Show History

History

Inspiration

The show draws inspiration from the characters and format of "Sesame Street." Jeff Marx, one of the show's creators, interned at the "Sesame Street" program early in his career, and three of the puppet characters are recognizable parodies of classic "Sesame Street" puppets.

Productions

Avenue Q was developed at the 2002 National Music Theatre Conference at the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center in Waterford, Connecticut. It eventually opened Off-Broadway at the Vineyard Theatre in March of 2003, where it received rave reviews and its run extended four times before closing in May of 2003.

Avenue Q opened on Broadway at the John Golden Theatre on July 31, 2003. After 22 previews and 2,534 regular performances, it closed on September 13, 2009. Six weeks later, Avenue Q opened Off-Broadway at the New World Stages complex. As of August 2016, the musical continues to run at its Off-Broadway home.

The unexpected success of this raunchy and somewhat controversial musical also spawned sit-down productions in Las Vegas and London, two national tours and a vast array of international productions.