Billy Crystal's 860, named for his family's lost Palisades home, opens Oct. 21

Billy Crystal's one-man show 860 is in previews at the Imperial Theatre, with its official opening set for Wednesday, Oct. 21. The limited engagement runs through Sunday, Jan. 3, 2027, and is built around the Pacific Palisades home the Crystal family lost in the 2025 wildfires.

The title is the street address of the house the Crystal family lived in for 46 years, according to the Shubert Organization's April 15, 2026 announcement. Crystal describes it as a visit to that house, and the stories he tells move between his career and his family.

What the show covers

860 is a solo show. Crystal writes and performs it, and Scott Ellis directs. The Shubert release describes Crystal telling stories about his career and family, centered on the house at 860 and on getting through hard times with family, friends and inner strength.

Broadway.com names family, friendship, love, luck and loss among the show's themes. Time Out says laughter plays a major role in the story and that the evening is not all dark. Broadway.com says the show reflects on family, loss and resilience.

In an Oct. 11 BroadwayWorld article on an interview with CBS News' Sunday Morning, Crystal says that creating and performing the show has already helped him. He calls laughter "a healer."

BroadwayWorld describes 860 as his return to autobiographical solo storytelling more than two decades after 700 Sundays, the Tony-winning show about his childhood. That earlier show came to Broadway in 2004.

Who is making 860

Scott Ellis is the director. Shubert's April release describes him as an Olivier Award winner and interim artistic director of Roundabout Theatre Company. A June 15 BroadwayWorld article calls him a Tony Award nominee. Broadway.com says his Broadway credits include Doubt, Take Me Out and She Loves Me.

The producers named in the April release are Janice Crystal, James L. Nederlander, Larry Magid and Face Productions. The release also said additional production and creative team members would be announced in the coming weeks.

Crystal is a Tony and Emmy winner. Shubert's release says he has hosted the Academy Awards nine times, and his films include When Harry Met Sally…, City Slickers and Monsters, Inc.

Time Out describes him as a veteran comedian and calls Mr. Saturday Night, his 2022 Broadway show, underrated. Broadway.com says that show earned him a Tony nomination for Best Leading Actor in a Musical. BroadwayWorld says he was last on Broadway in Mr. Saturday Night in 2022.

Broadway.com says Crystal's earlier solo show won a Best Special Theatrical Event Tony. Wikipedia describes that category as honoring live productions that were neither plays nor musicals. Its list places the 700 Sundays award at the 2005 ceremony, while Broadway.com says the show's Broadway debut was in 2004.

The team, the stage and the theater

The Oct. 11 BroadwayWorld article credits Marc Shaiman with music, Scott Pask with scenic design and Jen Schriever with lighting. Dan Moses Schreier is credited with sound, and Hana S. Kim and Kylee Loera with video.

The same article says the set recreates Crystal's home office. It also names Davin De Santis as production stage manager.

The April release lists no composer, while the October article credits Marc Shaiman with the music. The June article had said the complete creative team would be announced in the coming weeks.

Time Out places the Imperial Theatre at 249 West 45th Street, between Broadway and Eighth Avenue in Midtown West, with nearby subway service on the A, C, E, N, Q, R, 1, 2, 3 and 7 lines.

According to Wikipedia, the Imperial opened on Dec. 25, 1923, with the musical Mary Jane McKane, and was built for the Shubert brothers. Only the interior was designated a landmark, on Nov. 17, 1987. The theater closed on March 12, 2020, because of COVID-19 and reopened on Oct. 16, 2021.

Among the theater's long runs, Dreamgirls ran for 1,522 performances from 1981. Wikipedia also notes that seating figures differ: the Shubert Organization lists 1,457 seats, the Broadway League 1,443 and Playbill 1,424.

Dates and ticket sales

Broadway.com lists previews starting Oct. 1, and BroadwayWorld's June article gives Oct. 1 as the preview start. Time Out lists performances starting Oct. 14, with 7 p.m. shows on Oct. 14, 15 and 16 and 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. shows on Oct. 17.

The official opening is Wednesday, Oct. 21, and the engagement closes Sunday, Jan. 3, 2027.

The June announcements describe a 14-week limited run at the Imperial Theatre. The April release had described a 12-week run at a Shubert theater that had not yet been named.

Ticket sales opened in two stages. Audience Rewards members had presale access from June 15 through June 18, and general sales began June 18 via Telecharge.com.

The presale ran for three days before general sales opened.

Prices differ by listing. Time Out gives a range of $99 to $321, while BroadwayWorld's June article says Ticketmaster lists tickets from $101. The April release also directed ticket buyers to a sign-up for priority updates at BillyCrystal860.com.

What CAL FIRE's figures show

CAL FIRE lists the date contained for the Palisades Fire as Jan. 31, 2025. The agency's page says the fire was active for 24 days and burned 23,448 acres.

The page lists 6,845 structures destroyed and 975 damaged. Those counts cover residential, commercial and other structures together.

The same page lists 12 confirmed civilian deaths, three civilian injuries and one firefighter injury.

CAL FIRE's latest update is dated April 9, 2026. Damage inspection teams have completed inspections for all structures within the fire footprint.

What Crystal has said about the loss and the return

In the April release, Crystal said he was thrilled about his Broadway return this fall with a "challenging new show." That release described previews beginning in October 2026, and at that point the venue had not been named and more of the creative team was still to be announced.

In the October interview, Crystal said the show has already helped him cope with what he lost. He described absorbing "the loss of home, dearest of friends."

He also said that when life gets tough, "all you can do is laugh."

The June and October announcements both give Oct. 21 as opening night and Jan. 3, 2027 as the closing date.