NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
MezzA101
Broadway Star Joined: 3/29/23
#2NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/2/24 at 6:33pm
That article sounds like a Fox News segment. But (and Christ it pains me to say this) there’s truth in it. Hotels right next to me are homeless shelters looooong after we were told they would be and additional buildings are still used to as shelters, although they’re not for migrants (at least from what I can see every day). While the neighborhood isn’t nearly as safe as it used to be, it’s not the hellscape thst article wants it to be (and I say that after two consecutive days of stabbing at Duane Reade). We certainly aren’t being helped by this God-Awful Mayor we have and I count the days until we can boot his ass out. I just always say imagine where we would be if we could have had Maya Wiley win that election.
Updated On: 6/2/24 at 06:33 PM
stagepotato
Understudy Joined: 6/2/24
#3NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/2/24 at 6:49pm
8th Ave between Moynihan and the 40s has gotten considerably worse. It was bad before, but now it’s littered with homeless and drug addicts. Don’t come at me and say this isn’t true because I travel this street multiple times a month and see it every time. I agree the city needs to get rid of Adams but there’s other focus areas that need to be worked on as well.
Updated On: 6/2/24 at 06:49 PM
#4NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/2/24 at 7:04pm
With the ridiculous ticket costs these days, it certainly feels as if people have lost their love of theatre. Inflation has taken its toll and it now seems like the Broadway bubble has popped. The general interest and financial disparity between long-runners and newer shows has worsened, and “sleeper hits” don’t seem to exist anymore post-COVID. We have tons and tons of entertainment options to choose from.
Even if something is done about all the NY crime, I don’t think the Main Stem can get back the sizable chunk of its crowd that it lost in the pandemic. Unfortunately, we may have already hit a post-pandemic peak.
Well, I'll be. That bird really did it.
sppunk
Featured Actor Joined: 6/18/16
#5NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/2/24 at 9:08pm
Crime in NYC continues to decrease Source: https://www.nyc.gov/site/nypd/news/pr0101/nypd-citywide-crime-statistics-march-first-quarter-2024
But hey look a hit piece by a reporter for the City Journal that the Post shares - color me shocked!
The fact she blames Biden for a lack of NYC hotel rooms is all one needs to know about her opinion.
#6NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/2/24 at 9:12pm
stagepotato said: "8th Ave between Moynihan and the 40s has gotten considerably worse. It was bad before, but now it’s littered with homeless and drug addicts. Don’t come at me and say this isn’t true because I travel this street multiple times a month and see it every time. I agree the city needs to get rid of Adamsbut there’s other focus areas that need to be worked on as well."
Yeah - I’m never one to ever stray away from Broadway, but the walk to Penn from a show after 11pm seems to be getting seedier and more discomforting…and I literally work in an NJ inner city area.
Check out my eBay page for sales on Playbills!!
www.ebay.com/usr/missvirginiahamm
#7NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/2/24 at 9:21pm
I've walked through these areas at 3am in the morning and never had an issue. Could it be that shows are pricing an entire demographic out of their audiences? Noooo couldn't be that. People are far less likely to gamble on a show that's on average $150 a ticket.
MezzA101
Broadway Star Joined: 3/29/23
#8NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/2/24 at 9:37pm
Why N.Y.C. Hotel Rooms Are So Expensive Right Now
The average hotel room rate in the city is $301 a night, a record. A major reason: One of every five hotels is now a shelter, contributing to a shortage of tourist lodging.
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/25/nyregion/hotels-prices-migrants-nyc.html?unlocked_article_code=1.w00.XxGO.XCMtreiSDM9n&smid=url-share
#9NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/2/24 at 9:49pm
Advanced sales are just not as strong as they used to be before pandemic. More and more people are opting to buy tickets last minute at a discount rather than paying full price in advance.
Of course there are exceptions and they tend to be the shows that are star-driven or the shows people know are rarely ever on TDF/TKTS (Lion King, Wicked, Hamilton).
#10NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/2/24 at 9:50pm
When I do a full day in NYC and need somewhere to crash for an hour or so inside, I hang out on the 8th floor of the Marriot Marquis. I can charge my phone, use the bathroom, and fill up my water bottle. Their lobby is always packed regardless of the day of the week. The gloom and doom Faux News puts on the city hasn't worked much. I just don't think there's been a clear, big hit since HAMILTON to give Broadway some new buzz. Reminder, the last two Tony-winning Best Musicals didn't run long. If ILLINOISE wins, that'll continue. The big hits have been revivals since Broadway reopened.
