1
00:00:02,800 --> 00:00:10,320
Speaker 1: Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio news. On Sunday, Broadway's top

2
00:00:10,360 --> 00:00:13,320
Speaker 1: build players will gather at Radio City Music Hall in

3
00:00:13,360 --> 00:00:16,000
Speaker 1: New York for the Tony Awards, one night a year

4
00:00:16,000 --> 00:00:19,200
Speaker 1: where everyone can experience the magic of Broadway. For nearly

5
00:00:19,239 --> 00:00:22,520
Speaker 1: eight decades, the Tonys have celebrated the biggest shows of

6
00:00:22,520 --> 00:00:26,520
Speaker 1: the season, and this year the biggest shows are bigger

7
00:00:26,560 --> 00:00:29,720
Speaker 1: than ever, at least when it comes to ticket sales,

8
00:00:30,440 --> 00:00:33,839
Speaker 1: with audiences paying top dollar to see star studded shows

9
00:00:33,920 --> 00:00:36,360
Speaker 1: like Othellow, good Night, and good Luck and The Picture

10
00:00:36,400 --> 00:00:39,879
Speaker 1: of Dorian Gray. An industry trade group called the Broadway

11
00:00:39,960 --> 00:00:43,000
Speaker 1: League reported that this season has brought in nearly one

12
00:00:43,040 --> 00:00:46,760
Speaker 1: point nine billion dollars, making it the highest grossing in

13
00:00:46,840 --> 00:00:48,280
Speaker 1: Broadway recorded history.

14
00:00:48,720 --> 00:00:52,160
Speaker 2: The top end of the ticket prices going like higher

15
00:00:52,200 --> 00:00:54,040
Speaker 2: and hire and hire. I don't know if that's going

16
00:00:54,120 --> 00:00:55,840
Speaker 2: to stop. They have to make money.

17
00:00:56,040 --> 00:00:59,360
Speaker 1: That's Chris Rouser. He's the editor of Bloomberg Pursuits, which

18
00:00:59,440 --> 00:01:03,360
Speaker 1: covers the arts, culture and luxury, and Chris says the

19
00:01:03,360 --> 00:01:07,000
Speaker 1: theater is becoming more of a luxury because now more

20
00:01:07,000 --> 00:01:09,600
Speaker 1: than ever, it costs an arm and a leg to

21
00:01:09,800 --> 00:01:12,840
Speaker 1: break a leg on Broadway. In such a high risk,

22
00:01:12,959 --> 00:01:16,440
Speaker 1: high reward industry, producers have been rethinking what it takes

23
00:01:16,480 --> 00:01:19,360
Speaker 1: to make a hit show, and that business model shift

24
00:01:19,440 --> 00:01:22,360
Speaker 1: is affecting everything from ticket prices to the kind of

25
00:01:22,400 --> 00:01:25,919
Speaker 1: work audiences from all over the world see on stage.

26
00:01:26,319 --> 00:01:29,720
Speaker 3: You have to be not afraid to take a risk.

27
00:01:30,480 --> 00:01:33,280
Speaker 3: I think this business is very risky, and you know,

28
00:01:33,360 --> 00:01:36,400
Speaker 3: when talking to young producers as well as talking to investors,

29
00:01:36,720 --> 00:01:38,960
Speaker 3: I'm very honest about the risks involved.

30
00:01:39,160 --> 00:01:41,720
Speaker 4: Kind of the conventional wisdom on Broadway in particular and

31
00:01:41,720 --> 00:01:45,160
Speaker 4: commercial theater at large is it's very challenging to make

32
00:01:45,200 --> 00:01:46,679
Speaker 4: a living, but you can make a killing.

33
00:01:49,000 --> 00:01:52,000
Speaker 1: I'm Sarah Holder today on the show The Big Take

34
00:01:52,160 --> 00:01:57,120
Speaker 1: Goes to Broadway. I sit down with Bloomberg's Chris Rouser

35
00:01:57,280 --> 00:02:00,640
Speaker 1: and speak with two Tony Award winning producers, Darryl Roth

36
00:02:00,680 --> 00:02:04,880
Speaker 1: and Lucas Catler, about the economic realities changing the theater biz,

37
00:02:05,160 --> 00:02:07,960
Speaker 1: what it means for tourism, for our and for what

38
00:02:08,000 --> 00:02:14,760
Speaker 1: you pay at the box office. The economics of Broadway

39
00:02:14,960 --> 00:02:17,760
Speaker 1: have always been tricky. It's basically the whole plot of

40
00:02:17,800 --> 00:02:21,400
Speaker 1: the Producers, where Matthew brodericks Leo bloom helps cook up

41
00:02:21,440 --> 00:02:25,120
Speaker 1: an unconventional plan to make it in the theater business.

