Such a missed opportunity for all of the book to stage adaptations this past year to not offer a 4-ticket special and call it “Broadway’s Library Visit.”
I Loooove the fact there was a group that was talking crap about you. That means you are doing great things that they feel threatened by!! Keep it up!!👍🏻
Thank you so much for giving voice to this. I agree 100% that Broadway must band together for the sake of its collective brand (and even the brand of theatre everywhere, because it is the mascot) and especially your point about rent by theaterowners. In my opinion, this is THE critical issue. And yes, when three companies control 80% of the real estate with constant demand, there is no incentive whatsoever to make things better.
I absolutely love that recently, you do an entire video for every new show right before previews start regardless of who's show it is. If only more people did that
@@itskatharinequinn I have been recommending Maybe Happy Ending even though I haven’t seen it yet, just so the word gets out. The reviews are pretty positive across the board.
A subscription package seems like it would make so much sense! It's so surprising to me that the theater companies that own the theaters don't push for a more collaborative environment to bolster less popular shows. Especially ones that have gotten great critical response but not enough eyeballs *cough*SweptAway*cough*
I love all of this, but when you were talking about needing to advertise shows earlier, I will never forget my senior year at NYU, there were all these signs throughout the city saying so much happened before Dorothy dropped in. I really wondered what the show was going to be about, it made me really want to get tickets. I have now seen Wicked over 30 times, and I’m about to see a movie for a second time. I can only imagine what that type of a campaign would do for a show online.
So glad you're talking about this! Another exacerbating consequence of this mess is that when so many shows are closing so quickly, the easy assumption (from your average tourist and casual non-obsessive theatre fan) is that it must have been a bad show. And if that's becoming the norm, Broadway as a whole must be getting worse. Hence, branding problem, even when we know commercial success and artistry don't always go together. And it probably makes people less likely to purchase advance tickets, bc why take the chance and possibly deal with the headache of trying to get a refund when it's unlikely to be there in 3 months anyway. I feel for the artists and creatives caught up in this, I really do. It's like kicking someone out of a plane without a parachute bc they paid upfront for the ride and yay for them if they manage to fly on the way down.
This! Art is subjective, and yes some shows to some are demonstrably bad for enough folks to call it that (or not good at least) but there's still an audience for it somewhere.
One bit of (kind of) cross branding were a bunch of shows doing the choreography to the Wicked musical. It was like all of the shows were excited for this massive movie musical. I'd love to see more of that, but swapping with shows on Broadway.
Hi Katherine, Hearing you describe the Broadway community is like hearing a caring politician who still considers themselves a community servant. America has decided that money is number one and creativity and joyful experiences are just extras. I just closed up shop on a small business after 25 years and the only spot for me on Broadway is in the audience. My degree is in advertising and the business community which includes Broadway does not want my old brain and experience and your youthful knowledge and experience to get together and hold art and commerce on the same level. I'm from New York and go back at least three times a year and always go to see a few Broadway shows. We can keep art alive, make money and not eat each other alive. I truly hope we keep the Broadway community alive and well. Good Luck with everything, Vin (A Broadway Fan)
Great thoughts… I love the Livestream Initiative. Seeing the Wicked grosses emphasizes your hypothesis on a maximized level. The biggest hurdle is that the SOUND of a broadway show is not up to the standard for a mass market. Operations that livestream every week have a broadcast mix of a show going in a separate broadcast suite. The audio mix for a 2000 seat auditorium is vastly different from what’s needed on a TV in a home. The investment that producers are putting into audio systems is already subpar. Met with a speaker manufacturer about the design for a Tony winning show running on broadway right now, and they aren’t even creating a great mix inside the auditorium. With a pro-shot most of the mixing can be done in post, but there is a big hill and investments need to be made for audio to be available to the mass market.
@@yankee04In an opera house, the tech investment is shared across all productions. It's baked into the long-term operations budget. ALSO: Opera is entirely acoustic, which is a whole different world.
@@yankee04in theory yes… but Lincoln Center is a different animal than Broadway. Those theaters have more room and resources. Even a giant show like Wicked is running an analogue sound board because they have no margin for flexibility.
Thanks, I absolutely love theater and all the stuff you’re saying is the stuff I usually don’t think about. I only know musicals, and I write musicals, so I have a vested interest, but I do think the quality of music in the shows is a huge problem. A lot of that comes from producers, who understandably are afraid to take a chance because it’s so expensive, but playing it safe in the arts and trying to re-create someone else’s success is rarely a good move.