A Chorus Line revival played its final Broadway performance on August 17, 2008. The tour played its final performance on August 21, 2011. A new non-equity tour started in October 2012 played its final performance on March 23, 2013. Another non-equity tour launched on January 20, 2018. The tour ended its US run in Kansas City and then toured throughout Japan August & September 2018.
PipingHotPiccolo
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/13/22
#11NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/2/24 at 9:56pm
Jordan Catalano said: "I just always say imagine where we would be if we could have had Maya Wiley win that election."
You think with Maya Wiley we'd have LESS crime?!
Not a big fan of the Mayor, but his hands are tied by some well-meaning legislation that I think will eventually get reversed (as we see happening in other cities across the country). I like Maya Wiley plenty but if you're worried about crime rates, mind boggling to think she'd be doing any better.
(also crime data, which is all that should matter, paints a very different picture than anecdotal feelings driven by social media oversaturation but thats a whole other topic)
#12NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/2/24 at 10:17pm
Yeah. Even though it’s been years and I can’t remember any specifics right now I do remember thinking she would have been much better with what she was saying. But she’s not the Mayor so it doesn’t really matter, does it?
PipingHotPiccolo
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/13/22
#13NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/2/24 at 10:36pm
Jordan Catalano said: "Yeah. Even though it’s been years and I can’t remember any specifics right now I do remember thinking she would have been much better with what she was saying. But she’s not the Mayor so it doesn’t really matter, does it?"
I'm not trying to beat up on Maya Wiley or her voters nor am I trying to defend Mayor Adams.
I am only pointing out that Maya Wiley, and her allies in the city council, are (for the right reasons, I get it) supportive of revised bail requirements, less cops, etc. Adams beat her BECAUSE of crime, and I find it hard to articulate anything she ran on re crime that we can now think would have worked better...
i voted for Kathryn Garcia, and am not here to defend/criticize either wiley or adams. just surprised to hear someone upset about persistent crime pointing to Wiley as a solution. well never know though.
Theater3232
Featured Actor Joined: 10/16/10
#14NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/2/24 at 10:36pm
Without getting into off-topic politics, I will say that when you reduce supply (such as hotel rooms), prices go up. And while I feel very safe in the gayborhood along 9th Av between 43rd and 57th, I feel a very different vibe along 8th Av between 20th and 50th these days (and 9th Ave between 34th and 43rd) - lots of people acting up, behaving erratically and loitering. It's a very different vibe from the days I used to go to Big Cup by 8th and 22nd. There will always be some big-name hits that people will want to travel for, but for other shows, I can see them hurting.
#15NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/2/24 at 10:40pm
I don't doubt that things have been better in NYC than they are right now. Yes, crime is up and yes, ticket prices are crazy. And Broadway isn't back to 2019 levels yet. But it's still in way, way better shape than it was in the early 90s. There have been worse times for the industry than this.
#16NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/2/24 at 10:41pm
The Big Cup!!!! I miss that place!
BorisTomashevsky
Broadway Star Joined: 4/30/22
#17NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/2/24 at 10:41pm
TheatreFan4 said: "I've walked through these areas at 3am in the morning and never had an issue. Could it be that shows are pricing an entire demographic out of their audiences? Noooo couldn't be that. People are far less likely to gamble on a show that's on average $150 a ticket."
The teacher who got stabbed also never had an issue until she got stabbed.
The “nEw YoRk Is SaFe!” screamers will justify their way around anything.
BoringBoredBoard40
Broadway Legend Joined: 9/27/21
#18NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/2/24 at 10:57pm
BorisTomashevsky said: "TheatreFan4 said: "I've walked through these areas at 3am in the morning and never had an issue. Could it be that shows are pricing an entire demographic out of their audiences? Noooo couldn't be that. People are far less likely to gamble on a show that's on average $150 a ticket."
The teacher who got stabbed also never had an issue until she got stabbed.
The “nEw YoRk Is SaFe!” screamers will justify their way around anything."
way less stabbing here than in red states but oh well (shrug)
MemorableUserName
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/27/19
#19NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/2/24 at 11:03pm
I had to walk through Times Square tonight from 47 or so to 42 to get to the subway, and it was insanely packed as ever. If tourists aren't going to Broadway shows, it has nothing to do with crime, because they're definitely still here and hanging out in the immediate area.
#20NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/3/24 at 1:14am
ACL2006 said: "When I do a full day in NYC and need somewhere to crash for an hour or so inside, I hang out on the 8th floor of the Marriot Marquis. I can charge my phone, use the bathroom, and fill up my water bottle. Their lobby is always packed regardless of the day of the week. The gloom and doom Faux News puts on the city hasn't worked much. I just don't think there's been a clear, big hit since HAMILTON to give Broadway some new buzz. Reminder, the last two Tony-winning Best Musicals didn't run long. If ILLINOISE wins, that'll continue. The big hits have been revivals since Broadway reopened."
Yep, Broadway was on quite a tear pre-Covid with the phenomenon that was Hamilton immediately followed by the twin success of Dear Evan Hansen and Come From Away followed two years later by Hadestown. It's possible that bubble of huge hit original musicals might have burst even without COVID. I can't think of many shows that have opened since the shutdown that might have been much bigger hits in the before times. Maybe Six? But it's not like shows like A Strange Loop or Kimberly Akimbo would have been blockbusters. Even still we've had MJ, Six, & Juliet and as you mentioned, a slew of revivals do very well for themselves. And Hell's Kitchen and/or The Outsiders could join that list too. There just hasn't been a Hamilton phenomenon or an Evan Hansen mini phenomenon since Broadway reopened.
broadfan327
Broadway Star Joined: 3/20/08
#21NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/3/24 at 1:45am
MemorableUserName said: "I had to walk through Times Square tonight from 47 or so to 42 to get to the subway, and it was insanely packed as ever. If tourists aren't going to Broadway shows, it has nothing to do with crime, because they're definitely still here and hanging out in the immediate area."
I thought a similar walking through Times Square Saturday night after my show. If people aren't going to shows, they are still coming to NYC blocking the sidewalks.
MezzoDiva47
Stand-by Joined: 1/8/24
#22NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/3/24 at 2:08am
BorisTomashevsky said: "TheatreFan4 said: "I've walked through these areas at 3am in the morning and never had an issue. Could it be that shows are pricing an entire demographic out of their audiences? Noooo couldn't be that. People are far less likely to gamble on a show that's on average $150 a ticket."
The teacher who got stabbed also never had an issue until she got stabbed.
The “nEw YoRk Is SaFe!” screamers will justify their way around anything."
agreed
u can make statistics conclude anything u want to
while crime may be down from a 30 year high it is not low
ppl who have lived in the city for a long time are noticing that the streets and subways are seedier and more dangerous
even the touristy areas
also has anyone realized that perhaps it is a combination of factors
including outrageously high ticket prices overall
leading to megahits having the lions share and the crumbs for everyone else
on average new shows are having shorter runs than they used to
even mediocre shows would be able to limp along for several months
theres a reason why producers are lamenting the post CV so called recovery
an article is not a hit piece just because u dont like what it says or the facts it brings forward
#23NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/3/24 at 2:23am
Oh goody! It is our weekly "Broadway is doomed because of the evil libs" article by that esteemed journalistic source, the NYP, and posted by someone with a political axe to grind. How tiresome. See you next time.
#24NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/3/24 at 9:29am
sppunk said: "The fact she blames Biden for a lack of NYC hotel rooms isall one needs to know about her opinion."
Exactly. This conversation is happening for one reason only.
Violent crime is down. Period.
Broadway sales are down before pre-pandemic *like every theatre scene regionally across the country.* Sometimes that's related to the areas of town affected by covid, but sometimes not. A wildly misleading article with a specific motivation.
And Adams sucks. Could that federal investigation hurry up, please?
MezzoDiva47
Stand-by Joined: 1/8/24
#25NYP: Broadway sings New York’s blues as crime, costs slow post-COVID comeback
Posted: 6/3/24 at 9:42am
Impeach2017 said: "Oh goody! It is our weekly "Broadway is doomed because of the evil libs" article by that esteemed journalistic source, the NYP, and posted by someone with a political axe to grind. How tiresome. See you next time."
no one is saying broadway is doomed
but it is not currently pre-covid healthy
no one is saying crime in new york city is as bad as it was in the 1970s and 1980s and early 1990s
but it is not currently late 1990s to 2015 safe
not every liberal idea is evil as that newspaper might imply
but bad policy is bad policy
and new yorkers on the ground are feeling it and noticing it in their neighborhoods
and some but not all tourists have seen and heard what the conditions are like
add to that sticker shock from ticket prices and you have a large enough portion of potential tourists who are not buying tickets to broadway shows that it is directly impacting the productions coffers
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