42
00:02:25,400 --> 00:02:27,919
Speaker 4: One of the right circumstances, a producer could make more

43
00:02:28,000 --> 00:02:30,680
Speaker 4: money with a flop than he could with a hit.

44
00:02:30,919 --> 00:02:33,519
Speaker 1: It's expensive and it's maddening, and it takes a lot.

45
00:02:33,360 --> 00:02:36,120
Speaker 2: Of luck, just like in the producer exactly.

46
00:02:36,600 --> 00:02:39,120
Speaker 1: But I wanted to ask you why is it so

47
00:02:39,320 --> 00:02:43,680
Speaker 1: hard to mount a financially successful Broadway show today?

48
00:02:44,520 --> 00:02:48,040
Speaker 2: The problem today is that costs are extraordinarily high. They're

49
00:02:48,120 --> 00:02:50,680
Speaker 2: higher than they have ever been before. So the carrying

50
00:02:50,760 --> 00:02:55,119
Speaker 2: costs from week to week are really just very hard

51
00:02:55,160 --> 00:02:57,880
Speaker 2: to get over. Union labor. Almost everyone that works on

52
00:02:57,919 --> 00:03:00,760
Speaker 2: a show is union, and they have a lot of protections,

53
00:03:00,840 --> 00:03:05,000
Speaker 2: especially after the pandemic, so those costs are high. The

54
00:03:05,000 --> 00:03:07,760
Speaker 2: theater rent for the limited number of Broadway theaters there

55
00:03:07,760 --> 00:03:11,200
Speaker 2: are is a single digit percentage of ticket sales, so

56
00:03:11,280 --> 00:03:13,639
Speaker 2: that's a big chunk. You've got sets, you've got marketing,

57
00:03:13,639 --> 00:03:15,440
Speaker 2: you've got all that stuff, So that actually adds up

58
00:03:15,480 --> 00:03:18,800
Speaker 2: to an almost prohibitive base level that you have to

59
00:03:18,880 --> 00:03:22,040
Speaker 2: clear in order to recoup your investment, which means it

60
00:03:22,040 --> 00:03:23,280
Speaker 2: gets back to net zero.

61
00:03:23,880 --> 00:03:27,320
Speaker 1: Labor costs rent for a theater, materials to build sets

62
00:03:27,320 --> 00:03:30,160
Speaker 1: and hang lights, promos and advertisements.

63
00:03:30,520 --> 00:03:33,360
Speaker 3: It adds up now to produce a play on Broadway.

64
00:03:33,960 --> 00:03:36,400
Speaker 3: You know, the budgets can be anywhere between. I would

65
00:03:36,440 --> 00:03:39,720
Speaker 3: say six and ten million dollars. On the high side,

66
00:03:40,240 --> 00:03:42,720
Speaker 3: a musical is now twenty twenty five million.

67
00:03:43,960 --> 00:03:46,760
Speaker 1: Daryl Roth has produced more than one hundred and thirty

68
00:03:46,760 --> 00:03:50,200
Speaker 1: shows on and off Broadway since the eighties, including Tony

69
00:03:50,240 --> 00:03:54,720
Speaker 1: Award winning plays like august Osah County Warhorse and Paula Vogels.

70
00:03:54,760 --> 00:03:57,680
Speaker 3: In decent thirty years ago, you could produce a play

71
00:03:57,840 --> 00:04:02,560
Speaker 3: for under four million dollars and have all the soups

72
00:04:02,600 --> 00:04:05,320
Speaker 3: and nuts and desserts that you need to make it work.

73
00:04:06,640 --> 00:04:08,800
Speaker 1: Daryl is one of the producers behind one of this

74
00:04:08,880 --> 00:04:13,360
Speaker 1: season's buzziest tickets, The Picture of Dorian Gray. It's a

75
00:04:13,400 --> 00:04:17,239
Speaker 1: play based on the Oscar Wild novel and stars Sarah Snook,

76
00:04:17,520 --> 00:04:21,160
Speaker 1: who you might know from Succession on HBO. How much

77
00:04:21,240 --> 00:04:24,240
Speaker 1: did The Picture of Dorian Gray cost to mount.