Anticipation.. I see what you did there x... watching this after hearing the awful news about Swept Away. WE really need to get the Broadway house in order so that new creative ventures and inventive productions don't sink (no pun intended) otherwise Broadway will just be Disney, revivals and big name stars.
You my friend, are an Innovative genius. Your work on The Great Gatsby alone, people should be standing in line to hire you. Although I'm going overboard here I would venture to say that you and you alone, along with Jeremy jordan, have kept the Great Gatsby running your social media campaign for that show is genius genius genius
I'm new to the campaigns, what have they been doing for Great Gatsby? I'm also a blind person so if it's a visual campaign then I'll need some explanations.
Subscription pacakges for Broadway and the West End would be amazing. In London the first show that has really nailed social media has been the show Two Strangers. It created such a distinctive brand, had reels going viral, and took a small 2 person musical from a small off-west end stage to a main theatre in the West End.
Everything you’re saying is 💯. I was part of 2 shows on Broadway this past year (first world problems) that both closed prematurely, IMHO. Thanks for adding your insight from the marketing end. Perhaps we can all collectively join forces and make change (and dollars) together.
Tourists will automatically hit up the cheapest show. I know this for a fact after hosting many tours. They are usually in groups and they immediately ask, “what tickets can we get for under $100.”
Show collabs would be amazing. As a tourist, if I had an easy way to see multiple shows at a more affordable price (I don't mean dirt cheap, I mean like a 15% discount) without rush, SRO, or TKTS that would be great. I could plan ahead and know I had decent tickets. Right now if I visit I either spend out the nose to be sure I can see the show I want or I use one of the above options and can't plan for sure around it. NYC is already super expensive. I can absolutely understand why another tourist isn't willing to do either of those things. But imagine if the theaters themselves sold packages. Look! You could get two new shows and a popular long-runner at a discount- two evenings and a matinee.... Yeah. There is an audience that would snatch that up immediately! (Maybe something like this DOES exist, and if so please let me know. And if it does, the publicity around it is piss-poor for the average tourist around the country.)
I follow just about everything Broadway on facebook and UA-cam, but when I see the view counts, likes, and comments it’s very disheartening. I love this art form so much and want to see thrive, especially on social media
OMG!!! You are a genius!!! These ideas are all 💯💯💯💯💯!!! And your social media work on Gatsby has been FANTASTIC! I’ve been following it from the beginning. The theatre community needs to listen to you!!!!
This might be unrelated, but I’ve been thinking about this a lot recently. Do you think there is a difference in success rates to shows that open in the spring vs the fall? I feel like shows that open in the fall don’t get to build that anticipation bc they are coming off the hype of the prior season and then have to survive the winter. But I am already excited for shows opening this Spring like Smash, also bc I’ve been following it since the reading.
@@ReneeDoty I know a lot of shows (especially artsy, brand new ones) intentionally open in the spring hoping that Tony award noms and wins in June will boost ticket sales early on when its hardest to have good word of mouth. There's also a thought that being fresh in voters minds may make them more likely to get noms and wins. But so many shows use this strategy that there ends up being a ton of new shows opening in March and April, making it harder for any one show to stand out. If they start in the fall they have to survive on their own marketing (through the January drought) and hope they still have momentum by the Tonys, but there's usually less new shows competing for attention. I feel like revivals and celebrity vehicles usually feel safer with a fall opening bc there's fewer unknowns for ticket buyers. Some shows also have a seasonal reason to open in the fall (Wicked, Little Shop, Death Becomes Her, Elf, etc). As for comparing the recoup rates or average run for all shows opening in the spring vs fall, I'd have no idea.
This is an excellent deconstruction of the competing/conflicting incentives in the BWay equation. Thank you for diving into these issues! That said, Broadway is my FAVORITE cartel.
it would be cool if you could do a bundle ticket discount. for example choose 3 broadway shows, get orchestra seats for all 3, and save 15% off, get no fees, etc. would be awesome (free idea for some producer to take hopefully)
This video was so informative. I've been a big Broadway fan since childhood, and I've lived just on the other side of the Hudson my whole life, so I've seen a bunch of shows. As someone who's worked in marketing both in the private and the public sectors, I really appreciate your insight and analysis of the industry. Your advice is sooo vital and applicable to pretty much any industry.
How can the competing agencies/social media directors have a group chat where they talk s**T about newbiers? That is wrong, on so, so, so many levels. Period. No notes except, brilliant video, things, must, change.
