Broadway League Releases 2009-2010 Audience for Touring Broadway Demographics Report

The Broadway League has released its seventh edition of the demographics report, The Audience for Touring Broadway 2009-2010. Updated on a biennial basis, it tracks profiles of audiences throughout the country, analyzes changes over time, and denotes the unique characteristics and theatergoing habits that distinguish "road" audiences from Broadway theatergoers in New York.

There were nearly 16 million admissions to Touring Broadway shows across the country during the 2009 - 2010 season. Touring Broadway is vital to theatre in this country in terms of visibility, audience development, and economic impact to metropolitan areas across America.

"Both Broadway in New York City and on the Road are evolving with the changes in the country and the diversity of shows that are attracting audiences of all ages and interests," said Charlotte St. Martin, Executive Director of The Broadway League. She continued, "Our numerous selection of shows, varying performance times, and myriad prices points are keeping Broadway relevant and, as we always like to say, keeping Broadway "the longest street in America!"

· Many of the key characteristics are the same, but some changes include the following highlights from the analysis:

· Nearly two-thirds of audiences looked to the theatre's website to find information about the show.

· Twenty-seven percent of respondents said they made a visit to New York City in the past year.

· The Tony Awards were also reported to be more influential this season than in previous seasons. Eighteen percent of respondents said that Tony Awards or nominations were a reason they attended the show, compared to 14% in the 2007 - 2008 season and 8% in the 2005 - 2006 season. Furthermore, 8% responded that seeing a scene of the show on the Tony telecast encouraged them to attend the show, compared to 4% in previous years.

· Facebook was the most widely used social networking site.

· Sixty-nine percent of respondents said they would prefer to receive theatre information electronically, rather than via postal mail.

This latest report measures the DEMOGRAPHICS of the Touring Broadway audience. However, since Broadway and Touring Broadway contribute significantly to the economic impact of metropolitan areas that host shows, it's worth reiterating the economic contributions of the industry.

Broadway and Touring Broadway combined contribute $13.2 billion to all the metropolitan areas where shows played.

Broadway and Touring shows across North America grossed an estimated $1.97 billion in the 2009 - 2010 season, representing an estimated audience of 27.8 million.

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The Audience for Touring Broadway is published biennially by The Broadway League, the clearinghouse for information on the business, demographics and economic impact of Broadway theatre throughout North America. The League compiles various statistics and publishes extensive reports on a number of topics. Printed versions of the reports are available for purchase online at: www.BroadwayLeague.com under Research and Information.

Surveys were administered electronically. Presenters across the country sent invitations via e-mail to their customer mailing lists, asking theatergoers to respond online. The method for data collection for this report is different from previous reports in this series in that information was collected via email, rather than in-theatre surveys. In total, 18,389 theatregoers responded.

The Broadway League, founded in 1930, is the national trade association for the Broadway industry. The League's 700-plus members include theatre owners and operators, producers, presenters, and general managers in over 240 North American cities, as well as suppliers of goods and services to the theatre industry. Each year, League members bring Broadway to nearly 30 million people in New York and on tour across the U.S. and Canada. For more information, visit www.BroadwayLeague.com, or follow The Broadway League on Twitter @TheBwayLeague or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/BroadwayLeague.

Broadway theatres are filled with an exciting array of new and classic musicals and plays, providing the perfect experience for every audience. Great seats are available at every price point and are easy to buy online, by phone, or in person at theatre box offices. It's always the perfect time to see a show. Broadway performs every day of the week at multiple curtain times to accommodate every schedule.

For more information, visit www.ilovenytheater.com.