Equity / Non-Equity tour prices

[dwwst12]

Posted: 2/5/24 at 1:54pm

I'm sure this has been discussed before, but...

What is the general sentiment about Broadway Series around the country charging the same or more for non-Equity vs. Equity tours?

I have to assume they're *paying* less for Non-Equity (otherwise, why would producers be so keen to see these tours proliferate?) I know that producers of the arts need all the money they can get now. But I can't shake my general irritation about money going into the pockets of companies, while artists and consumers don't see the savings passed on.

I saw My Fair Lady yesterday in Pittsburgh. Packed house, and I'm sure 99% of the people had no idea they were watching a non-Equity company and paying the same. (To the credit of the show, I thought it was a terrific production. There were a few hints to me that it was N-E while watching, but overall I was impressed).

Ticket prices for the upcoming N-E Book of Mormon are $150 and $135 for the orchestra, vs. about $40 less for Company. I get that it's a demand thing -- Equity or not, BOM will sell. I just don't know how to feel about it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 2/5/24 at 2:06pm

The sentiment varies depending on who you ask but I would love to see non-Eq tours eradicated. They are a stain on the industry.

The only way to make a major change would be the Broadway League prohibiting presenters/producers/bookers to be involved with non-Equity tours of shows that have played Broadway, but they have zero incentive to do that since all their constituents benefit from it. And no matter what Equity tries to do to lower the burden of joining the union, there will always be serviceable talent.

It also gets into the issue that "Broadway" has become an overused term for "theatre that you might like", when it should relate only to the 41 theatres in midtown Manhattan.

The design and other production values can be a quality-control problem too. Usually the physical productions are scaled back to fit into 1-2 trucks, with multiple tour stops per week. How large was the orchestra for FAIR LADY? Surely not the 18 that the Equity tour had or the 30 that were employed on Broadway.

Updated On: 2/5/24 at 02:06 PM

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 2/5/24 at 10:16pm

I grumbled about this very thing in a recent thread…I think it varies venue to venue, but my understanding is that most touring houses generally charge the same prices regardless of the tour’s union status (read: how much the cast and crew is getting paid). That is the main incentive for producers: a larger profit.

I find it very annoying when the term “Broadway tour” is used for non-Equity tours, especially when the production itself was never a Broadway production - i.e. the current JCS, Peter Pan, and Shrek tours. These are not Broadway tours, and to suggest otherwise in ads and press materials is false advertising.

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 2/5/24 at 11:24pm

I would like to see some sort of distinction or separation in the season announcements. I don't think it's right to include non-Equity tours as part of a "Broadway" season presenting other equity tours. The local presenter in my area often includes what they call extra season events in addition to the main season, and I wish they would at least organize it so only equity tours are part of the main season and non-equity tours are presented as extra season events. That's what I would do just to sort of keep them separate and easy for those audience members in the know to more easily conclude which productions are equity and which are non-equity.

[SuttonPeron]

Posted: 2/6/24 at 5:15am

The current MFL tour has 10 people in the pit. Larry Blank did the reduced orchestration, based on Josh Clayton´s already reduced 18-piece charts.