You are correct -- 557 performances (plus 16 previews) in a 1900-seat theater. Sweeney won unanimous critical acclaim and 8 Tonys. Nevertheless, despite all of these accomplishments, the original production was not an outright hit -- it closed at a loss and the national tour was also a commercial failure (or so I've been told). Two of the most respected theatre journalists of that era continually used the dreaded f-word to characterize the show.
However, over time (something like 15 or 17 years according to Prince), the show finally paid off -- I assume through licensing to regional theaters. Since then, it has proved to be one of Sondheim's most reliable moneymakers. The 2005 revival which played the O'Neill was an outright Broadway hit. Given the extreme difficulty for any large off-Broadway musical to recoup, the Barrow St. production's success is quite an achievement. |
