Theater as an entitlement- Page 2

[Seperite]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 12:54pm

Rush tickets are not $20 anymore. They're $35 in most Broadway theaters, and $42 in some others.

If you're a single mom with three kids and two jobs, living paycheck to paycheck and struggling to make ends meet, spending $35 - $40 per ticket is not at all affordable; it's a luxury that is completely out of reach. That single mom can afford to spend her afternoon off taking her kids to the museum, park, beach, or library, because all of those things are free. All I'm saying is that it's a shame that theater is not deemed worthy enough to fall into that category.

I'm not economist or demographer, but my guess is that for the vast majority of New Yorkers, spending $35 - $40 per head on a couple of hours of entertainment is way too much money to spend with any regularity. Live theater is a wonder and a joy that can transform, inspire, and deeply affect people's lives. Most people cannot experience it. And that's a damn shame.

[wonderfulwizard11]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 1:05pm

Not for nothing, and not that people shouldn't be able to experience these things, but if you really are struggling to make ends meet, you're not really able to just take off for an afternoon, because chances are you have to work. You're acting as though the price is the only hindrance- consider that many people literally don't have the time to lost an afternoon or a day of work. It's not so simple as theatre is expensive and that's that.

[Pootie2]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 1:10pm

Traveling to other countries on cultural exchanges is infinitely more transformative, inspiring, and affective than any locally limited artistic endeavor. Most people cannot experience that. And that's a damn shame.

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 1:17pm

"The problem is that there is NO professional calibre theater that is available to the public for free or affordable prices, at any time, ever,"

Except for the times where there is indeed free theatre. In addition to the Public Theatre's free Shakespeare in the Park you also have TheatreworksUSA's Free Summer Theatre at the Lortel each summer (just two examples that discount your "at any time, ever" statement) . There are a variety of festivals and showcases which have affordable tickets. Some might be great, some might not, but that's the nature of everything, and of course subjective to each viewer.

[NJ_BroadwayGirl]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 1:22pm

Wonderfulwizard - Are you talking about people needing to take time off work to wait in a rush line for cheap tickets or taking time off to actual see a production?

[Lavieboheme3090]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 1:25pm

There is a reason why so many theaters are doing digital lotteries as well.

Also define "professional caliber theater" there are dozens of show listed at $9 on TDF right now full of professional theater artists.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 1:27pm

"In addition to the Public Theatre's free Shakespeare in the Park"

It's a shame that the Public is moving away from their mission. More tickets now are being reserved for coporate sponsors than a decade ago. It used to be that if you made it to Central Park by 7:30 am, you were guaranteed a seat in the first few rows. Now if you're on the line by 7:30 am, you may get a good seat or you may get ten rows back looking at the backs of the heads of Target employees.

[brdway411]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 1:31pm

The Public distribution of tickets for SITP is random. Doesn't matter where you are in line. You can be first and end up in the last row.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 1:42pm

"The Public distribution of tickets for SITP is random. Doesn't matter where you are in line. You can be first and end up in the last row."

That's what I'm saying. It didn't used to be that way. People were rewarded for showing the initiative to get there earlier.

[brdway411]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 1:45pm

Sorry, when I did it last summer the line was full by 730. I thought you were referring to people having to get up at 430 to get in line.

[GiantsInTheSky2]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 2:22pm

I think the bigger issues here are: 1) You have to LOOK INTO affordable options instead of just expecting mainstream mediums to have them. Look in the newspaper, local magazines, online etc and 2) the thinking that, if it's not Broadway, it's an "elementary school production."

The problem is that there is NO professional calibre theater that is available to the public for free or affordable prices, at any time, ever

Does regional not count as professional theatre? I must be very spoiled to have come from the Twin Cities, where the arts/theater community is large and most, if not all, have affordable prices. We may not get to sit front row but our houses are so that it's rare to get a bad seat/view. Not to mention having "Pay What You Can" days heavily advertised, so people of all financial backgrounds can see a piece of theater. You can pick up any mag or paper here and see listings of shows all over the cities and even outside productions being advertised, with price ranges.

[HogansHero]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 2:29pm

@seperite,

you can join a papering organization and get tickets for $3-4 including many broadway shows. you can as others suggest do rush, lotto, standing room and off off bwy for not much more. you can become involved in organizations that regularly get comps. you can usher.

or you can whine and sound like an entitled loser.

there was a time when i probably saw 200 shows a year, and probably didn't spend $200 to see them. If your idea of being a theatre-lover is that you need to see every star vehicle that's calculated to make its producers a fortune, then you don't really love the theatre. But to me the shows I saw BEFORE they got to Broadway, and the performers I saw BEFORE anyone knew who they were, were much more memorable than some packaged crap that's designed first and foremost to separate tourists from their wallets.

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 2:43pm

Signature, which consistently presents some of the most interesting and acclaimed theatre in New York, offers very affordable subscriptions and single tickets.

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 2:43pm

Signature, which consistently presents some of the most interesting and acclaimed theatre in New York, offers very affordable subscriptions and single tickets.

[FishermanBob]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 3:00pm

"If you're a single mom with three kids and two jobs, living paycheck to paycheck and struggling to make ends meet, spending $35 - $40 per ticket is not at all affordable; it's a luxury that is completely out of reach"

This is so true. I know families like that. If you ask those kids, what would you like your mom to do if she had a little more money, I can guarantee you their first response would be "score us some sick orchestra seats to Gentleman's Guide". I applaud Seperite for having his finger on the pulse of what really matters to low income families (while being sure to make clear he is not one of them) and knowing their development will be stunted and they can't possibly experience a satisfactory level of culture at all unless they can buy prime orchestra seats for a hot Broadway show. Forget that Broadway theater is no different than any other form of live entertainment, sports, concerts, opera, ballet, etc. and that the best seats to all of those events are equally expensive. That's not important. What is important is that the best seats to a Broadway production that people have poured $10 million into be made available to us for $20, because... by God... that's our RIGHT as a society.