78
00:04:24,480 --> 00:04:25,760
Speaker 3: It was a round eight million.

79
00:04:26,520 --> 00:04:29,440
Speaker 1: The goal for a producer is to recoup that investment,

80
00:04:29,839 --> 00:04:33,920
Speaker 1: something that's easier said than done. Lucas Catler, who's produced

81
00:04:33,960 --> 00:04:37,040
Speaker 1: Broadway musicals like Merrily We Roll Along and Hear Lies

82
00:04:37,120 --> 00:04:40,400
Speaker 1: Love says that's what makes bringing a show to Broadway

83
00:04:40,600 --> 00:04:43,960
Speaker 1: such a financial high wire act. When we spoke with him,

84
00:04:44,040 --> 00:04:46,279
Speaker 1: he was inside a theater in London in the middle

85
00:04:46,279 --> 00:04:48,680
Speaker 1: of rehearsals for a new musical. He's producing.

86
00:04:49,160 --> 00:04:51,560
Speaker 4: Even the best shows, the ones that win Best Musical

87
00:04:51,560 --> 00:04:54,240
Speaker 4: and like really break through and find an audience, a

88
00:04:54,240 --> 00:04:57,080
Speaker 4: lot of times those shows don't even make money, and

89
00:04:57,120 --> 00:04:58,799
Speaker 4: so like a strange loop is actually a great example

90
00:04:58,839 --> 00:05:00,279
Speaker 4: of a show that I didn't work on them Badway.

91
00:05:00,279 --> 00:05:02,800
Speaker 4: I worked on off Broadway. But it's by all accounts

92
00:05:03,040 --> 00:05:07,160
Speaker 4: extreme critical success and a really well regarded piece of art.

93
00:05:07,360 --> 00:05:10,160
Speaker 4: But they haven't recouped on Broadway, for example, I mean

94
00:05:10,160 --> 00:05:10,880
Speaker 4: they closed early.

95
00:05:11,560 --> 00:05:14,400
Speaker 1: When you got your start in the industry, what was

96
00:05:14,560 --> 00:05:18,560
Speaker 1: the conventional wisdom that other producers shared with you about

97
00:05:18,560 --> 00:05:20,800
Speaker 1: the path to success on Broadway?

98
00:05:21,560 --> 00:05:25,280
Speaker 4: I would say, writ large that it's very challenging. One

99
00:05:25,320 --> 00:05:28,520
Speaker 4: in five shows will make their money back on Broadway,

100
00:05:29,160 --> 00:05:34,200
Speaker 4: meaning a lot of producers will hopefully produce shows on

101
00:05:34,240 --> 00:05:37,480
Speaker 4: Broadway that will Like you know, limited run plays will

102
00:05:37,760 --> 00:05:40,960
Speaker 4: in the best case of success, return ten twenty percent

103
00:05:41,000 --> 00:05:45,279
Speaker 4: to investors. Whereas musicals, you really want to get a

104
00:05:45,279 --> 00:05:47,920
Speaker 4: long running musical that will then be a big hit

105
00:05:47,960 --> 00:05:50,839
Speaker 4: and be able to sustain your ability to create other

106
00:05:51,000 --> 00:05:53,520
Speaker 4: work as well. So it's a high risk, high reward

107
00:05:53,560 --> 00:05:57,480
Speaker 4: business and that's been the mo for Feeder since its

108
00:05:57,600 --> 00:06:02,040
Speaker 4: inception in America, but also really really specifically on Broadway today,

109
00:06:02,080 --> 00:06:05,320
Speaker 4: particularly because the margins are really tight between how much

110
00:06:05,320 --> 00:06:07,279
Speaker 4: a cost to run a show and how much money

111
00:06:07,320 --> 00:06:09,240
Speaker 4: you can make in the box office. I'm still a

112
00:06:09,279 --> 00:06:13,240
Speaker 4: young career producer, but like still developing musicals with the

113
00:06:13,440 --> 00:06:16,200
Speaker 4: hope to ultimately make a killing one day. But for now,

114
00:06:16,240 --> 00:06:21,080
Speaker 4: it's like there's no real avenue to make a steady

115
00:06:21,120 --> 00:06:24,160
Speaker 4: income without having a show that's long running.

