Chess, the Broadway revival that opened to considerable fanfare last fall, will close June 21, three months earlier than originally planned. The closing date aligns with star Lea Michele's scheduled departure from the production. Producers Tom Hulce, Robert Ahrens, and The Shubert Organization confirmed the news and acknowledged they will not recoup their investment.
The show had placed tickets on sale through mid-September, and singer-songwriter Joanna "JoJo" Levesque had been announced as Michele's replacement, with her first performance set for June 23. Those plans are now scrapped.
According to Variety, Chess broke several house records at the Imperial Theatre when it opened and was a hot ticket early in its run. But attendance dropped to roughly 70% capacity in recent weeks, and weekly grosses fell sharply from a peak of $2,066,742 for the week ending November 30, 2025. According to Deadline, the most dramatic single-week drop came in early April when Michele was on vacation: box office sank to $585,803 with only 66% of seats filled.
The show's Tony Award nominations offered little relief. Chess received five nods — Best Leading Actor in a Musical for Nicholas Christopher, Best Featured Actor for Bryce Pinkham, Best Featured Actress for Hannah Cruz, Best Orchestrations for Brian Usifer, and Best Lighting Design for Kevin Adams. But Michele and co-star Aaron Tveit were shut out entirely, and the production itself failed to earn a Best Revival of a Musical nomination. Tony winners will be announced June 6.
Producers released a joint statement: "We are immensely proud of the extraordinary work this cast and creative team have done in reimagining Chess for a new generation of theatergoers while honoring the passionate fans who have championed this musical for nearly four decades. To see longtime fans and first-time audiences alike embrace this production so wholeheartedly has been incredibly rewarding for everyone involved and a powerful reminder of why Chess has endured for so many years."
The statement continued: "The opportunity to witness Aaron Tveit, Lea Michele, and Nicholas Christopher perform this legendary score by Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus, and Tim Rice alongside a company filled with some of Broadway's most remarkable talent is something that will stay will audiences long after they depart the Imperial Theatre."
Set during the Cold War, the musical follows two chess grandmasters — American prodigy Freddie Trumper, played by Tveit, and Russian grandmaster Anatoly Sergievsky, played by Christopher — competing in tournaments while both become entangled with Florence Vassy, the character played by Michele. The show originated as a concept album by ABBA members Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus and Tim Rice before opening on London's West End in 1986. A Broadway production followed in 1988 but closed after two months.
This revival featured a new book by Emmy Award winner Danny Strong and was directed by Michael Mayer, who previously worked with Michele on Spring Awakening and Funny Girl. Reviews were mixed, though the Hollywood Reporter noted that the show's grosses had been on a downward trajectory since its November opening.
In Variety, critic Christian Lewis wrote that "Despite this revival of 'Chess' making some wrong moves […] there's still some thrilling gameplay, especially from Michele and Christopher, who help provide insight into the magic of 'Chess' and make this sometimes uneven game still feel entirely worth watching."
The Imperial Theatre will go dark after the June 21 performance.