I am a relative newbie here, but I recently saw Swept Away after its early closing was announced and concluded that it was a really good show that was not marketed properly. I am interested in your thoughts about this, given what you discuss in this video. I saw Gatsby at Papermill and then on Broadway, knowing then it was going to be a big hit. Glad to see you genuinely promoting it, by acting as a cheerleader for the talent and production design. Your reviews never seem cheap like its all about the money, even though it is all about the business. Theater viewers just want that escape and not see the money side. I enjoy going because I want to experience that rush of seeing and hearing great live performances that you can't get anywhere else. Broadway needs to focus more on this as a collective purpose and not compete with each other.
I have never even thought about subscriptions as a possible solution outside of the ones already in existance. I think with the right creative thought process to make it appealing to diverse audiences (not just locals, for ex) it would be really innovative.
This really got the comments going, love it! There is a part of me that thinks just lean in to making Broadway Disney Live and let off Broadway and surrounding theaters lean into new works and more niche art. IMHO Swept Away or How to Dance would have had a longer more exciting life in an off Broadway theater. Because Broadway theaters don't care who the next tenant is only that they have someone paying the rent, shows are being put into theaters that don't make sense before they are ready to be there. Some with the right marketing and ability/budget to grow as they go (Great Gatsby, & Juliet) figure it out others just shouldn't have been there in the first place. Look at the success of Little Shop and Titanique. They are killing it!
I know Broadway is drastically different from Branson but as the occasional NY tourist, I would love a 3 show package deal or something. That's a great idea.
Great video! Please do another video on how this trickles down even to regional auditions and the non-union overconsumption and Equity overconsumption nightmare!
Wow…you are speaking my language lady. I worked on B’way during the Serino/SpotCo era & I couldn’t agree more. Post 9/11 I helped launch the very first “Season Of Savings” campaign, the first of its kind, a multi-agency pro-B’way at any costs effort. Very successful. Don’t know why we don’t see more of this. Appreciate your passion & efforts & your content. Also, I low-key 💙 “The Roommate”. Go Broadway.
Will you please do a video on Broadway plays (not musicals) over the past 10 years or so? Your review on great plays, casts, flops, long runs, etc. Is there an audience for plays anymore? Thank you.
I was very impressed by your work on OHIO, SHUCKED, and GATSBY - in each case one could see there was real buzz. From my POV a major problem in the ecosystem is that there is almost no way to break even Off-Broadway, so well-made & interesting shows without blockbuster appeal (such as A STRANGE LOOP) have no place to go.
Living now in Virginia Beach we need advertisments or ads on our TV's . We need commercials for people around the country. I hate Tik Tok it 's BS. Boston Tne Great Gatsby should come to Broadway. I miss the 1990's price of tickets way too expensive for a regular theatre goer. Broadway musicals needs to be on west end to fix things in the show before coming to Broadway, like Mean Girls.
You’re absolutely right! Theater owners need to rethink their rent structure. Here’s the issue: every time a show closes, the theater sits empty for 2 to 9 months with no income coming in. Instead of charging 6-7% of the weekly box office gross plus additional rent for box-office staff, ushers, cleaning, and security, why not cut that percentage in half for the first six months of a new show? It would give productions a stronger chance to succeed and stick around. A long-running show benefits everyone-owners, productions, and audiences-much more than constantly swapping in new ones. What’s your take on this?
Broadway really needs to up its influencer marketing game. Right now, they’re mostly focused on Broadway influencers (aka “The Bubble”), but they need to think bigger and tap into new audiences. I’m sure the email inboxes of Broadway PR and digital marketing firms are overflowing with comp ticket requests from influencers and their managers-most of which are being ignored. That’s a huge missed opportunity! On top of that, they’re missing out by not providing influencers with trackable links and unique discount codes to directly drive and measure ticket sales. Broadway can do so much better!
Does Broadway even have someone focused on brand partnerships? It doesn’t seem like it. Partnerships feel random with no clear strategy. Look at the Wicked movie-450 promotional partners and entire teams dedicated to it! This is why you probably couldn't escape the Wicked Movie marketing.
I saw the tour of shucked after learning about it and becoming obsessed thanks to you!! It was great!! Though I did miss the we love Jesus song ❤ thank you for introducing me to this hilarious romp!
Yup! It's pretty competitive, expensive, and the story writing has been garbage lately. As a MD working in the industry, it's been a lot of homogenized sounding music and very uninspired story telling.
