The Playgoer: Quote of the Day

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Tuesday, November 01, 2005

Quote of the Day

Broadway theater ticket prices, breaking through a $100 ceiling established four years ago by "The Producers," are moving 10 percent higher, led by the hits "Monty Python's Spamalot," "Wicked" and "Mamma Mia!," which have pushed the charge for their best seats to $110 in the past month. Historically, price escalation on Broadway begins with the strongest shows and then spreads. Discussing the increase in top ticket prices, Jed Bernstein, the president of the League of American Theaters and Producers, a trade group, pointed out that...the explosion of technology-driven entertainment on the Internet and elsewhere has heightened the expectations of audiences. "Viewers expect a level of sophistication in their entertainment that didn't exist 30 or 40 years ago," he said. He added that the average price of a ticket is slightly above $60.
-from last Wednesday's "Arts, Briefly" column in the NYT. (emphases mine)

While you muddle over the merits of the various justifications, just note: the "average" Broadway ticket is now $60, apparently. And, as any visit to a box office window will show, that's hardly a "median." (Sixty is the very, very low end of the price spectrum. How many seats are actually less???)

So please quote that figure to anyone arguing Broadway is still needed to give plays "greater exposure"

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Hey, pallie -- compare the price of a Broadway play to the price of a ticket to a rock concert and you'll find it's actually quite a bargain. You think "Spamalot" is expensive at $110? Try seeing Paul McCartney, Cream, or the Rolling Stones for $350. And they're not nearly as much fun, either. Thank goodness U2 still keeps their ticket prices "reasonable" -- $149 for choice seats.

You playgoers have it much cushier than you think!