Musical takes title Of All-Time Highest Grossing Show from 'Phantom of the Opera'.

Very quietly, almost stealthily, a new king has been inaugurated on Broadway. Box office figures released on April 9, 2012 show that "The Lion King" last week swiped the title of Broadway's all-time highest grossing show from "The Phantom of the Opera," The Associated Press has learned.

The cumulative gross for "The Lion King" is $853,846,062, according to the show's numbers. Its chandelier-swinging rival's cumulative total is $853,122,847, according to musical's publicist. The "Lion King" surged past "Phantom" after netting over $2 million at the box office for the week ending April 8, 2012, while "Phantom" pulled in about $1.2 million.

What makes the achievement all the more remarkable is that "The Lion King" chased down and grabbed the title despite "Phantom" having almost a full 10 years' head start. The Disney show opened in November 1997, while "Phantom" debuted in January 1988. The upstart's victory is due in large part to its higher average ticket prices and a slightly larger theater.

"It doesn't surprise me," said Cary Ginell, a music historian and biographer who edited the seventh edition of "Broadway Musicals: Show By Show." He compares "The Lion King" to a Disneyland ride. "It's a spectacle that satisfies on many different sensory elements – audio, visually, emotionally. It's also good for all ages – just like Disneyland is. For the kids, it's the visual elements – the colors, the costumes and the puppetry. For the adults, it's `Hamlet,' basically. And the music is not geared to one age or gender or race. It's as universal a show can get."

Disney Theatrical Productions was gracious when contacted about reaching the milestone, saluting "Phantom" song writer Andrew Lloyd Webber and "Phantom" producer Cameron Mackintosh, who also co-produced Disney's hit "Mary Poppins," and calling their show "a global phenomenon of historic proportions." Thomas Schumacher, producer and president of Disney Theatrical Productions, also gave credit to Julie Taymor, the director, costume and mask maker of "The Lion King." "Her vision, continued commitment to the show and uncommon artistry account for this extraordinary success," he said in a statement. "This accomplishment belongs to our audiences, millions of whom are experiencing their first Broadway show at `The Lion King,'" Schumacher added. "Surely, introducing so many to the splendor of live theater is our show's greatest legacy."

"The Lion King" is the sixth longest-running show on Broadway with over 5,900 performances over 14 years and has sold just over 10 million tickets. "The Lion King" may now have won on Broadway, but "Phantom" is still a juggernaut elsewhere. Its producers have even declared it the most successful entertainment venture of all time, with revenues higher than any film, including "Titanic," "Star Wars" and "Avatar."

"The Lion King" has seven – soon eight – productions worldwide, while "Phantom" has seven productions around the world: London, New York, Hungary, Japan, South Africa, Las Vegas and a UK tour. Ginell points out that about 40 percent of "Phantom" tickets are sold to repeat customers, an extremely high number. Plus, 68 percent are women. "`Phantom is kind of a live-action romance novel," he said. "I think that's what's attracting a huge percentage of women to the show."

The two share some attributes: Both have musical giants behind them: "Phantom" has songs by Lloyd Webber and is directed by Harold Prince, while "The Lion King" features music by Elton John and lyrics by Tim Rice and the vision of Taymor. Both have multiple Tony Awards, movie tie-ins, simple-to-understand stories and are spectacles – important for attracting tourists whose command of English might be weak. Both are not dependent on having stars on stage. And both call home in similar-sized theaters, "Phantom" at the 1,605-seat Majestic and "Lion" at the 1,677-seat Minskoff.

The staying power of each is remarkable. Over their first 750 playing weeks – which "The Lion King" has recently reached – they've played to roughly the same number of people: "The Lion King" at 10,092,235 and "Phantom" at 9,241,333. Most shows that have achieved a ripe old age never appear in the top 10 by this point in their ages, but both "Lion" and "Phantom" are still routinely among the top earners, week in and week out. On the other side of the ledger, over 500 shows have opened and closed on Broadway during lifetime of "The Lion King."

Ginell tips his cap to the new box office king and doesn't see a time soon when it abandons its kingdom. "`Lion King' is the perfect family musical and I think it always will be as long as expenses don't go so far up that they won't be able to afford to put it on anymore."

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