I hope this becomes a movement! You have amazing ideas and I hate that full grown adults want to talk shit about someone who’s just trying. That’s so weird. Should we not all work together??? Weirdos lol Either way, we love your work!!! Love *all* the discussions you start ❤
Awesome video, one of your best, love how pointed but in depth you went - this was fascinating, me working in a different industry and see too many of the same concerns. If you’re starting a movement sign me up!
This was so good. Thank you! Interesting she felt she had to say they have a group chat about you. You must be doing a lot of things RIGHT! I guess theatre owners will start a group chat about you next. I like the subscription idea. So what is the return of theater owners on rent?
@@ThexImperfectionist Thanks. I went back and listened to it. That’s one theatre group. Wonder if they are all making 30%. Seems like they definitely could lower rent then, at least base rent and raise if the show does well. That could incentivize longer runs, not just churn. Given those profits, ypu would think they could do something about the uncomfortable seats! And expand restrooms.
Everything you said is what I commented on earlier on your video on those who own the theatres, compassionate capitalism instead of greed capitalism!!🙂
I'm losing interest on Broadway since the performers i saw especially in the ensemble aren't in musicals. They are leaving somewhere else and also had kids prob won't comeback to nyc.
I am so sad because I wanted to see Shoshana Bean in Hell's Kitchen but she was my first elphaba, plus her Megan Hilty is in Death Becomes Her so that is top musical I want to see. My other new musicals are Hell's Kitchen, maybe The Outsiders. Still want to see Wicked again, & Juliet again. I want revivals on Broadway In The Heights, Bring It On The Musical, Mamma Mia. For me i'm not interested in Cabret or Sunset Boulvard only for Mandy Gonzalez. I had fun and it was magical to see Bye Bye Birdie at Kennedy Center with Krista Rodriguez & Christian Borle.
How are shows meant to gain an audience when they close so quickly. I was a huge Tammy Faye fan and was excited for the NYC transfer. Unfortunately it became an overblown show and it didn't need all the Broadway staging that was added, but People were ripping th show apart and it hadn't even opened for previews. How about giving a show a chance. Yes i know there was no decent marketing and a complete lack of discounts in previews, but it didn't deserve those bitchy queen who loved to slag anything off
thought it was ticket price ....BUT...the show...HAPPY EVER AFTER has low prices and tourists not coming even though it got awesome reviews..... so maybe the crime issue....but tourists still coming?????? thought it was reviews...but shows like R/J got mixed reviews as did SUNSET but they both have stars to drive ticket sales...and R/J is a limited show..... thought it was the cost of a show...labor costs/etc??????? why is it cheaper in LONDON to run a show then in NYC?????
My “It’s Business” wake up was 2008. Jess Leprotto and I were the only two teenagers IN THE ROOM when the final callbacks for the 2009 WSS revival were active. They wanted legitimate *teenagers* in the casting call. They wanted to have a more realistic cast. Instead, you had 40 year olds showing up. Legacies. Formalities. “Favor” candidates who had bought their way in a year prior because they knew a producer or the choreographer. In the end, we were cut because ultimately, nobody wanted to be PAYING to supervise minors in a cast. Whether or not Jess and I had talent to offer. I quit. Jess did Newsies 3 years later.
Such a missed opportunity for all of the book to stage adaptations this past year to not offer a 4-ticket special and call it “Broadway’s Library Visit.”
I Loooove the fact there was a group that was talking crap about you. That means you are doing great things that they feel threatened by!! Keep it up!!👍🏻
Occasionally hard to see it that way in the moment so I greatly appreciate the validation 😅
Thank you so much for giving voice to this. I agree 100% that Broadway must band together for the sake of its collective brand (and even the brand of theatre everywhere, because it is the mascot) and especially your point about rent by theaterowners. In my opinion, this is THE critical issue. And yes, when three companies control 80% of the real estate with constant demand, there is no incentive whatsoever to make things better.
I absolutely love that recently, you do an entire video for every new show right before previews start regardless of who's show it is. If only more people did that
Awareness is 100% the name of the game. And we *all* have work to do there!
@@itskatharinequinn I have been recommending Maybe Happy Ending even though I haven’t seen it yet, just so the word gets out. The reviews are pretty positive across the board.
A subscription package seems like it would make so much sense! It's so surprising to me that the theater companies that own the theaters don't push for a more collaborative environment to bolster less popular shows. Especially ones that have gotten great critical response but not enough eyeballs *cough*SweptAway*cough*
It's a very, very competitive landscape. But I genuinely think we're going about this the wrong way.
