leonard Addiss Hirschhorn/Jamie deRoy, Matt Finkelstein, Michael Cuomo/Vic Cairl, Julianne Hoffenberg, and Tisha Fein.

Scenic and costume design are by Derek McLane, lighting design by Ed McCarthy, and sound design by Palmer Hefferan.