Be our guest, be our guest, put our discounts to the test....please? Disney begs for your business on B'way

Last week, I wrote about the upcoming bloodletting on Broadway, in which six big musicals would close in two weeks. Well, make that seven. Another struggling show, the Patti LuPone revival of Gypsy, has moved its closing date to Jan. 11.

Current movies such as Frost/Nixon and Doubt may have arrived at your multiplex by way of Broadway, but as the economy seizes up, that fertile proving ground is quickly becoming a desert. One of the most parched producers is Disney Theatricals, which currently has three expensive productions on the Great White Way, none of them on steady financial footing.

Whereas a year ago, obtaining a discounted ticket to a Disney show was nearly impossible, last week the entertainment giant was shoring up business by saying if you bought a full-price ticket ($121.50) to one of its shows from January through mid-March, you could bring someone 18 or younger with you for free.