After a three-month, money-losing run, “Side Show,” a Broadway musical about real-life Siamese twins who became performers, is closing.
The show’s last performance will be Jan. 3. The New York Post, quoting anonymous sources, reported Monday that the investors will lose $7 million, making it the third biggest flop in Broadway history. The play garnered favorable notices but failed to catch on despite a $2 million budget for advertising and promotion.
The show tells the story of Siamese twins Daily and Violet Hilton, who were attached at the hip. They pursued a show business career in the ’20s and ’30s, facing exploitation and heartbreak. Most nights the show played to a half-empty house at the Richard Rodgers Theatre, the newspaper said.
In 1996, “Big” closed after a six-month run and a $10 million loss and was the biggest recorded flop. The second biggest Broadway failure was 1993’s “The Red Shoes,” which lost $8 million when it closed after just five performances.