116
00:06:24,680 --> 00:06:29,080
Speaker 2: People are always swinging for those big runaway hits, those Hamilton's,

117
00:06:29,360 --> 00:06:33,359
Speaker 2: those wickeds, which make the eighty percent of shows that

118
00:06:33,400 --> 00:06:35,920
Speaker 2: don't recoup kind of worth the gamble.

119
00:06:36,080 --> 00:06:39,000
Speaker 1: But Chris says it is a gamble. The New York

120
00:06:39,040 --> 00:06:42,080
Speaker 1: Times reported that four of the fourteen new musicals that

121
00:06:42,160 --> 00:06:45,960
Speaker 1: open the season have already closed or set closing dates.

122
00:06:46,279 --> 00:06:50,120
Speaker 3: It's gotten harder to find investors because you know, statistically

123
00:06:50,600 --> 00:06:52,360
Speaker 3: most things don't recoup.

124
00:06:52,240 --> 00:06:55,320
Speaker 1: And Daryl Ross says that's led to a big shift

125
00:06:55,480 --> 00:06:56,159
Speaker 1: on Broadway.

126
00:06:56,640 --> 00:06:59,560
Speaker 3: I think the trend now which we didn't see as

127
00:06:59,680 --> 00:07:03,039
Speaker 3: much when I began my career is the star vehicle.

128
00:07:03,520 --> 00:07:08,320
Speaker 1: The star vehicle like Dorian Gray starring Sarah Snook or

129
00:07:08,400 --> 00:07:12,960
Speaker 1: Othello featuring Denzel Washington and Jake Jillenhall, or good Night

130
00:07:13,080 --> 00:07:16,400
Speaker 1: and good Luck, directed by George Clooney, who also plays

131
00:07:16,400 --> 00:07:19,520
Speaker 1: the lead. These plays tend to run for a limited

132
00:07:19,520 --> 00:07:23,280
Speaker 1: amount of time based on the actors availability, and Darryl

133
00:07:23,360 --> 00:07:26,400
Speaker 1: says it's a model that can help bring in early funding.

134
00:07:27,160 --> 00:07:31,600
Speaker 3: Both investors and producers can feel that there's less risk

135
00:07:32,240 --> 00:07:35,080
Speaker 3: based on the appeal of the star we're talking about,

136
00:07:35,600 --> 00:07:38,760
Speaker 3: and so it's easier to get investors to come along

137
00:07:38,840 --> 00:07:39,520
Speaker 3: on the journey.

138
00:07:40,120 --> 00:07:43,520
Speaker 1: It can also be easier to get audiences into theaters.

139
00:07:43,760 --> 00:07:47,880
Speaker 1: Othello gross three point five million dollars last week. Glengarry

140
00:07:47,920 --> 00:07:51,280
Speaker 1: Glenn Ross featuring Kieran Culkin, Bob Odenkirk and Bill Burr

141
00:07:51,560 --> 00:07:54,320
Speaker 1: made around two million dollars, around the same amount as

142
00:07:54,360 --> 00:07:56,360
Speaker 1: The Lion King, which has been running for more than

143
00:07:56,360 --> 00:08:00,200
Speaker 1: twenty five years. Dorian Gray brought in nearly one and

144
00:08:00,240 --> 00:08:00,920
Speaker 1: a half million.

145
00:08:01,360 --> 00:08:03,560
Speaker 2: Goodnight in good Luck, which is on Broadway right now

146
00:08:03,680 --> 00:08:06,320
Speaker 2: starring George Clooney has a big cast and is an

147
00:08:06,360 --> 00:08:09,480
Speaker 2: expensive show, but it broke four million a week in

148
00:08:09,680 --> 00:08:12,360
Speaker 2: ticket sales, which is a record, and that's a crazy

149
00:08:12,360 --> 00:08:13,040
Speaker 2: amount of money.

150
00:08:13,680 --> 00:08:15,840
Speaker 1: Part of the reason it's making that much money is

151
00:08:15,880 --> 00:08:18,280
Speaker 1: because a seat at good Night and good Luck can

152
00:08:18,360 --> 00:08:22,200
Speaker 1: run you between about two hundred dollars and nine hundred dollars.