I love all of this, but when you were talking about needing to advertise shows earlier, I will never forget my senior year at NYU, there were all these signs throughout the city saying so much happened before Dorothy dropped in. I really wondered what the show was going to be about, it made me really want to get tickets. I have now seen Wicked over 30 times, and I’m about to see a movie for a second time. I can only imagine what that type of a campaign would do for a show online.
So glad you're talking about this! Another exacerbating consequence of this mess is that when so many shows are closing so quickly, the easy assumption (from your average tourist and casual non-obsessive theatre fan) is that it must have been a bad show. And if that's becoming the norm, Broadway as a whole must be getting worse. Hence, branding problem, even when we know commercial success and artistry don't always go together. And it probably makes people less likely to purchase advance tickets, bc why take the chance and possibly deal with the headache of trying to get a refund when it's unlikely to be there in 3 months anyway. I feel for the artists and creatives caught up in this, I really do. It's like kicking someone out of a plane without a parachute bc they paid upfront for the ride and yay for them if they manage to fly on the way down.
This! Art is subjective, and yes some shows to some are demonstrably bad for enough folks to call it that (or not good at least) but there's still an audience for it somewhere.
One bit of (kind of) cross branding were a bunch of shows doing the choreography to the Wicked musical. It was like all of the shows were excited for this massive movie musical. I'd love to see more of that, but swapping with shows on Broadway.
One of your best:
Thank you for saying it out loud.
Hi Katherine,
Hearing you describe the Broadway community is like hearing a caring politician who still considers themselves a community servant. America has decided that money is number one and creativity and joyful experiences are just extras. I just closed up shop on a small business after 25 years and the only spot for me on Broadway is in the audience. My degree is in advertising and the business community which includes Broadway does not want my old brain and experience and your youthful knowledge and experience to get together and hold art and commerce on the same level. I'm from New York and go back at least three times a year and always go to see a few Broadway shows. We can keep art alive, make money and not eat each other alive. I truly hope we keep the Broadway community alive and well.
Good Luck with everything,
Vin
(A Broadway Fan)
I recently discovered your videos. Excellent, informative, concise content. You are a pleasure to watch and listen to. Thank you!
Thank you!! So happy you found them!
Great thoughts… I love the Livestream Initiative. Seeing the Wicked grosses emphasizes your hypothesis on a maximized level. The biggest hurdle is that the SOUND of a broadway show is not up to the standard for a mass market. Operations that livestream every week have a broadcast mix of a show going in a separate broadcast suite. The audio mix for a 2000 seat auditorium is vastly different from what’s needed on a TV in a home. The investment that producers are putting into audio systems is already subpar. Met with a speaker manufacturer about the design for a Tony winning show running on broadway right now, and they aren’t even creating a great mix inside the auditorium.
With a pro-shot most of the mixing can be done in post, but there is a big hill and investments need to be made for audio to be available to the mass market.
They live stream opera to cinemas. That should be doable for theatre too.
@@yankee04In an opera house, the tech investment is shared across all productions. It's baked into the long-term operations budget. ALSO: Opera is entirely acoustic, which is a whole different world.
@@yankee04in theory yes… but Lincoln Center is a different animal than Broadway. Those theaters have more room and resources.
Even a giant show like Wicked is running an analogue sound board because they have no margin for flexibility.
Would be a *giant* investment to make livestreaming and broadway happen, but it's inevitable. Just wish we'd lean in sooner.
@@itskatharinequinn the technology is there… and audio can be done remotely now… just takes the investment! You are preaching the future!!!
Thanks, I absolutely love theater and all the stuff you’re saying is the stuff I usually don’t think about. I only know musicals, and I write musicals, so I have a vested interest, but I do think the quality of music in the shows is a huge problem. A lot of that comes from producers, who understandably are afraid to take a chance because it’s so expensive, but playing it safe in the arts and trying to re-create someone else’s success is rarely a good move.
Anticipation.. I see what you did there x... watching this after hearing the awful news about Swept Away. WE really need to get the Broadway house in order so that new creative ventures and inventive productions don't sink (no pun intended) otherwise Broadway will just be Disney, revivals and big name stars.
You my friend, are an Innovative genius. Your work on The Great Gatsby alone, people should be standing in line to hire you. Although I'm going overboard here I would venture to say that you and you alone, along with Jeremy jordan, have kept the Great Gatsby running your social media campaign for that show is genius genius genius
I'm new to the campaigns, what have they been doing for Great Gatsby? I'm also a blind person so if it's a visual campaign then I'll need some explanations.
