‘SUNSET BLVD.’ Debuts at No. 1 on Billboard’s Cast Albums Chart

November 8, 2024 E Jazz Reporter

Music

The Olivier Award-winning revival, starring Nicole Scherzinger, opened on Broadway in October.

Nicole Scherzinger at the “Sunset Blvd.” Opening Night on Broadway at St. James Theatre on Oct. 20, 2024 in New York, New York.

Jeanette D. Moses

The new SUNSET BLVD: The Album musical cast recording, led by Nicole Scherzinger, debuts at No. 1 on Billboard’s Cast Albums chart dated Nov. 9.

The Cast Albums chart ranks the top-selling cast recordings of the week in the United States, based on traditional album sales, according to data tracking firm Luminate. The Nov. 9-dated list reflects the tracking week ending Oct. 31.

SUNSET BLVD. is a new reimagined revival of the stage musical Sunset Boulevard, which had its London West End premiere in 1993 and arrived on Broadway in New York the following year. The musical — with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Christopher Hampton and Don Black — is based on the Academy Award-winning 1950 film Sunset Boulevard starring Gloria Swanson as faded screen star Norma Desmond.

The new revival of SUNSET BLVD. opened at London’s Savoy Theatre in the West End on Oct. 21, 2023, starring Scherzinger (Desmond), Tom Francis (Joe Gillis), Grace Hodgett-Young (Betty Schaefer) and David Thaxton (Max Von Mayerling). The West end production ran until Jan. 6, 2024. The production, with its four lead actors, moved to Broadway’s St. James Theatre in New York and opened there on Oct. 20.

SUNSET BLVD: The Album was recorded live at the Savoy Theatre during the show’s acclaimed run and was released on Oct. 25 on CD, vinyl and digital download for purchase.

SUNSET BLVD. won seven Olivier Awards in 2024, including best musical revival, best actress in a musical (Scherzinger), best actor in a musical (Tom Francis), best director (Jamie Lloyd) and outstanding musical contribution (Alan Williams, for music directing and music supervising).

SUNSET BLVD. on Broadway has performances scheduled through July 6, 2025.

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