How Much Money Does Broadway REALLY Make?

[@lpbrog]

Dare I say Gatsby is successful because of Kathrine’s Marketing alone. It’s one of the reasons I went to see it. And I LOVED IT!

[@joannekatende]

Same! I made sure to see 'Great Gatsby' because Katharine was on the marketing team, plus I loved the movie. I'll also be seeing 'Shucked' when it tours cause Katharine mentioned it.

[@callieconover8356]

same here!

[@callieconover8356]

same here!

[@itskatharinequinn]

This is the most generous

[@chaseism]

Thank you for what you said about virtual tickets. Set up 3-5 cameras around the stage, pre-plan what shot works best for what scene, and hit go. I'm in Ohio and would likely check out multiple shows multiple times a month. Even if it's static shots, if the sound is phenomenal, we're good to go. And even better, this wouldn't stop me from seeing shows on tour or traveling to NY because nothing beats live theater. But if a show has a short run or is closing before I can get there, I could still experience some version of it. I wish Broadway could figure out how to make streaming work.

[@Thisismyusername227]

big fan of the work you do, but you know that!:) I love what you said about the new musical/play development process taking too damn long these days. First off, (as a playwright and producer myself) there aren't as many new musical/play development processes to even submit to. We need more entry points such as festivals, workshops, conventions etc to really start to work/pitch new material. I LOVE what you said about shortening the process of development. The tradition of TEN YEARS was before modern technology, before visual-driven media and marketing. WHY must we wait on all of that? Why wait to build a brand and create a show from the ground up - the only way to know if your show is any good is by DOING it! Why must that take 10 years? Just because the old guys took that long?? We have to embrace change

[@itskatharinequinn]

10000% to literally EVERYTHING you said.

[@mattm8895]

Went and saw this Saturday (11/2), I really enjoyed it. Both Darren Criss and Helen Shen are great. Dez Duron; what a Crooner! I had a lottery ticket win so back row of the Mezzanine. Even with the steep overhang of the balcony there were only a couple things that I couldn't see.

[@MichelleMcMahon-pi4ou]

Genuinely I think part of Gatsby’s success is your excellent marketing and appeal to the right genre. Now your job - get us the JJ pro-shot because I can’t get to New York in time!

[@itskatharinequinn]

if only I had that power!!!

[@aptadpamu]

Katherine- Mildly related question: When a show first goes on sale, most of the prime center orchestra /front center mezzanine seats are not available. Then about 1-2 weeks before the show's date, many of those seats finally become available. Are these seats held for producers, investors, industry insiders, or do re-sellers get access to some blocks of seats before they go on sale and later turn unsold seats in before the show, or does marketing hold seats back to create scarcity? Or is it something else? Thanks. I enjoy your insights, and do take care of yourself.

[@itskatharinequinn]

A lot of the time this can be for press seats!

[@Storkus100]

Was surfing the KZbins and just saw that SNL live streams the opening monologue. It never occurred to me how until now how great that option something like that would be for Broadway. A pay per view live stream. I mean hey it works for various "Adult " sites, so the pay model works and could be adapted.

[@josephlim6854]

@1:33 my guess is 41,000 people (1k per theater)? @4:00 I live in NYC area so it's accessible to me and I don't mind doing rush/lottery. @5:53 wow 80% of shows don't recoup yet somehow producers can still find investors! Are costs just too high? If so, which part? @10:00 If the livestream can be similar to MetHD Live I think that would work. During intermission, it would be great to see inner workings of what's happening backstage and perhaps even interview the actors for 10-15 seconds. @10:46 I think NYCityCenter can command high prices because of the caliber of the cast and its limited engagement of only 1-2 weeks so their target market are theater lovers who have disposable income in NYC area.

[@yankee04]

Thanks Katharine. Food for thought as always. Traveling to NYC more post-pandemic. Question - How does Encores pick what productions it mounts? Going to see Ragtime (what a cast) just before it closes, but also seeing Roommate, Sunset, and A Wonderful World. (Contributing to NYC economy as you noted.)

[@itskatharinequinn]

Their artistic leadership secure rights to the shows they want to produce! Hope you enjoy your shows!

[@ThexImperfectionist]

Has the average run gotten shorter since the pandemic? I feel like it has, especially if you only consider new shows. My interest in Broadway is definitely more than it was before the pandemic (could be a reaction to being without it during that period or just because my interest is increasing over time) and I struggle to find the time to get to new york and see the shows I care about before they close. I think I'm above average interested and it can feel overwhelming to keep up with all the turnover. I'm also skeptical of financial assistance being the best answer, but there is something illogical about the business at the center of this industry failing financially while all of the secondary businesses profit. Seems like some sharing of the wealth is warranted, though how and how much is way above my head. And I worry that those businesses would just try to make up the difference by charging customers more.

[@itskatharinequinn]

I think that as well re: shorter runs post pandemic. (Though I think about historic flops closing on opening night--which you can't really do anymore and wonder otherwise.) And...I in particular wish the theater owners would spread the wealth around a bit.