This is exceedingly generous and thank you thank you!
Subscription pacakges for Broadway and the West End would be amazing. In London the first show that has really nailed social media has been the show Two Strangers. It created such a distinctive brand, had reels going viral, and took a small 2 person musical from a small off-west end stage to a main theatre in the West End.
Love this!! Any idea what agency did it?
Thank you for sharing your thoughts especially with the inside knowledge. Throwing another vote to more subscription options!
Everything you’re saying is 💯. I was part of 2 shows on Broadway this past year (first world problems) that both closed prematurely, IMHO. Thanks for adding your insight from the marketing end. Perhaps we can all collectively join forces and make change (and dollars) together.
i don’t work in the broadway industry like you do (yet) but i hope one day to work in an industry that looks like the one you imagined in this video
Tourists will automatically hit up the cheapest show. I know this for a fact after hosting many tours. They are usually in groups and they immediately ask, “what tickets can we get for under $100.”
Show collabs would be amazing. As a tourist, if I had an easy way to see multiple shows at a more affordable price (I don't mean dirt cheap, I mean like a 15% discount) without rush, SRO, or TKTS that would be great. I could plan ahead and know I had decent tickets. Right now if I visit I either spend out the nose to be sure I can see the show I want or I use one of the above options and can't plan for sure around it. NYC is already super expensive. I can absolutely understand why another tourist isn't willing to do either of those things.
But imagine if the theaters themselves sold packages. Look! You could get two new shows and a popular long-runner at a discount- two evenings and a matinee.... Yeah. There is an audience that would snatch that up immediately!
(Maybe something like this DOES exist, and if so please let me know. And if it does, the publicity around it is piss-poor for the average tourist around the country.)
For context - I'm across the country. A trip to NYC is an event.
I follow just about everything Broadway on facebook and UA-cam, but when I see the view counts, likes, and comments it’s very disheartening. I love this art form so much and want to see thrive, especially on social media
OMG!!! You are a genius!!! These ideas are all 💯💯💯💯💯!!! And your social media work on Gatsby has been FANTASTIC! I’ve been following it from the beginning. The theatre community needs to listen to you!!!!
Thank you and so generous!!!
@ Thank YOU!!! Your channel has such excellent content. 😁
This might be unrelated, but I’ve been thinking about this a lot recently. Do you think there is a difference in success rates to shows that open in the spring vs the fall? I feel like shows that open in the fall don’t get to build that anticipation bc they are coming off the hype of the prior season and then have to survive the winter. But I am already excited for shows opening this Spring like Smash, also bc I’ve been following it since the reading.
@@ReneeDoty I know a lot of shows (especially artsy, brand new ones) intentionally open in the spring hoping that Tony award noms and wins in June will boost ticket sales early on when its hardest to have good word of mouth. There's also a thought that being fresh in voters minds may make them more likely to get noms and wins. But so many shows use this strategy that there ends up being a ton of new shows opening in March and April, making it harder for any one show to stand out. If they start in the fall they have to survive on their own marketing (through the January drought) and hope they still have momentum by the Tonys, but there's usually less new shows competing for attention. I feel like revivals and celebrity vehicles usually feel safer with a fall opening bc there's fewer unknowns for ticket buyers. Some shows also have a seasonal reason to open in the fall (Wicked, Little Shop, Death Becomes Her, Elf, etc). As for comparing the recoup rates or average run for all shows opening in the spring vs fall, I'd have no idea.
This is an excellent deconstruction of the competing/conflicting incentives in the BWay equation. Thank you for diving into these issues!
That said, Broadway is my FAVORITE cartel.
it would be cool if you could do a bundle ticket discount. for example choose 3 broadway shows, get orchestra seats for all 3, and save 15% off, get no fees, etc. would be awesome (free idea for some producer to take hopefully)
This video was so informative. I've been a big Broadway fan since childhood, and I've lived just on the other side of the Hudson my whole life, so I've seen a bunch of shows. As someone who's worked in marketing both in the private and the public sectors, I really appreciate your insight and analysis of the industry. Your advice is sooo vital and applicable to pretty much any industry.
Same here huge broadway fan also what are some marketing ideas you think these broadway productions should implement
“A house divided against itself cannot stand”
How can the competing agencies/social media directors have a group chat where they talk s**T about newbiers? That is wrong, on so, so, so many levels. Period. No notes except, brilliant video, things, must, change.