153
00:08:23,480 --> 00:08:26,760
Speaker 1: How the new economics of Broadway are landing with audiences.

154
00:08:27,640 --> 00:08:38,559
Speaker 1: That's after the break. It's harder than ever to succeed

155
00:08:38,679 --> 00:08:42,840
Speaker 1: on Broadway without really trying or even trying a lot.

156
00:08:43,320 --> 00:08:47,120
Speaker 1: Bloomberg's Chris Rouser says that's pushed Broadway producers towards a

157
00:08:47,160 --> 00:08:50,320
Speaker 1: few different categories of material, the kinds of shows that

158
00:08:50,360 --> 00:08:54,560
Speaker 1: are considered an easier sell for audiences and investors. We

159
00:08:54,600 --> 00:08:58,480
Speaker 1: talked about the limited engagement run starring a celebrity. Then

160
00:08:58,640 --> 00:09:00,000
Speaker 1: there's the jukebox music.

161
00:09:01,000 --> 00:09:03,480
Speaker 2: Musicals are the hardest thing to produce and make succeed,

162
00:09:03,520 --> 00:09:05,240
Speaker 2: and so if you can build a musical based on

163
00:09:05,280 --> 00:09:10,000
Speaker 2: an artist's catalog like Share or Bobby Darren is one

164
00:09:10,080 --> 00:09:10,520
Speaker 2: right now.

165
00:09:10,679 --> 00:09:14,880
Speaker 4: Tony Award winner Jonathan Groff is Bobby Darren in justin Time.

166
00:09:14,840 --> 00:09:16,360
Speaker 2: That has a built in audience. So that's sort of

167
00:09:16,400 --> 00:09:19,160
Speaker 2: viewed as safe. And then there's like existing ip so

168
00:09:19,360 --> 00:09:22,839
Speaker 2: like The Notebook, Back to the Future, Harry Potter, It's

169
00:09:22,880 --> 00:09:26,160
Speaker 2: the Wizarding World on the Great White Way. These things

170
00:09:26,160 --> 00:09:28,960
Speaker 2: that also have big audiences built in and feel less

171
00:09:29,080 --> 00:09:31,480
Speaker 2: risky to audiences and producers. Those are kind of the

172
00:09:31,480 --> 00:09:34,640
Speaker 2: three things that we feel like all the news shows

173
00:09:34,920 --> 00:09:37,160
Speaker 2: are like that, and honestly, that can be tiring.

174
00:09:37,800 --> 00:09:40,400
Speaker 1: Whiches aren't getting picked up in this formula, Like which

175
00:09:40,520 --> 00:09:43,440
Speaker 1: kind of productions does this shut out?

176
00:09:44,080 --> 00:09:47,319
Speaker 2: I mean it shuts out a lot of original musicals.

177
00:09:47,360 --> 00:09:50,120
Speaker 2: It's very expensive to put on an original musical or

178
00:09:50,160 --> 00:09:52,920
Speaker 2: any musical, and it's very risky. You know, it's can

179
00:09:52,960 --> 00:09:55,959
Speaker 2: be twice as expensive as a play. So there's only

180
00:09:56,000 --> 00:09:58,800
Speaker 2: a couple new like sort of really new musicals that

181
00:09:58,840 --> 00:10:01,680
Speaker 2: are on Broadway this season. And then people are very

182
00:10:01,720 --> 00:10:06,120
Speaker 2: familiar with Shakespeare Tennessee Williams. You see a lot of

183
00:10:06,120 --> 00:10:08,840
Speaker 2: that sort of like Western canon stuff come back and

184
00:10:08,880 --> 00:10:11,319
Speaker 2: back and back. Lately, it doesn't feel like you see

185
00:10:11,360 --> 00:10:14,240
Speaker 2: a ton of new artists or artists of color, or

186
00:10:14,360 --> 00:10:17,080
Speaker 2: artists from a different background international, So yeah, I can

187
00:10:17,120 --> 00:10:19,880
Speaker 2: feel like that stuff is being squeezed out it's.

188
00:10:19,720 --> 00:10:21,920
Speaker 1: Also driving ticket prices up.

