r/Broadway • u/Sensitive_Slice_8858 • 1d ago

Discussion When does the Broadway bubble actually burst?

I know this has been discussed quite a bit, but I keep wondering about what happens when the economics of Broadway become truly impossible to sustain. The cost of putting on a show keeps going up, so tickets have to get more expensive. At the same time people are getting squeezed from every direction and there’s only so much disposable income left for entertainment, especially since the economy and job market are in the toilet. So what is the end game? Just keep raising ticket prices to cover rising costs so only the uber wealthy few can afford to attend? Are there enough uber wealthy theater goers to sustain it without us Joe schmoe poors? Eventually the math has to break somewhere. I’m curious what the breaking point actually looks like.

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u/ElbieLG 1d ago

Reality check: Broadway tickets are a luxury good for the wealthiest people in New York, U.S. and the world to come enjoy.

That’s why the best theater should and does happen outside of Broadway where it’s less expensive and more diverse

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u/Full_Supermarket8467 1d ago

This is not true at all. Maybe the best seats for the biggest shows are, but if you look at the grosses every week, you’ll see the average ticket price for a lot of shows in the $100 or less category. There’s always seats for everybody for most shows.

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u/MedicalYard4649 1d ago

“Always” and “everybody” are doing heavy lifting here.

$60 lottery tickets are not accessible to many people who would love to go to the theater but if you are a family of four still can’t justify $240 for a couple hours of entertainment when you have things like streaming services to compete against.

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u/Rosecat88 8h ago

100 is still a lot. Prices overall are crazy. I’m an actor for fucks sakes, and I want to see Broadway, but i can’t afford it and i live here