Editor’s Note: When I wrote this, I was using the Wikipedia tally showing number of Broadway performances. I’ve since asked for and received the official tally from The Broadway League. In actuality, “Aladdin” completed its 2,506th performance on March 11th, moving ahead of “Kinky Boots,” going from #26 on the list to #25. I’m not taking the post down to acknowledge that mistake and also because there’s some good content on “The Producers.” “Avenue Q” still has 2,534 performances to “Aladdin” will surpass it within a few weeks of Broadway starting up again.
On Thursday, March 12, 2020, all activity on Broadway came to an abrupt halt due to the COVID-19 related order by New York governor Andrew Cuomo. Another small but not insignificant bit of news got lost in the reaction to that shutdown: the night before, “Aladdin” had moved from #27 to #26 on the all-time longest running list of Broadway shows. With it’s 2,503rd performance, Disney’s stage adaptation of the popular movie surpassed “The Producers,” which had closed out its 6 year run in 2007 with 2,502 performances.
While it got knocked another spot down the longest-running list, there is one honor that hasn’t been — and may never be — taken away from “The Producers:” the musical starring Nathan Lane/Matthew Broderick still holds the record for most Tony award wins with its haul of 12 back in 2001. It was nominated for 15, including 3 noms for Best Featured Actor in a Musical, the category won by Gary Beach playing “the worst director ever,” Roger De Bris.
Surprisingly, this section of the longest-running list is among the most volatile with the possibility of “Aladdin” overtaking “Kinky Boots” (2,507 performances) shortly after activity resumes on Broadway. “Avenue Q” (2,534 performances) lies just beyond “Boots” in the #24 spot.