It’s the crabs in a bucket. Pulling everyone down only means no one is escaping that bucket
I am a relative newbie here, but I recently saw Swept Away after its early closing was announced and concluded that it was a really good show that was not marketed properly. I am interested in your thoughts about this, given what you discuss in this video. I saw Gatsby at Papermill and then on Broadway, knowing then it was going to be a big hit. Glad to see you genuinely promoting it, by acting as a cheerleader for the talent and production design. Your reviews never seem cheap like its all about the money, even though it is all about the business. Theater viewers just want that escape and not see the money side. I enjoy going because I want to experience that rush of seeing and hearing great live performances that you can't get anywhere else. Broadway needs to focus more on this as a collective purpose and not compete with each other.
I have never even thought about subscriptions as a possible solution outside of the ones already in existance. I think with the right creative thought process to make it appealing to diverse audiences (not just locals, for ex) it would be really innovative.
This really got the comments going, love it! There is a part of me that thinks just lean in to making Broadway Disney Live and let off Broadway and surrounding theaters lean into new works and more niche art. IMHO Swept Away or How to Dance would have had a longer more exciting life in an off Broadway theater. Because Broadway theaters don't care who the next tenant is only that they have someone paying the rent, shows are being put into theaters that don't make sense before they are ready to be there. Some with the right marketing and ability/budget to grow as they go (Great Gatsby, & Juliet) figure it out others just shouldn't have been there in the first place. Look at the success of Little Shop and Titanique. They are killing it!
I know Broadway is drastically different from Branson but as the occasional NY tourist, I would love a 3 show package deal or something. That's a great idea.
Great video! Please do another video on how this trickles down even to regional auditions and the non-union overconsumption and Equity overconsumption nightmare!
It's always been ruthlessly competitive.
Quite *literally* obsessed with this. All of it.
Wow…you are speaking my language lady. I worked on B’way during the Serino/SpotCo era & I couldn’t agree more. Post 9/11 I helped launch the very first “Season Of Savings” campaign, the first of its kind, a multi-agency pro-B’way at any costs effort. Very successful. Don’t know why we don’t see more of this. Appreciate your passion & efforts & your content. Also, I low-key 💙 “The Roommate”. Go Broadway.
wowowow this is amazing. I would love to pick YOUR brain!
Will you please do a video on Broadway plays (not musicals) over the past 10 years or so? Your review on great plays, casts, flops, long runs, etc. Is there an audience for plays anymore? Thank you.
I was very impressed by your work on OHIO, SHUCKED, and GATSBY - in each case one could see there was real buzz. From my POV a major problem in the ecosystem is that there is almost no way to break even Off-Broadway, so well-made & interesting shows without blockbuster appeal (such as A STRANGE LOOP) have no place to go.
100%. It's just a wild time and it's only gotten harder.
Living now in Virginia Beach we need advertisments or ads on our TV's . We need commercials for people around the country. I hate Tik Tok it 's BS. Boston Tne Great Gatsby should come to Broadway. I miss the 1990's price of tickets way too expensive for a regular theatre goer. Broadway musicals needs to be on west end to fix things in the show before coming to Broadway, like Mean Girls.
You’re absolutely right! Theater owners need to rethink their rent structure. Here’s the issue: every time a show closes, the theater sits empty for 2 to 9 months with no income coming in. Instead of charging 6-7% of the weekly box office gross plus additional rent for box-office staff, ushers, cleaning, and security, why not cut that percentage in half for the first six months of a new show? It would give productions a stronger chance to succeed and stick around. A long-running show benefits everyone-owners, productions, and audiences-much more than constantly swapping in new ones. What’s your take on this?
Broadway really needs to up its influencer marketing game. Right now, they’re mostly focused on Broadway influencers (aka “The Bubble”), but they need to think bigger and tap into new audiences. I’m sure the email inboxes of Broadway PR and digital marketing firms are overflowing with comp ticket requests from influencers and their managers-most of which are being ignored. That’s a huge missed opportunity! On top of that, they’re missing out by not providing influencers with trackable links and unique discount codes to directly drive and measure ticket sales. Broadway can do so much better!
Does Broadway even have someone focused on brand partnerships? It doesn’t seem like it. Partnerships feel random with no clear strategy. Look at the Wicked movie-450 promotional partners and entire teams dedicated to it! This is why you probably couldn't escape the Wicked Movie marketing.
