Why are tickets getting so expensive

[nativenewyorker2]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 10:07am

Genuinely curious. Both Kimberly Akimbo and Some Like it hot balcony tickets are close to $100. These seats used to be like $50. What is going on!?

[HogansHero]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 10:16am

the law of supply and demand, and if they don't sell at that price, they will be available at a different one. Why? same answer.

[binau]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 10:27am

I think the general reason why productions *aspire* to have high ticket prices is because the costs of mounting these productions are just so high. If we are expecting a live production 8 times a week with high quality performers (actors & musicians) in prime NYC real estate locations we just have to pay for it. I don’t actually blame ‘greedy producers’ or anything like that for the most part given most of these shows will never make a single dime of profit. 
 

The good thing though is because of the laws of supply and demand as hogan has referred to, I would say it’s rare especially if you live in the city not to be able to find cheap tickets options. 

[quizking101]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 10:33am

Finding cheaper tickets for some shows is a longer game, but almost all shows eventually start selling discount tickets (with only some notable exceptions - like the current revival of ITW, Broadway week notwithstanding).

Sometimes shows shoot themselves in the foot with price hubris, like Mr. Saturday Night charging $199 for rear mezzanine at the beginning of the run before cutting 2/3 off the price when those tickets weren't moving throughout the run. (Billy Crystal is a treasure, but doesn't command HAMILTON prices).

I guarantee that Kimberly Akimbo will show up on TDF for their going rate (I think $57) during previews and Some Like It Hot may show up too. Also, I can't anticipate either not having a lottery or rush of sorts to push as many seats as they can - especially as we enter our third winter of COVID, which proved to be a death knell for a ton of shows last winter.

[uncageg]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 10:41am

I noticed this also. & Juliet's lowest price is 109.00 up in the mezz in the last row. Their front Orchestra seats are over $282.00 and the last row of the Orch. is at $132.00 on the day I looked to go.

 

I could see these prices going up about 10 or 20 dollars but this is quite a jump in price.

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 10:47am

The prices are absolutely out of control. Just like the rent in this city, it's all about greed. I personally find it shameful. Art and theatre should be available to everyone, not just the wealthy and privileged.

[KJisgroovy]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 10:55am

For the last ten years or so, since I entered my 30s, I've gone to New York 2-4 times year and seen 5-10 shows a visit. It's the thing I do. The thing I spend my money on. It's always cost a lot but it's always felt worth it. I try to see everything and take risks on stuff I might not love... if I've got an open slot, I'll fill it with whatever. 

We're planning a trip this December to see A Man of No Importance and Merrily We Roll Along. There's lots of other things we want to see too... but for the first time it's all so outrageously expensive. Into the Woods, & Juliet, Leopoldstadt (and I'm sure others) are all well over 200$ for any reasonable seat. I can sort of understand and justify that price with a major celebrity or a major spectacle but for an average starting ticket... It's just too much. I understand supply and demand and I don't really think I fault producers (or anybody else) for charging folks what they'll pay. I guess I'm just saying, as a lifelong Broadway nutcase, at these prices I just don't think it's worth it anymore. 

[uncageg]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 11:06am

It will be interesting to see if the TDF prices will change for these shows or if their prices are locked in. Although, and correct me if I am wrong, I think I have seen a show or two over the years that had a slightly higher price on TDF than the usual price they were charging at the time. I could be wrong though.

Updated On: 9/11/22 at 11:06 AM

[JasonC3]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 11:20am

I don't know how intentional it may be, but it sure feels like we have "price anchoring" going on. 

When theaters establish much higher baseline prices, it anchors that in our minds as the norm.  So many discounted tickets now are at what a few years ago would have been the higher price points.

And then of course, we have the greater percentage of seats designated at some level of premium and the higher price points at which they are listed.

I traditionally have come into town each year at least three times for a week of theater.  The cost of doing so—airfare, hotel, and tickets—has almost doubled this year, so I had to cut out one week/trip entirely.

[Dancingthrulife2]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 11:21am

I usually buy tickets day of or at most 1-2 days before the show unless it's something I definitely want a 5th row Orchestra center seat for. Almost always without fail I can get a reasonably priced ticket for Broadway shows except the rare few (and there was one time a friend walked in the box office of Hamilton in the morning and secured a $180 ticket for front orchestra center). It's the law of supply and demand, but chances are the supply is not as high as they might have expected.

[veronicamae]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 11:21am

TotallyEffed said: "The prices are absolutely out of control. Just like the rent in this city, it's all about greed. I personally find it shameful. Art and theatre should be available to everyone, not just the wealthy and privileged."

