Survey Reports Gen Z and Millennial Audiences Are 'Broadway Curious'

A new report by producing group No Guarantees focusing on getting Gen Z and Millennial audiences to the theatre has released their findings - with the key takeaway of the survey being that 67% of the audience surveyed describe themselves as Broadway-curious.

Despite common misconceptions surrounding ticket pricing, a substantial 90% of respondents who have attended Broadway shows felt the experience justified the expense. This contrasts sharply with the widespread belief among these groups that ticket prices are approximately 50% higher than they actually are.

The survey underscores the importance of social experiences in attracting young audiences to live shows. Post-pandemic trends indicate a higher value placed on opportunities for social interaction, which Broadway shows typically provide.

Furthermore, there is a noticeable resurgence in interest among younger generations for traditional, non-digital forms of entertainment. Over three-quarters of those surveyed expressed a preference for engaging in entertainment experiences that are perceived as less digitally invasive, highlighting a niche that Broadway can capitalize on.

Approximately 37% of participants noted a scarcity of Broadway or live theater promotions in their social media feeds, which the survey suggests is the result of a misalignment in marketing strategies.

The No Guarantees survey had a sample of 1,012, with three-quarters based in the tri-state area, and half being millennials. The small, tri-state area-focused data sample may be overstating Gen Z and Millennial interest in attending Broadway shows.

The No Guarantees survey reported poor recall for recent award-winning shows but reportedly presented them amongst fake titles - which likely skewed the results.

Approximately 35% of show attendees during the 2022-23 season were from the city itself or the surrounding metropolitan area. Approximately 48% of the audience came from domestic US travel.

The survey results are available to read here.

Although these survey results are a bit gloomy for Broadway marketers in terms of their efficacy rates reaching these demographics, BroadwayWorld Research's most recent survey results indicated that based on our Broadway-going readership's responses at 22% of the total, the 25-34 age break had surpassed the 65+ audience (17.7%) for the first time since we started conducting annual surveys.

At 14.7% the 55-64 age demo had declined for the first time since conducting surveys.

Our research also indicated that based on the survey results audiences overwhelmingly reported not being swayed by posts from influencers in terms of attending Broadway shows, and that reviews, news stories, interviews, social media posts, and videos were the top contributors to the purchase decision. 

Traditional advertising including print and TV ads ranked amongst the lowest factors.

BroadwayWorld's survey respondents indicated a strong awareness for long-running shows - with results consistent across all demographics. For new shows, those ranking highly on the awareness matrix were those based on popular intellectual property and with big stars above the title. Ranking on the low end were plays with seasoned Broadway performers and original musicals.

BroadwayWorld Research's data sample size was over 5000 survey responses.