‘Surf the Musical’ wipes out after short run

Planet Hollywood's "Surf the Musical" is about to wipe out - and will close next week. The world-premiere musical, featuring almost two dozen Beach Boys tunes, opened in late June (following a week's delay) and lasted less than two months on the Strip.

The show's publicist issued an official statement Wednesday afternoon confirming that "Surf's" Aug. 15 performance would be its last. Cast and crew reportedly were notified Tuesday night of the show's closure.

"Although we remain proud of our current show, we are looking into options at making the show even better," the statement reads. "This truly has been a labor of love for all of us. The cast, crew and production team have been spectacular to work with and we thank Base Entertainment and Planet Hollywood for their support."

Signs pointed to troubled seas for "Surf" early in its brief run. In addition to 2-for-1 locals tickets, children younger than 12 were admitted free. This week, the show announced a "Surf Cares" program on its Facebook page, noting that unsold seats would be used to raise money for nonprofit organizations.

Despite these promotional efforts, the show reportedly never sold more than a few hundred tickets to performances in Planet Hollywood's 1,500-seat "Peepshow" theater.

Directed by Kristin Hanggi , who helmed the Broadway hit "Rock of Ages" (expected at The Venetian later this year), "Surf the Musical" represented a reported $10 million investment for first-time producers J. Burton Gold, Michael Ingram and Skip Klintworth .