UPDATED: Nov. 22 at 7:11 p.m.

Disney’s “The Lion King,” which recently finished its 16-day run at the Landmark Theatre, set the record for the highest-grossing engagement in Syracuse theatrical history, NAC Entertainment announced in a press release on Monday.

The musical’s presence in Syracuse also provided substantial economic benefit to the city, through the activities of both production staff and theatergoers.

The production, which entertained 53,104 attendees, grossed $4.1 million from Oct. 27 to Nov. 12. For five weeks, its crew members, actors and musicians, as well as the creative team, lived and worked in Syracuse. The production also provided work to 163 local stagehands, who totaled more than 21,000 hours of work during the eight weeks they spent on the project, according to the press release.

Altogether, the Syracuse engagement of “The Lion King” generated an estimated economic benefit of more than $14 million to the city. This includes the 4,251 hotel nights that the team spent in Syracuse, as well as the money that both the team and theatergoers spent on travel, parking and engagement with local restaurants and businesses.

Broadway tours contribute an economic impact to the local area’s economy amounting to 3.27 times the gross ticket sales, according to a Touring Broadway report from The Broadway League that was outlined in the press release. This estimated total figure also takes into account local expenditures during the extra five weeks of tech in Syracuse.

As for the rest of its North American tour, “The Lion King” and its new technologies will allow it to entertain audiences in cities and venues that previously couldn’t accommodate the show. The North American touring productions of “The Lion King” have been seen by more than 19 million theatergoers in more than 70 cities throughout the continent, the release said.

“We were so proud to share the experience of launching this new tour with audiences in Syracuse,” said Jack Eldon, vice president of domestic touring and regional engagements for Disney Theatrical Productions. “We are overwhelmed by the enduring response to the show and thank the Syracuse community and our partners at Famous Artists and the Landmark Theatre for another sensational engagement.”

“The Lion King,” one of the most lucrative Disney shows in history, previously came to Syracuse in fall 2011. This year’s engagement was presented by arrangement with Famous Artists as a subscription offering of The M&T Bank Broadway Season-Broadway in Syracuse, which is sponsored by Y94 and NewsChannel 9 WSYR.

Published on November 21, 2017 at 11:29 am

Contact Colleen: cefergus@syr.edu | @ColleenEFergus2