Charles Randolph-Wright directs the musical, which is brimming with songs made famous by Smokey Robinson and The Miracles, Diana Ross and The Supremes, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, The Temptations, Michael Jackson and The Jackson Five. It has a book by Berry Gordy.
Motown arrived on Broadway March 11, 2013, and officially opened April 11.
At the time of closing, Motown played 37 previews and 738 regular performances. The musical recouped its $18 million investment at the end of 2014. Read the Motown Broadway reviews here.
Producers Kevin McCollum, Doug Morris and Berry Gordy state that the show will return in a Nederlander theatre to be announced in 2016.
It's a rare move for producers to shutter a production that consistently surpasses the million dollar mark at the box office; however, Motown is currently on a lucrative, streamlined national tour (now grossing over $46 million since an April 2014 launch), which was revised after the Broadway production opened March 11, 2013. It is likely that the 2016 Broadway return will reflect a revised book and structure for the show, potentially with a more streamlined production and cost-effective overhead. The next tenant of the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre is the new musical Finding Neverland, which arrives March 15.
A U.K. production of Motown is planned for this summer, though no theatre has been announced.
Motown has broken the weekly gross box-office record at the Lunt-Fontanne with million dollar-grossing weeks and an average ticket price of $112.72 since the start of performances in March 2013.
The current cast stars Josh Tower as Berry Gordy, Krystal Joy Brown as Diana Ross, Charl Brown as Smokey Robinson and Bryan Terrell Clark as Marvin Gaye.
According to producers, "Motown tells the gripping story behind the hits as Smokey finds his unique voice, Diana skyrockets to stardom and Berry fights against the odds to turn his improbable dream into a triumphant reality. The music that shattered barriers and shaped our lives finally comes to the Broadway stage in the season's most highly anticipated world-premiere event."
Motown has scenic design by David Korins, costume design by ESosa, lighting design by Natasha Katz, sound design by Peter Hylenski, projection design by Daniel Brodie, and choreography by Patricia Wilcox (Blues in the Night) and Warren Adams ("Toy Story"). Motown features arrangements and orchestrations by Ethan Popp, with co-orchestrations and additional arrangements by Bryan Crook, dance arrangements by Zane Mark and music direction by Joseph Joubert.
Gordy produces the musical along with Tony winner Kevin McCollum (Rent, In the Heights, Avenue Q) and Sony Music CEO Doug Morris.
For tickets visit Ticketmaster.com.
Visit MotownTheMusical.com.
Watch highlights from Motown here:
