Playbill Questions

[Bob30]

Posted: 7/17/12 at 11:17am

Being from England i am used to paying anywhere between £3 - £7 for a Programme which has the casts bios inside as well as maybe interviews, show history, adverts and some production shots

Does a Playbill contain all this and isn't it free?

Also why do some shows go from colour playbills to black and white? is it cost?

[lenstersf]

Posted: 7/17/12 at 11:26am

A playbill is free, and typically includes short cast bios and credits...usually no production shots, maybe something about the show history. It's mostly filled with articles about other shows and lots of advertisements.

It sounds like a show's program book is somewhat similar to the program you're used to England. These usually cost about $20, but have lots of color photos, interviews, etc.

I think color vs. black/white depends on cost.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 7/17/12 at 11:44am

Because of the ads, Playbills are provided free of charge to the productions IF they use a black and white cover. If they want cover, there is a fee involved.

The Playbill changes their programs approx once a month, with new articles, ads, etc. If you see more than one show in that time period, you will get the same articles in each one, with the only differences being the cover and cast/production team info.

[AlfieByrne]

Posted: 7/17/12 at 12:10pm

I'm fairly certain that Playbill charges a small fee to the productions to be listed along with the other Broadway/Off-Broadway shows in the back of the Playbill, even if the cover is black and white. All non-profits (LCT, MTC, Roundabout, and a bunch of Off-Broadway) are black and white. Most commercial shows start out with a cover in full color and eventually change to black/white once they start cutting back on expenses.

[FishermanBob]

Posted: 7/17/12 at 4:05pm

Interesting, I had wondered about the color v. black & white covers myself. Finally caught up with War Horse at LCT on a visit to NYC 2 weeks ago and they are using a color Playbill cover so not sure if the non-profit B&W practice is being used across the board.

As has been pointed out, the playbills are really just a listing of cast and crew with a few generally unrelated articles and lots of ads. The programmes in London which I was paying I think 4-5 GBP for last summer are not quite as elaborate as the Broadway program books but are on better paper, have all color photos and some good articles about the background and creation of the show, the playwright etc.

Truthfully, having seen roughly a dozen shows in London over the last 15 years and having purchased programmes for each, I'd rather save the $6-8 and get a free Playbill. They suit me fine and I can always go on line for more info.

[theatreguy]

Posted: 7/17/12 at 4:13pm

Head over to PlaybillVault.com and you can see the Playbills from all current shows and many from years past. They only include the show-specific content (no ads or articles), but it'll give you an idea.

[Bob30]

Posted: 7/18/12 at 1:20pm

In England you can also get souvenir brochures which include cast bios and pages of production shots these are normaly £8/£9 which sounds like your $20 ones?

[yankeefan7]

Posted: 7/18/12 at 1:31pm

Bob30 - I was in London in May with my family on vacation. I loved your show programs and did not mind at all paying 4 pounds for one. IMO - they are much nicer than Playbills but then again you don't pay extra for Playbill program.

[Bob30]

Posted: 7/18/12 at 3:27pm

Also most shows are good at pricing their programme/souvenire brouchure so both cost about £10-£15 together.

I couldnt quite believe Playbills are free though, do you just get one per ticket, because if this was England and they where just on a stand people would be taking about 20 each

[Wee Thomas2]

Posted: 7/18/12 at 3:36pm

Officially you get one per ticket. You can always ask for a second, some times they will give you one. Otherwise, there are usually stacks at the back of the house, or you can ask at the box office.

[aaronb]

Posted: 7/18/12 at 3:36pm

You get one per ticket, but piles are usually left at the end of the aisles, I really don't think they'd care if you nabbed a couple extra during the intermission. They're really nothing compared to English programs, though.