Tourist v. Native

[cmleidi]

Posted: 10/22/03 at 8:11pm

Which shows benefit most from tourists and which shows benefit most from New Yorkers? I assume tourists flock to stuff like THE LION KING, AIDA, MAMMA MIA!, etc. Do tourists avoid most of the plays because they are not as well-publicized?

However, I see no real clear dinstinction in the productions I've seen save for a couple exceptions. The audiences for TAKE ME OUT tend to break down into gay male couples in their twenties and thirties and older straight couples in their fifties and sixties--each group coming from inside New York. The Boyz from OZ crowd was the same demographic as well. Urinetown had a lot of tourists the day I saw it. In fact, the two rows behind me were all from California. They came to URINETOWN because they received a discount, and they couldn't get tickets to their first choice--GYPSY. I was surprised that so many of the audience members for URINETOWN were from out of time because I thought it would be more of a New York style show.

Has anyone ever done a study on what shows attract tourists the most? I would assume you could tell from the slow tourist months. Do New Yorkers just support plays more than the tourists?

[TheaterBaby]

Posted: 10/23/03 at 4:35am

This clearly does not apply to anyone on this board who is not from NYC, but those of us who have lived in New York for most or all of our lives have been surrounded by theatre and museums for a long time. Perhaps we are more appreciative of the plays, and musicals that do not "Sell Out" by using an overabundence of costumes and glitter, or using a non-Broadway celebrity to gain profit.

[RagtimeRay]

Posted: 10/23/03 at 9:00am

While there are some people with theatre in their blood who come to New York once or twice (or more) a year to see "everything" NEW on Broadway, the average out of towner who comes to New York might only see one or two Broadway shows during their trip. Given the cost of theatre, those persons are going to select a show that a) they've heard good things about, b) where they recognize the name of the star, c) the latest "must see" show - Tony winner, etc. In the case of groups, the group tour director is probably going to avoid "risky" shows (these trips are usually arranged months in advance, so the not-yet-open-not-sure-if-it-will-be-a-hit shows are avoided). For school groups, especially, a show with nudity or foul language will be avoided (The Producers will never sustain itself with school groups). I think the Disney shows have benefitted from "tourists" - and their longevity demonstrates it. On the other hand, there are lots of day-trip groups arranged from within a three or four hour drive of NYC. They include people who enjoy theatre, and Urinetown now that blocks of tickets can be arranged for groups is perfectly acceptable.