[South Florida]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 3:39pm

Fisherman Bob and Hogan nailed it The OP usually starts with a whine I've noticed.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 3:55pm

But it is worth noting the historical attempts to make theater more accessible.

There was a theater company in the early 90s that attempted to produce low cost Broadway shows asking all involved to take lower salaries. (Somebody help me with the name as I've forgotten).

Tony Randall also tried to form a national theater company, which didn't quite take off due to some assumptions he made. But if the US had a national theater, that would also target the cultural needs of people if it didn't succumb to being an arm for rich people to exploit, which I think was one of Randall's problems.

[Wilmingtom]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 5:01pm

Just a quick shout-out to the $8,000 cheap seats tickets to the Super Bowl. Eventhough it was televised, and your seats at home or at the bar would give you a much better view, folks paid for them nonetheless. But I digress...

[Elfuhbuh]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 5:32pm

Okay, but that would be sweet if more Broadway shows had the money and connections to do televised showings like Legally Blonde did. ^

[MOUSTACHA]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 5:40pm

If you're looking for an average ticket price of $50 on Broadway, you're probably living in a dream world. Not because Broadway is inherently a more expensive product, it's because it's in an inherently more expensive place. The cost of living is so much hirer. That trend trickles down into all aspects - from food prices, to MTA passes, to theatre. To get more affordable theatre, you have to curb the rising trend of cost of living.

That said, about 2 million tickets went unsold last year. The challenge is to get people in those seats while living in a supply/demand world. It's not a one-step solution, or a one-organization solution.

There are actually a lot of people working on this (despite no large changes or improvements) both in the "establishment" (think the Broadway League and TDF) and new innovators (think TodayTix lottos). We got a long way to go, but both sides have to lean in to make any sort of improvements. Producers have to embrace new methods of getting people interested and willing to pay for high quality theatre, and more consumers have to be willing to put in a little more money and take a chance on an entertainment choice that is neither instant or cheap. With attendance going up year to year, we can only hope we reach a point where average ticket prices trend back down - but when you're trying to recoup $14,000,000 that's sometimes a hard ask from a producer.

[kade.ivy]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 5:45pm

"Gotham and Kade --

You're not showing enough sympathy to those less fortunate than you."

Ah, the old "you hate poor people if you don't support government subsidies" argument.

Here's the bottom line for me.

Theater is a luxury. It is an art form that is experienced most often as an occasional treat by those who save their money and are willing to spend it on theater tickets.

I think it's wonderful that most Broadway theater producers, participants in an industry that, excepting the nonprofits, is private, takes it upon themselves to offer affordable options to ticket holders, such as rush, lottery and SRO. Yes, some shows need the rush tickets to fill seats, but do you not think shows like Wicked and BOM could easily sell their lottery seats for premium prices but instead offer them to those seeking a cheaper option?

To me, this shows that a private industry recognizes itself as a commodity and wants to make its product available to as many as possible. You don't see this as often with other fully commercial industries such as film or sports.

Updated On: 2/26/15 at 05:45 PM

[wonkit]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 6:43pm

During the summer months, google New York Classical Theatre. It is an Equity company that produces Shakespeare for free in parks in Manhattan and Brooklyn. But then - if you like their work, donate! Someone somehow has to pay for good theater - if you can, put the price of a Starbucks latte or a movie ticket in the hat. Their HENRY V a few years ago was fantastic, but everything is totally professional, from Moliere to Shakespeare to Chekhov.

[Bwaydide92]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 6:49pm

In LA Center Theatre Group provides free performances to many of its shows throughout the year to school groups. A lot of the kids who attend these performances have never seen a live show in their lives. And they aren't just any show. They are professional and Broadway caliber. I saw Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson (World Premiere), Spring Awakening, Frost/Nixon, and a bunch of other shows all for free. I would not have been able to see them otherwise. CTG prides itself on providing affordable prices for most show (Half the ticket price is paid by donors). So having free or reduced tickets is possible and viable. I think it would be amazing if the American Theatre Wing provide a performance or two of one show a month for free. Maybe there would have to be an application/lottery process to determine who gets tickets, but Broadway theatre can be more accessible.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 7:06pm

And the reaon we trounce on those whining about it? Because we've been through the conversation over and over and over again.

Just this week I think three or four threads have been about this.


WHINING isn't going to change a thing. And no, MOST people don't stay away because of the price, most folks sent give a hoot about live theater.

And I just how often should you be entitled to go to the theater? Once a month? A year?

You know what would happen if they had free Wednesdays? The same kids that do rush would camp out for those seats, and see the same shows over and over, often storming the stage door. Or doing the time and selling the tix for a profit.


Edited because I don't seem to learn not to write from my phone!

Updated On: 2/26/15 at 07:06 PM

[Fantod]

Posted: 2/26/15 at 7:32pm

It is interesting that musical theatre was intended to be neither high culture, like or Grand Opera, nor low culture, like vaudeville, but entertainment for the masses. With the dawn of motion pictures, theatre was no longer the main form of entertainment for the nation, and has become an increasingly specialized market since then. This, along with inflation as well as things like increasingly restrictive Union rules, has made theatre less profitable. When you need more money to make back production costs, you have to charge more. Even with rising ticket costs, only 20% of shows recoup.

I actually like the idea of government subsidiaries (is that the right word?) for commercial Broadway shows to reduce ticket prices. In comparison with other things, Broadway really isn't that expensive, so funding wouldn't be too costly. Of course, I am not a politician, so I'm sure there are intricacies I'm not considering.