I saw the tour of shucked after learning about it and becoming obsessed thanks to you!! It was great!! Though I did miss the we love Jesus song ❤ thank you for introducing me to this hilarious romp!
This is terrific.
Yup! It's pretty competitive, expensive, and the story writing has been garbage lately. As a MD working in the industry, it's been a lot of homogenized sounding music and very uninspired story telling.
I hope this becomes a movement! You have amazing ideas and I hate that full grown adults want to talk shit about someone who’s just trying. That’s so weird. Should we not all work together??? Weirdos lol
Either way, we love your work!!! Love *all* the discussions you start ❤
Awesome video, one of your best, love how pointed but in depth you went - this was fascinating, me working in a different industry and see too many of the same concerns. If you’re starting a movement sign me up!
Some of those 35 Broadway shows *are* nonprofits. Manhattan Theatre Club. 2nd Stage. Lincoln Center.
I love the idea of subscriptions. Thanks for your thoughts
This was so good. Thank you!
Interesting she felt she had to say they have a group chat about you. You must be doing a lot of things RIGHT! I guess theatre owners will start a group chat about you next.
I like the subscription idea.
So what is the return of theater owners on rent?
Watch her most recent video (it was in the last couple for sure) about who is acrually profiting on broadway. It's... eye opening
@@ThexImperfectionist I watched it, bit she didn’t say percentage of profit margin.
@@yankee04 Did she not? I thought I remembered 30% but I'd have to watch again
@@yankee04 I went back and looked. She starts talking about it ~ 1:55 on that video
@@ThexImperfectionist Thanks. I went back and listened to it. That’s one theatre group. Wonder if they are all making 30%. Seems like they definitely could lower rent then, at least base rent and raise if the show does well. That could incentivize longer runs, not just churn.
Given those profits, ypu would think they could do something about the uncomfortable seats! And expand restrooms.
Shows too expensive. Then I see the show I spent $200+ on, and the set never changes. No thanks
Everything you said is what I commented on earlier on your video on those who own the theatres, compassionate capitalism instead of greed capitalism!!🙂
Spot on
I'm losing interest on Broadway since the performers i saw especially in the ensemble aren't in musicals. They are leaving somewhere else and also had kids prob won't comeback to nyc.
hmmmm you have made me think! We need to reinvent broadway. They are talking about casinos but we need a Elon Musk to rethink broadway. Lets do it!
I love this video very informative
It's just Jealousy. You are doing and creating strategies that they wish they had thought of and the industry is starting to take note.
I am so sad because I wanted to see Shoshana Bean in Hell's Kitchen but she was my first elphaba, plus her Megan Hilty is in Death Becomes Her so that is top musical I want to see. My other new musicals are Hell's Kitchen, maybe The Outsiders. Still want to see Wicked again, & Juliet again. I want revivals on Broadway In The Heights, Bring It On The Musical, Mamma Mia. For me i'm not interested in Cabret or Sunset Boulvard only for Mandy Gonzalez. I had fun and it was magical to see Bye Bye Birdie at Kennedy Center with Krista Rodriguez & Christian Borle.
How are shows meant to gain an audience when they close so quickly. I was a huge Tammy Faye fan and was excited for the NYC transfer. Unfortunately it became an overblown show and it didn't need all the Broadway staging that was added, but People were ripping th show apart and it hadn't even opened for previews. How about giving a show a chance. Yes i know there was no decent marketing and a complete lack of discounts in previews, but it didn't deserve those bitchy queen who loved to slag anything off
thought it was ticket price ....BUT...the show...HAPPY EVER AFTER has low prices and tourists not coming even though it got awesome reviews.....
so maybe the crime issue....but tourists still coming??????
thought it was reviews...but shows like R/J got mixed reviews as did SUNSET but they both have stars to drive ticket sales...and R/J is a limited show.....
thought it was the cost of a show...labor costs/etc??????? why is it cheaper in LONDON to run a show then in NYC?????
My “It’s Business” wake up was 2008. Jess Leprotto and I were the only two teenagers IN THE ROOM when the final callbacks for the 2009 WSS revival were active. They wanted legitimate *teenagers* in the casting call. They wanted to have a more realistic cast. Instead, you had 40 year olds showing up. Legacies. Formalities. “Favor” candidates who had bought their way in a year prior because they knew a producer or the choreographer.
In the end, we were cut because ultimately, nobody wanted to be PAYING to supervise minors in a cast. Whether or not Jess and I had talent to offer.
I quit. Jess did Newsies 3 years later.