189
00:10:22,200 --> 00:10:24,960
Speaker 2: So you'll generally see a show we'll start with some

190
00:10:25,160 --> 00:10:28,120
Speaker 2: rush tickets or lottery tickets can be quite cheap, and

191
00:10:28,120 --> 00:10:30,400
Speaker 2: then they'll start at fifty nine to seventy nine ninety

192
00:10:30,480 --> 00:10:33,679
Speaker 2: nine dollars and go up into the three hundreds, maybe

193
00:10:33,720 --> 00:10:36,880
Speaker 2: four hundred for premium seats right in the front, and

194
00:10:36,880 --> 00:10:39,920
Speaker 2: that's very expensive. Some of the shows this spring ticket

195
00:10:39,960 --> 00:10:42,640
Speaker 2: costs were eight hundred and nine hundred dollars, and that's

196
00:10:42,640 --> 00:10:44,920
Speaker 2: a result of dynamic ticket pricing, which is the same

197
00:10:44,960 --> 00:10:48,400
Speaker 2: as what airlines use and hotels use to book rooms.

198
00:10:48,720 --> 00:10:50,920
Speaker 2: So it's not a person deciding that this show is

199
00:10:50,960 --> 00:10:54,240
Speaker 2: worth eight hundred dollars, it is ai deciding that people

200
00:10:54,240 --> 00:10:56,200
Speaker 2: will pay eight hundred dollars to see a show. So

201
00:10:56,240 --> 00:10:59,240
Speaker 2: we are breaking records in terms of what some shows

202
00:10:59,280 --> 00:10:59,800
Speaker 2: are making.

203
00:11:00,160 --> 00:11:02,680
Speaker 1: What does it mean for the economy of a city

204
00:11:02,800 --> 00:11:05,280
Speaker 1: like New York, which is built around tourists coming to

205
00:11:05,360 --> 00:11:09,200
Speaker 1: see shows if the average tourists can no longer afford

206
00:11:09,240 --> 00:11:10,960
Speaker 1: a ticket to an average show. I don't know if

207
00:11:10,960 --> 00:11:11,800
Speaker 1: we're there yet, but.

208
00:11:12,000 --> 00:11:14,360
Speaker 2: Yeah, so New York views Broadway is an important part

209
00:11:14,400 --> 00:11:17,280
Speaker 2: of its tourism infrastructure, and when we were coming out

210
00:11:17,320 --> 00:11:18,960
Speaker 2: of the pandemic. The city took a lot of steps

211
00:11:18,960 --> 00:11:20,760
Speaker 2: to try to help Broadway get back on its feet,

212
00:11:21,000 --> 00:11:23,800
Speaker 2: because it's not just people going to Times Square, it's

213
00:11:23,800 --> 00:11:26,079
Speaker 2: not just people who want to come to your show.

214
00:11:26,240 --> 00:11:28,839
Speaker 2: Broadway is part of the appeal of New York and

215
00:11:29,160 --> 00:11:31,600
Speaker 2: when things that get too too expensive and you can't come,

216
00:11:31,760 --> 00:11:33,880
Speaker 2: that makes New York feel expensive, That makes you feel

217
00:11:33,920 --> 00:11:36,520
Speaker 2: like that city is not for me. But nobody wants

218
00:11:36,960 --> 00:11:38,760
Speaker 2: Broadway to be inaccessible for everybody.

219
00:11:38,920 --> 00:11:40,880
Speaker 3: H bristle at the fact that some of the ticket

220
00:11:40,880 --> 00:11:44,480
Speaker 3: prices for premium seats, when you know eight nine hundred

221
00:11:44,520 --> 00:11:47,079
Speaker 3: dollars a ticket, I mean that cannot be the trend.

222
00:11:47,480 --> 00:11:49,040
Speaker 1: Producer Darryl Roth again.

223
00:11:49,400 --> 00:11:54,320
Speaker 3: But interestingly, the average ticket price this year was about

224
00:11:54,600 --> 00:11:56,200
Speaker 3: one hundred and thirty dollars.

225
00:11:56,640 --> 00:12:00,280
Speaker 1: That means those eyebrow raising outliers are actually being and

226
00:12:00,440 --> 00:12:03,120
Speaker 1: out by tickets to shows that have stayed more affordable.

227
00:12:03,960 --> 00:12:08,120
Speaker 1: But whatever the price, audiences keep coming. So far this

228
00:12:08,200 --> 00:12:11,960
Speaker 1: Broadway season, over fourteen point six million people have seen

229
00:12:12,000 --> 00:12:15,000
Speaker 1: a show. It's the first year that's gotten close to

230
00:12:15,040 --> 00:12:17,440
Speaker 1: the industry's pre pandemic attendance levels.

