No, don't be ridiculous the recession isn't over, but Broadway box offices sales did break their record for the 2008-2009 season, grossing over $940 million. These numbers do include Young Frankenstein which has since closed (finally) and did not release box office totals. While these are Broadway's highest grossing totals, it is only about $7 million more than the previous year, or roughly the cost Jeremy Piven spends on PR. Nonetheless, these numbers are rather surprising as many producers cut some shows' seasons early and made major ticket discounts to keep the seats full (or close to it).
Even though audience sizes have decreased slightly, in this economy (we've all heard about the bad economy, right?) there are still lots of people willing to pay to see Broadway shows, many of which are readily available on DVD (Mary Poppins, Lion King, West Side Story, The Little Mermaid, Young Frankenstein, Mamma Mia). But where's the magic in that, right?
To be fair, I assume that lots of these audiences are full of international tourists who are excited to check a Broadway show off their list (next up, Empire State Building and pizza!) But hey, we like these shows too. Maybe, it’s a sort of coping mechanism for us during these tough times. After watching Simba lose his father and seeing Tony holding his dying Maria, maybe losing your job isn’t so bad. It still is? Darn.
