“Summer: The Donna Summer Musical,” a jukebox show about the Queen of Disco, will close on Broadway on Dec. 30.
The musical charts Summer’s life from her childhood in Boston to her rise as a dance goddess in the 1970s. The show opened on April 23 but failed to impress critics. Writing in The New York Times, Jesse Green called it a “blight” and added that it reduces Summer “to a few factoids and song samples that make her seem profoundly inconsequential.”
At the time of its closing, “Summer” will have played for 27 preview and 289 regular performances at the Lunt-Fontanne Theater.
The show features performances of Summer’s hits like “Hot Stuff,” “Last Dance” and “She Works Hard for the Money.” Three actresses play the artist at different points in her life, with Storm Lever as Duckling Donna, Ariana DeBose as Disco Donna and LaChanze as Diva Donna. Both Ms. Lever and LaChanze were nominated for Tony Awards for their roles.
The production reached its box office peak when it grossed $1,160,299 during the week ending May 20. Despite that promising start, it has since been seeing a steady decline. It grossed $462,747 last week, which was about 32 percent of its potential.
“Summer” is directed by Des McAnuff, who also wrote the book with Colman Domingo and Robert Cary. Among the producers are Tommy Mottola, Universal Music Group and the Dodgers. A national tour is planned for September.
Jukebox musical fans — fear not. A musical about Cher is in previews and also features three actresses. A musical about Tina Turner is headed to Broadway next fall.
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