Billboard Boxscore unveiled its midyear 2024 charts earlier today, and in addition to U2’s Sphere shows dominating various rankings, there are brand new venue charts that highlight some of the most iconic concert halls in the world. Historically, Boxscore’s capacity-specific venue charts have gone as far down to rooms that hold 5,000 people or less. In an effort to spotlight more clubs and small theaters, there are now separate charts for venues with capacities of 2,501-5k, and 2,500 or less.
Leading the inaugural 2,501-5k chart is Atlanta’s Fox Theatre. Across the eligibility period of Oct. 1, 2023 – March 31, 2024, its 110 shows earned a combined $34.5 million and sold 434,000 tickets. The theater hosted several national touring companies performing iconic Broadway shows, such as Annie, Beetlejuice and Hamilton. There were also highlights from Janelle Monae, My Morning Jacket, Steve Miller Band and the double-bill of Tina Fey & Amy Poehler.
The Fox Theatre finished second on year-end rankings in 2022 and 2023 and was No. 6 on last year’s midyear tally for venues with a capacity of 5,000 or less. Several other perennial theaters appear, with the Beacon Theatre (New York), Chicago Theatre (Chicago), Resorts World Theatre (Las Vegas) and the Au-Rene Theater at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts (Fort Lauderdale) rounding out the top five.
Among rooms with a capacity of 2,500 or less, Teatro Telcel in Mexico City reigns supreme, with a $14 million take from 248,000 tickets sold. Like the Fox Theatre, the CDMX venue’s gross was plumped up by theatrical productions, specifically Anastasia The Musical. Just beneath, Las Vegas’ Encore Theater at Wynn Resort is No. 2 with $13.2 million. Both venues would have been in the top 10 on the old combined 5k-cap-and-below chart.
What follows is a parade of some of the most iconic clubs and small theaters in the U.S. (Teatro Telcel is the only international venue on the chart). New York and Washington, D.C. are each represented twice. The former appears at Nos. 11 and 13 with Brooklyn Steel and Webster Hall, respectively, both booked and promoted by AEG Presents/The Bowery Presents. The latter is at Nos. 12 and 17 with IMP Presents’ 9:30 Club and Lincoln Theatre.
On the west coast, Seattle doubles up. Again, it’s a two-fer from AEG Presents, with Showbox SODO at No. 7 and its sister venue Showbox rounding out the list at No. 20.
Theaters still dominate the lower-capacity ranking, with the top six spots devoted to seated venues. But starting with Showbox SODO, general-admission clubs proliferate the back-end, with Atlanta’s The Eastern (No. 9) and Montreal’s MTelus (No. 15) rubbing up against San Francisco’s Warfield Theatre (No. 10) and the Philadelphia-area Keswick Theatre (No. 18).