Originally published in Broadway Briefing.
Where are the Suburbanites?
5/18/17
We’ve heard it for years. NYC is the place to be. More people than ever are moving to the metro area, including the suburbs. But if that’s true, why aren’t we seeing these new suburban residents in our theatres?
Our friends at SpotCo, armed with info from the Broadway League and The New York Times, took a look at our numbers, and one stat jumps out: Although the NYC suburbs have seen 13.6% population growth over 15 years, Broadway admissions from the ‘burbs have decreased by 19% .
So what accounts for this wide discrepancy? SpotCo has identified one possible reason and it’s a pretty basic one: the price tag for theatre relative to other goods and services.
While costs for many important goods and services have decreased over the last 15 years (adjusting for inflation), the cost of a Broadway ticket has skyrocketed. The New York Times recently reported that relative to inflation, Broadway prices are up 36.8% , but the cost of a TV has decreased over 100% , and the cost of a computer is down nearly 90% .
Broadway’s price increases are second only to college tuition’s, which has gotten a lot of attention recently. In fact, many other major expenses (cars, housing, clothing, cell phones and data) have all gone down.
Also on the rise? Tolls and transportation into Manhattan. They may seem minor, but combining the 55.8% increase in Port Authority tolls with the jump in Broadway prices, it’s no wonder some suburbanites are choosing to stay home—or at least not see a show.
The chart below overlays the price data from the Broadway League onto other important goods and services, showing just how much the cost of attending a Broadway show has increased in the broader context. Or to put another way, the 13 hours of The Handmaid’s Tale you're watching on Hulu, plus the TV or computer to play it, got a lot cheaper over a decade and a half, and live theatre most certainly did not.
Thanks SpotCo for an interesting view of our world!
For more information, visit www.shubert.nyc.
Our friends at SpotCo, armed with info from the Broadway League and The New York Times, took a look at our numbers, and one stat jumps out: Although the NYC suburbs have seen 13.6% population growth over 15 years, Broadway admissions from the ‘burbs have decreased by 19% .
So what accounts for this wide discrepancy? SpotCo has identified one possible reason and it’s a pretty basic one: the price tag for theatre relative to other goods and services.
While costs for many important goods and services have decreased over the last 15 years (adjusting for inflation), the cost of a Broadway ticket has skyrocketed. The New York Times recently reported that relative to inflation, Broadway prices are up 36.8% , but the cost of a TV has decreased over 100% , and the cost of a computer is down nearly 90% .
Broadway’s price increases are second only to college tuition’s, which has gotten a lot of attention recently. In fact, many other major expenses (cars, housing, clothing, cell phones and data) have all gone down.
Also on the rise? Tolls and transportation into Manhattan. They may seem minor, but combining the 55.8% increase in Port Authority tolls with the jump in Broadway prices, it’s no wonder some suburbanites are choosing to stay home—or at least not see a show.
The chart below overlays the price data from the Broadway League onto other important goods and services, showing just how much the cost of attending a Broadway show has increased in the broader context. Or to put another way, the 13 hours of The Handmaid’s Tale you're watching on Hulu, plus the TV or computer to play it, got a lot cheaper over a decade and a half, and live theatre most certainly did not.
Thanks SpotCo for an interesting view of our world!
For more information, visit www.shubert.nyc.