Is Investing in Broadway worth it?

[Broadway Flash]

Posted: 8/24/23 at 1:28pm

If I invest 25,000 in a medium size musical that is a hit, how much money would I make?

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 8/24/23 at 1:32pm

No.

[Broadway Flash]

Posted: 8/24/23 at 1:33pm

Care to elaborate?

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 8/24/23 at 1:34pm

No.

[everythingtaboo]

Posted: 8/24/23 at 1:38pm

Do it because you care about theatre. Don't do it if you expect a dime in return.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 8/24/23 at 2:07pm

If only there was any way to find already existing information.

 

For the expectation: you lose all or most of it

For the hopeful: you break even

For the lucky: you double your money in 2-5 years

For the very lucky: 10-20x your investment over ten+ years

 

70-80% of all bway shows fail to break even.

[Dylan Smith4]

Posted: 8/24/23 at 2:15pm

You would be better off investing in London or Regional productions here in the States! Broadway has become way too expensive (which is sad) recently. As others mentioned, if you plan to invest, don't have any hope of getting it back!

[Broadway61004]

Posted: 8/24/23 at 3:18pm

Broadway Flash said: "If I invest 25,000 in a medium size musical that is a hit, how much money would I make?"

Exactly $124,892,735,405.65.

Updated On: 8/24/23 at 03:18 PM

[Tom5]

Posted: 8/24/23 at 5:00pm

Look at your investments as contributions to a good cause - the arts - with the added bonus of exciting get-togethers with famous actors. More fun  than Wall Street meetings. 

[JSquared2]

Posted: 8/24/23 at 5:17pm

Tom5 said: "Look at your investments as contributions to a good cause - the arts - with the added bonus of exciting get-togethers with famous actors. More fun than Wall Street meetings."

 

The Under $100,000 investors (in general) don't really get to schmooze with the stars --- they get a pair of tickets for opening night (side rear orchestra or mezzanine) and if they're lucky a tote bag and a mug!  

[KKeller6]

Posted: 8/24/23 at 5:19pm

70-80% of all bway shows fail to break even."

I know this is the standard thought about Broadway, but im reality, I'll never believe it.  Almost envy facet of entertainment claims to be a losing venture. Sports,  Broadway. Even" The Empire Strikes Back" claims to have never made any money. Don't believe it for a second.  Are there shows that lose  money? Sure. But 70-80% today? No way. It would have dried up ages ago if that were the case. 

 

[chrishuyen]

Posted: 8/24/23 at 5:26pm

KKeller6 said: "70-80% of all bway shows fail to break even."

I know this is the standard thought about Broadway, but im reality, I'll never believe it. Almost envy facet of entertainment claims to be a losing venture. Sports, Broadway. Even" The Empire Strikes Back" claims to have never made any money. Don't believe it for a second. Are there shows that losemoney? Sure. But 70-80% today? No way. It would have dried up ages ago if that were the case."

To be fair, this just means they lost money in their Broadway run, but they could be profitable on tour/licensing, and I'm not sure what kind of deal the investors get in terms of future iterations of the production, but it could be true they eventually make a profit with subsidiary revenue

[BroadwaysBroad]

Posted: 8/24/23 at 8:13pm

Is it a show thats already open? Can you give us a hint? Knowing what the show is would help.

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 8/24/23 at 9:40pm

BroadwaysBroad said: "Is it a show thats already open? Can you give us a hint? Knowing what the show is would help."

Shows that are already open, especially hits, rarely, if ever, seek additional investors. If there is a currently running show that is seeking more money then it's almost certainly a bridge loan that is being taken in a very misguided hope of keeping a floundering show open. 

For the poster who advised investing in regional productions in the US, the large majority of those are produced by non-profit companies. So you can't really invest in those, as they don't return anything on the investment. You'd be making a tax-deductible donation. The rules may be slightly different if it's what is considered "enhancement" money from a commercial producer/group who are using the non-profit as development ground, but I'm not sure about that. I assume even there the money they put into it goes into the deduction/write-off category for them.

[BenjaminNicholas2]

Posted: 8/24/23 at 10:16pm

Broadway Flash said: "If I invest 25,000 in a medium size musical that is a hit, how much money would I make?"

You do it expecting to lose money.  Only insane luck allows a return.

I had the chance to put $10k as a small investor in the OBC of Hairspray.  It paid back and I was given the chance from that to put money into the first national tour, sit-downs and the Vegas production.  It ended up paying for itself several times over.  I was incredibly fortunate.  It paid off my student loans.

