‘Tammy Faye’ Musical to Close On Broadway in December

New musical Tammy Faye is closing Dec. 8 after a short-lived run on Broadway. 

The show, which chronicles the famous televangelist and features music by Elton John, began performances at the Palace Theatre Oct. 19 and opened just last Thursday, Nov. 14. The production failed to capture and audience and was met with mixed to negative reviews, with critics questioning the ultimate message of the musical and whether its meant to satirize televangelism or celebrate the feminist icon of Tammy Faye.

The show, which was capitalized for up to $25 million, made less than $400,000 in the most recent three weeks of its run, which was far below the numbers needed to support a musical of that size. Audience numbers have been on the low end, with the musical playing to 63 percent capacity in its most recent week. 

The musical transferred to Broadway after a run in the West End in the fall of 2022, where it was nominated for four Olivier Awards, including best musical. The production was the first big show to reopen the newly remodeled Palace Theater on Broadway. 

In addition to John, the musical features lyrics by Scissor Sisters’ Jake Shears, a book by James Graham, choreography by Lynne Page and direction by Olivier Award-winner Rupert Goold. 

John is also a producer on the musical, in addition to Greene Light Stage, and James L. Nederlander. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, John and his husband, David Furnish, gained the rights 12 years ago due to John’s fascination with Faye, particularly around the 1985 interview she did with pastor Steve Pieters, a gay man living with AIDS.

“I toured America for so long and so often that she became someone I was very, very interested in, and that pivotal moment when she did have the pastor on was equivalent to Princess Diana holding the man’s hand in the Lighthouse in London. I thought, ‘This woman is incredible,’ just the way she looked, the way she talked, the way she acted, she was so vibrant. She was full of life, joy and forgiveness, and so I was always incredibly fascinated by her,” John said. 

“So when we got the chance to write the musical, I jumped at it, because I love interesting people like that who have had great success and then been banished and lost everything, and then come back because of their faith and because of their belief, and turn the tables,” he said.

The cast features two-time Olivier Award-winner Katie Brayben as Tammy Faye Bakker (with one of the awards for her role in the West End production of Tammy Faye) two-time Tony Award-winner Christian Borle as Jim Bakker, and two-time Tony Award-winner Michael Cerveris as Jerry Falwell. Andrew Rannells, who played Jim Bakker in London and was originally announced for the Broadway production, did not join the Broadway show due to a contract dispute.