Then you should go talk to the actors, musicians, and crew demanding fair wages for their work which puts a mandatory minimum in place for the hundred+ people it takes just to perform a show every night, along with the cost of labor to build the sets, the right and fairness to the people who write and direct the shows to be paid for their creativity, and the city and state to bring down the price of real estate. Not to mention the hundreds of thousands of dollars it takes to advertise the show so people even know it exists (case in point: Paradise Square having no money to advertise and everyone here telling them they need to advertise more). That also requires paying TV stations, newspapers, magazines and outdoor advertisers along with the artists to make those ads and the printers to print them.

Very rarely is it about greed - it's about trying to not run a charity by losing money every time producers invest money in a show; they have to MAKE money to HAVE money to invest in more shows - or there won't be more shows.

What is so hard to understand about Broadway being a for-profit commercial business?

Go to the non-profit theaters if you want to see non-profit theater.

Updated On: 9/11/22 at 11:21 AM

[KJisgroovy]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 11:34am

"I usually buy tickets day of or at most 1-2 days before the show"

There are definitely lots of opportunities to save money and I appreciate that! It doesn't make a ton of sense for some of us coming in from out of town though... hotels and flights are now SO incredibly expensive "winging it" is pretty risky. It used to be if we planned ahead (sometimes six months plus), we could secure full priced (but not premium) tickets in reasonable seats. It's just not the case anymore for many shows. 

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 11:40am

veronicamae, you've clearly never heard of unions. The actors and crew get paid what they get paid, it doesn't change based on who is buying tickets. I actually don't think they are being paid ENOUGH, except the big stars. You think shows like The Music Man and Hamilton are charging those prices out of necessity? No, the producers are pocketing all the extra cash.

If you don't think these prices are about greed then you are simply naive. Come on, now.

Updated On: 9/11/22 at 11:40 AM

[veronicamae]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 11:44am

TotallyEffed said: "veronicamae, you've clearly never heard of unions. The actors and crew get paid what they get paid, it doesn't change based on who is buying tickets. I actually don't think they are being paid ENOUGH, except the big stars. You think shows like The Music Man and Hamilton are charging those prices out of necessity? No, the producers are pocketing all the extra cash.

If you don't think these prices are about greed then you are simply naive. Come on, now."

...who do you think is in the unions who demand the fair wages that contribute to the weekly nut that ticket sales have to cover?

I also said "very rarely" is it about greed. There are always exceptions. 

I myself am paid by the grosses of shows; don't be so pedantic.

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 11:49am

I don’t think those wages are fair. It sounds like you’re blaming the performers and musicians and crew for “demanding” a livable wage. Confusing.


Anyway, I think the ticket prices are shameful and that’s my opinion.

[veronicamae]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 11:57am

TotallyEffed said: "I don’t think those wages are fair. It sounds like you’re blaming the performers and musicians and crew for “demanding” a livable wage. Confusing.


Anyway, I think the ticket prices are shameful and that’s my opinion."

Not sure what part of "demanding a fair wage" equates I'm "blaming" them for anything. I listed the numerous things that require ticket prices to be high, and higher in recent years as everything in NYC and the USA keeps getting more expensive, in a for-profit commercial business because you, and many others, seem to think there are ways to not charge as much for tickets while still not losing money.

What is your proposition? People who pay to put on Broadway shows should do it solely at their own expense? Again, there are many producers who do that. Go see a show at Manhattan Theatre Club, The Public Theater, or others. (Oh, what's that? Tickets are still kind of pricey? Even though it's non-profit? I wonder why...it can't possibly be that there's a bottom line for every show that increases over time as with all things and they're just trying to keep bringing you more theater by not bleeding money.) To make tickets lower, expenses must be lower. This isn't rocket science.

You're being intentionally obtuse, not to mention entitled.

[JasonC3]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 12:06pm

One day maybe we will have a thread that doesn't devolve into people shouting at each other.  Doesn't look like it is going to be this one.

[KJisgroovy]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 12:11pm

It's not "people." In this thread it was one person. 

[BroadwayGirl107]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 12:27pm

veronicamae said: "TotallyEffed said: "The prices are absolutely out of control. Just like the rent in this city, it's all about greed. I personally find it shameful. Art and theatre should be available to everyone, not just the wealthy and privileged."

Then you should go talk to the actors, musicians, and crew demanding fair wages for their work which puts a mandatory minimum in place for the hundred+ people it takes just to perform a show every night, along with the cost of labor to build the sets, the right and fairness to the people who write and direct the shows to be paid for their creativity, and the city and state to bring down the price of real estate. Not to mention the hundreds of thousands of dollars it takes to advertise the show so people even know it exists (case in point: Paradise Square having no money to advertise and everyone here telling them they need to advertise more). That also requires paying TV stations, newspapers, magazines and outdoor advertisers along with the artists to make those ads and the printers to print them.