That said, I put $50k+ into The Prom and lost it.  I wanted it to do well, as I absolutely loved the show, the writing and the cast, but it wasn't meant to be.  It never found a huge audience, even with the Netflix film version. 

You win some, you lose some.  I don't think I'd put money into another show, as it's not a financial risk I want to take at this point in life, but I'm happy I did what I did.

You do it to create something special and because you believe in it.

 

[chrishuyen]

Posted: 8/24/23 at 11:18pm

Out of curiosity, did you lose all $50k you put into The Prom or only a portion of it?

[BroadwaysBroad]

Posted: 8/25/23 at 6:57am

How does someone invest? Is there a website where you choose your show?

[kaykordeath]

Posted: 8/25/23 at 9:25am

There is one GREAT way to almost ensure you end up with a small fortune by investing on Broadway.

 

Start with a large fortune.

Updated On: 8/25/23 at 09:25 AM

[RaisedOnMusicals]

Posted: 8/25/23 at 10:45am

KKeller6 said: "70-80% of all bway shows fail to break even."

I know this is the standard thought about Broadway, but im reality, I'll never believe it. Almost envy facet of entertainment claims to be a losing venture. Sports, Broadway. Even" The Empire Strikes Back" claims to have never made any money. Don't believe it for a second. Are there shows that losemoney? Sure. But 70-80% today? No way. It would have dried up ages ago if that were the case.
 

Well, if you know anyone with a track history (more than having invested in more than one or two shows) ask them whether or not to believe it. That's why just getting one's money back (recoupment) is a big deal. A show that does nothing more than break even is considered a "hit" in Broadway terminology. One of my closest friends has been a small investor ($25,000 or so) in about 20-30 shows over the past 15 years, and he's always given me the show by show run down, as he's asked me to split units with him multiple times. I've resisted the temptation.

 

[RippedMan]

Posted: 8/25/23 at 11:22am

Was offered to invest in "One More Time" and thought for sure it would make $ ... glad I rethought that one. 

And you just reach out to producers/investors and get on the email lists, etc.

[KKeller6]

Posted: 8/25/23 at 1:10pm

Well, if you know anyone with a track history (more than having invested in more than one or two shows) ask them whether or not to believe it. That's why just getting one's money back (recoupment) is a big deal. A show that does nothing more than break even is considered a "hit" in Broadway terminology. One of my closest friends has been a small investor ($25,000 or so) in about 20-30 shows over the past 15 years, and he's always given me the show by show run down, as he's asked me to split units with him multiple times. I've resisted the temptation.

I've never invested in shows, but from what I've heard,  it's not like producers will take anyone's money for any show. Is that correct? You have to kind of " pay your dues". By investing in their riskier ventures. So, sure, it's very hard for outsiders to get to the point where you're making a lot of money. I'm sure you can get lucky.  But, it seems to  be a closed club.  For the small timer.  

 

[DaveyG]

Posted: 8/25/23 at 1:15pm

A close friend invested in the Bette Midler "Hello Dolly." It seemed like a no brainer to turn a nice profit. The investors recouped 105% and they felt with the business it was doing, Mr. Rudin did not serve them well. 

[Wick3]

Posted: 8/26/23 at 10:03am

If you have disposable cash, then yes. The best scenario is to invest in a long-running hit first and use the profits (or portions of it) each year to invest in other Broadway shows. I’d hope those who invested in Wicked back in 2003 are reinvesting some of their profits for new/riskier Broadway shows.

For Hello Dolly, I recall reading a NYT article that Rudin bundled that show to new investors with riskier plays that may not fully recoup. Plus he spent a lot of money in marketing; thus only 105% were returned to investors.

From attending the broadwaycares auction last fall, I recall people bidding over $10k for a pair of tickets to opening night + party (if they had one.) If you’re an investor, at least you have a chance of recouping or getting a small portion of the investment back.

[itsjustmejonhotmailcom]

Posted: 8/26/23 at 10:26am

KKeller6 said: "70-80% of all bway shows fail to break even."

I know this is the standard thought about Broadway, but im reality, I'll never believe it. Almost envy facet of entertainment claims to be a losing venture. Sports, Broadway. Even" The Empire Strikes Back" claims to have never made any money. Don't believe it for a second. Are there shows that losemoney? Sure. But 70-80% today? No way. It would have dried up ages ago if that were the case.

Almost 80% of new restaurants fail, but new restaurants still open all the time.

 

[BETTY22]

Posted: 8/26/23 at 1:04pm

Of course it is......