(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)
DAVID GREENE, HOST:
On Broadway, Thursday is about to become the new Wednesday.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG FROM THE MOVIE, "PHANTOM OF THE OPERA")
UNIDENTIFIED MAN: (Singing in a foreign language)
GREENE: Several shows, including the "Phantom of the Opera," plan to move their traditional Wednesday matinee to Thursday. Wednesday afternoon performances have never been huge money makers, and some Broadway executives think Thursday matinees will draw in tourists coming for a good long weekend in New York.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "MAMMA MIA")
UNIDENTIFIED SINGERS: (Singing) Mamma Mia, here I go again. My, my, how can I resist you?
GREENE: The producers of "Mamma Mia" are among those giving Thursday a try and Rodgers and Hammerstein's "Cinderella" are as well.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG FROM MOVIE, "CINDERELLA")
UNIDENTIFIED SINGERS: (Singing) Now is the time, the time of your life, the time of your life is today.
(SOUNDBITE)
GREENE: The scheduled shift would align Broadway with London's West End theater district, which has been offering Thursday matinees for years. The first Broadway Thursdays are set to begin in April with more coming in the summer. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.