Very rarely is it about greed - it's about trying to not run a charity by losing money every time producers invest money in a show; they have to MAKE money to HAVE money to invest in more shows - or there won't be more shows.

What is so hard to understand about Broadway being a for-profit commercial business?

Go to the non-profit theaters if you want to see non-profit theater."

 

and yet, if you go to non profit theaters, prices have gotten out of control as well. Take the Public. 15 years ago I was able to get tickets for $65 for a musical and now it’s like $115 minimum. And it was just reported that Oskar Eustis made over $1 million in 2020 alone. 
 

 

 

[HogansHero]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 12:35pm

I think we are getting caught up in a little more histrionics than is beneficial. 

We are talking about new shows and how they are priced. Behind the budget for each one, there is a recoupment schedule that shows what would happen at various percentages of sales. Most shows never achieve the targets, which is a nice way of saying they lose money. There is, of course, a calculus about how to balance the supply and demand. That ends up, in most cases, involving shooting at a moving target. Note also that those schedules are based on standards, not ambitions. TMM may be pretty sure it will be able to sell at a premium, but most shows are not. And TMM also is not paying its star magnet in the conventional way that more earthbound stars are paid. So yes there is anchoring, just as there is in every retail store, airline, condo or coop, etc etc on earth, but the greed being observed is not at the threshold that these shows are currently crossing. Which is why those of us who pay attention to what is coming end tend to get early bargains to a lot of shows for which the demand later escalates. 

[MysteriousLady]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 1:04pm

TotallyEffed said: " I personally find it shameful. Art and theatre should be available to everyone, not just the wealthy and privileged."

I agree, however championing access to "art and theatre" does not mean "every commercial play should be accessible to all." Many people seem to think it does. As long as people are willing to pay outrageous ticket prices, there will be spaces that offer commercial theater that is accessible to the few. 

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 1:11pm

MysteriousLady said: "TotallyEffed said: "I personally find it shameful. Art and theatre should be available to everyone, not just the wealthy and privileged."

I agree, however championing access to "art and theatre" does not mean "every commercial play should be accessible to all." Many people seem to think it does. As long as people are willing to pay outrageous ticket prices, there will be spaces that offer commercial theater that is accessible to the few."


I agree and recognize this is how capitalism works. I still think it’s a shame and I do see a very major increase in tickets sales lately, and they were already very high to begin with. My issue is that most of the actors and people who run the show are making union minimum. Meanwhile, Jordan Roth is prancing around the city in couture. I understand the costs of running a commercial show, but I think it’s a shame that greedy producers are charging obscene ticket prices and pocketing the money, making it damn near impossible for the average person to afford to see anything. I want people of all classes and colors and ages to be able to access the theatre.

 

With all that being said, I will patiently wait for these shows to turn up on TDF and offer discounts. I just don’t believe that most people are paying $350 to see a straight play in the last row of the orchestra this season. Hopefully this is unsustainable and cheaper seats will pop up.

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 1:34pm

I agree, however championing access to "art and theatre" does not mean "every commercial play should be accessible to all." Many people seem to think it does. As long as people are willing to pay outrageous ticket prices, there will be spaces that offer commercial theater that is accessible to the few."

Agreed. There are thousands of regional theaters, free theater performances, and community centers that are accessible to all and have much lower price points. Broadway is the best theater district in America and the prices reflect that. The demographics for Broadway patrons are also very telling. Like much of New York City, Broadway caters to the rich and wealthy and always will. 

Broadway becoming accessible to all that everyone talked about during the pandemic was all talk and no action, unfortunately. 

 

[KJisgroovy]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 1:52pm

It’s always been the center of theater in America but only recently did the prices become completely inaccessible. I think the acceptance of its inaccessibility is a mistake. Certainly there have always been shows and seats that have been inaccessible but the standard price is practically out of reach for a middle class person to attend regularly.  There won’t be an audience left. 
 

Ultimately you’re right. Producers will charge what they can. I just worry the long term effects will be pretty damaging. Hopefully the market will adjust before that happens. 

[HogansHero]

Posted: 9/11/22 at 2:07pm

TotallyEffed said: "making it damn near impossible for the average person to afford to see anything."

This is the fundamental flaw in your reasoning. The average person with an interest in seeing theatre can absolutely see a ton, on and off-Broadway (and beyond). Can they see Hugh Jackman? Perhaps not, but that's not really much of a loss. 

I keep my eye on a friend's theatre-interested son who moved to the city after college, and makes not-very-much money. He manages to see a rich array of theatre at all levels so, as I said above, let's cool the histrionics.