231
00:12:17,800 --> 00:12:22,040
Speaker 3: We've had ninety one percent capacity on Broadway, which is

232
00:12:22,480 --> 00:12:27,520
Speaker 3: really wonderful. So things are looking up, and certainly everybody

233
00:12:27,559 --> 00:12:31,760
Speaker 3: feels excited post pandemic to see Broadway coming back. You know,

234
00:12:31,840 --> 00:12:36,360
Speaker 3: it's it means so much to the city economically, let

235
00:12:36,360 --> 00:12:38,840
Speaker 3: alone those of us that just love the art form.

236
00:12:39,120 --> 00:12:41,840
Speaker 1: It's part of the reason why Daryl says taking all

237
00:12:41,880 --> 00:12:44,679
Speaker 1: those risks we've been talking about can be worth it,

238
00:12:44,760 --> 00:12:47,920
Speaker 1: including supporting shows that don't fit the money making molds

239
00:12:47,960 --> 00:12:50,040
Speaker 1: producers have been leaning on more and more.

240
00:12:50,400 --> 00:12:52,960
Speaker 3: It's hard to say what's commercial and what's not commercial

241
00:12:53,080 --> 00:12:56,280
Speaker 3: before it happens. You know, we've often been really surprised

242
00:12:56,640 --> 00:12:59,880
Speaker 3: by things that we think aren't going to be commercial

243
00:12:59,880 --> 00:13:03,280
Speaker 3: and they are and vice gers. So I say it

244
00:13:03,320 --> 00:13:06,000
Speaker 3: to people, just do what you love and be driven

245
00:13:06,120 --> 00:13:09,520
Speaker 3: by what you respond to in the hope that other

246
00:13:09,520 --> 00:13:11,640
Speaker 3: people will respond to that same story.

247
00:13:12,160 --> 00:13:14,959
Speaker 2: The big example this season is Maybe Happy Ending. Did

248
00:13:14,960 --> 00:13:15,320
Speaker 2: you see it?

249
00:13:15,400 --> 00:13:15,559
Speaker 3: Yes?

250
00:13:15,640 --> 00:13:18,400
Speaker 1: Yeah, Julia Press, our producer, and I actually saw it together.

251
00:13:18,520 --> 00:13:19,400
Speaker 1: Oh loved it.

252
00:13:19,480 --> 00:13:23,240
Speaker 2: Yes, wonderful show. It's very original but actually debuted in

253
00:13:23,320 --> 00:13:26,840
Speaker 2: Korea and then came here and it's a little magical

254
00:13:26,840 --> 00:13:30,199
Speaker 2: show about two robots and a robot retirement home, and

255
00:13:30,960 --> 00:13:34,000
Speaker 2: that alone sort of doesn't necessarily feel like the great

256
00:13:34,080 --> 00:13:38,280
Speaker 2: raw material for a music hall Shakespeare Shakespeare. And it's

257
00:13:38,280 --> 00:13:40,040
Speaker 2: also it's just two people on a stage. It's kind

258
00:13:40,040 --> 00:13:41,960
Speaker 2: of actually, at the root of it, a small story.

259
00:13:42,240 --> 00:13:44,960
Speaker 2: But the music is wonderful, and the set is incredible,

260
00:13:45,040 --> 00:13:47,160
Speaker 2: and the story is lovely, and it just feels so

261
00:13:47,400 --> 00:13:49,839
Speaker 2: fresh and original. I remember, actually I'm getting goosebumps talking

262
00:13:49,840 --> 00:13:52,920
Speaker 2: about it. When I saw it in previews, the set

263
00:13:53,040 --> 00:13:56,800
Speaker 2: broke three times, and even so everybody's sitting there was like,

264
00:13:56,800 --> 00:13:59,600
Speaker 2: we're seeing something. This theater is half full. We don't

265
00:13:59,600 --> 00:14:01,400
Speaker 2: know if anyone's going to come see this show. And

266
00:14:01,440 --> 00:14:03,720
Speaker 2: then had such incredible word of mouth that it just

267
00:14:03,760 --> 00:14:06,199
Speaker 2: built and built and built and built, and now it's

268
00:14:06,200 --> 00:14:07,840
Speaker 2: selling incredibly well you can't get tickets.

