Broadway breaks barrier: $100 per ticket

updated 4:44 p.m. ET Oct. 24, 2005

NEW YORK - The $100 ticket barrier has been broken.

“Monty Python’s Spamalot,” “Wicked” and “Mamma Mia!” — three of Broadway’s most popular musicals — now charge $110 for their regular orchestra seats.

And the price climbs even more once you tack on fees that certain theaters have — such as a $1.25 facilities fee for shows playing in theaters owned by the Shubert Organization or service and handling charges levied if you order tickets through Ticketmaster or Telecharge.

But nobody seems to mind paying the price. All three shows do hefty business each week, particularly “Wicked” and “Spamalot,” which regularly sell out.

Even plays are inching toward the $100 mark. “Doubt,” this year’s Tony-winning best play, has a top price of $96.25.

And then there are premium tickets, which at “Wicked,” for example, go for $250 each for prime center seats in the orchestra section, literally the best seats in the house.

For the moment, other musicals, such as “The Lion King” and “Avenue Q” are holding at $100 or a little less, for their regular orchestra seats.

But with the holidays approaching, most shows will be jacking up prices for Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s. “The Lion King,” for example, will have a $115 top regular ticket price for the orchestra and front mezzanine for Thanksgiving week, Nov. 22-27, Christmas week, Dec. 19-24, and New Year’s week, Dec. 26-31. Its premium tickets will go from $200 to $250.

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