269
00:14:07,960 --> 00:14:11,080
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, there's such a magic to that. Yes, we'll

270
00:14:11,120 --> 00:14:14,360
Speaker 1: see whether the Tony voters agree. Daryl, of course, is

271
00:14:14,440 --> 00:14:15,839
Speaker 1: rooting for Dorian Gray.

272
00:14:16,480 --> 00:14:20,080
Speaker 3: Certainly, I believe Sarah Snook should win the Best Actress

273
00:14:20,080 --> 00:14:23,640
Speaker 3: in a Play. I have obviously a personal belief in that,

274
00:14:23,680 --> 00:14:26,400
Speaker 3: but I do believe she deserves that honor.

275
00:14:26,880 --> 00:14:30,480
Speaker 1: Meanwhile, the producer Lucas Catler is pulling for Oh Mary.

276
00:14:31,120 --> 00:14:34,040
Speaker 4: I'm seethingly jealous of everyone involved in this show because

277
00:14:34,040 --> 00:14:37,120
Speaker 4: it's like it's doing everything that I love, is such

278
00:14:37,160 --> 00:14:41,400
Speaker 4: a joy and a romp while still showcasing the highest

279
00:14:41,520 --> 00:14:44,280
Speaker 4: level of artistry that theater makers have to offer.

280
00:14:45,560 --> 00:14:49,680
Speaker 1: But whatever happens on Sunday, Darryl says, next Broadway season

281
00:14:50,040 --> 00:14:52,960
Speaker 1: is sure to bring its own surprises. What's next for

282
00:14:53,000 --> 00:14:53,520
Speaker 1: the industry.

283
00:14:53,840 --> 00:14:58,200
Speaker 3: I think that this year has shown producers and audiences

284
00:14:58,440 --> 00:15:00,440
Speaker 3: that you can take a chance on something that might

285
00:15:00,480 --> 00:15:03,200
Speaker 3: be a little unique and out of the norm that

286
00:15:03,360 --> 00:15:06,840
Speaker 3: I hope continues. I'm sure the star vehicles will continue,

287
00:15:06,840 --> 00:15:10,320
Speaker 3: There's no question about that. I think we'll see more

288
00:15:10,680 --> 00:15:14,160
Speaker 3: smaller musicals being mounted, what I like to call chamber musicals.

289
00:15:14,640 --> 00:15:18,800
Speaker 3: And I also think we'll see a trend to plays

290
00:15:18,800 --> 00:15:21,320
Speaker 3: that appeal to a younger audience. Now that this year

291
00:15:21,360 --> 00:15:25,480
Speaker 3: has shown that there is excitement and enthusiasm from you know,

292
00:15:25,600 --> 00:15:28,880
Speaker 3: the younger theater going audience, I think we'll all be

293
00:15:29,000 --> 00:15:33,880
Speaker 3: happy to offer more good fare and keep that audience growing.

294
00:15:34,360 --> 00:15:36,800
Speaker 3: I mean we must, otherwise you know, we'll be out

295
00:15:36,800 --> 00:15:37,360
Speaker 3: of business.

296
00:15:44,400 --> 00:15:47,320
Speaker 1: This is the big take from Bloomberg News. I'm Sarah Holder.

297
00:15:47,600 --> 00:15:50,600
Speaker 1: The show is hosted by Me, David gera Wanja and

298
00:15:50,640 --> 00:15:54,520
Speaker 1: Seleia Mosen. The show is made by Aaron Edwards, David Fox,

299
00:15:54,680 --> 00:16:00,280
Speaker 1: Eleanor Harrison Dungate, Patty Hirsch, Ridgel, Lewis Chrisky, Naomi Julia Us,

300
00:16:00,560 --> 00:16:05,680
Speaker 1: Tracy Samuelson, Naomi Shaven, Alex Dugia, Julia Weaver, Yang Yong

301
00:16:06,120 --> 00:16:09,720
Speaker 1: take Yasazua and Julian Weller. To get more from the

302
00:16:09,720 --> 00:16:13,000
Speaker 1: Big Take and unlimited access to all of bloomberg dot com,

303
00:16:13,240 --> 00:16:17,520
Speaker 1: subscribe today at Bloomberg dot com Slash Podcast offer. Thanks

304
00:16:17,560 --> 00:16:20,360
Speaker 1: for listening. We'll be back on Monday.