Inside the Growing World of Theatre Tickets Insuranceby Cara Joy David - September 24, 2024Theater tickets are famously known as non-refundable. But there are sometimes insurance options out there, they just aren’t well publicized. As expected, the industry not having a centralized buying platform leads to a more confusing purchasing experience in terms of insurance. Different forums offer different insurance or none at all. This, even though, everyone asked believes clear insurance offerings are a plus for the consumer. Breaking Down This Season's April Crushby Cara Joy David - April 29, 2024We are officially done with the Broadway season. And, this season, there have been a lot of complaints about the spring crush. THE HEART OF ROCK AND ROLL Hits Broadway After Years of Changesby Cara Joy David - April 15, 2024In this column, I write about the development of one of this spring’s jukebox musicals, The Heart of Rock and Roll. My old friend, Gordon Greenberg (represented off-Broadway earlier this season with Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors), is directing it, and I recently chatted with him about his decade-long involvement with the show. Andrew Durand Plays Dead, Hal Luftig's Bankruptcy Plan is Rejected, and Moreby Cara Joy David - March 25, 2024Every once and a while I see a performance and wonder if there is some stage magic involved. That is how I felt while watching Dead Outlaw. Andrew Durand—giving what The New York Times referred to as a “wow of a performance” —stays so still for such a large portion of the musical that I wondered if a beta blocker was utilized. Lola Tung Leads to Standing-Room-Only Crowds at HADESTOWNby Cara Joy David - March 18, 2024Throughout my career, I’ve tried to stay attuned to the ticket-buying experience. I walk through the process online at the major retailers. I’ll stop by rush lines or in-person lotteries to talk to folks. And, last week, I woke up early a few days to talk to people on/participate in the standing-room-only line for Hadestown. ArtsDistrict Brooklyn Shutters, Leaving Bills That Vendors Say Went Unpaidby Cara Joy David - March 11, 2024In the summer of 2022, Canadian-based producers David Galpern and Charles Roy launched ArtsDistrict Brooklyn in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. But I’ve spoken to over a dozen people—some only on background because of potential legal implications—who allege they are owed money related to work they performed for the venue. Do Theater Influencers Have a Huge Influence on Ticket Buyers?by Cara Joy David - March 4, 2024In recent years, we’ve talked a lot in the theater about influencers. There is good reason for this—in terms of the broader landscape, influencer marketing has grown to an over $20 billion industry. But I’ve long wondered whether influencers are directly selling theater tickets. And, in my polling of 200 theatergoers, the answer was: “No.” Looking at the Lack of Theater Journalism and Saying Goodbye to Lynda Graváttby Cara Joy David - February 26, 2024We’ve all heard about the shuttering of media outlets and the departure of entertainment journalists from publications still in business. In the last couple of months, I’ve been thinking a lot about how the dearth of theater coverage is changing our perception of the art form. NYS Theater Tax Credit: Who Benefits and Howby Cara Joy David - February 20, 2024One thing that has been pivotal to theater’s return in New York City is the New York City Musical and Theatrical Production Tax Credit, which is a New York State program, despite what the name might indicate. It was expanded to apply to both Broadway and off-Broadway. I can’t tell you how many producers have told me it was pivotal in getting their shows off the ground. New Details of Chad Kimball Lawsuit Revealed; Shubert Bartender Lawsuit Expandsby Cara Joy David - February 12, 2024Every once and a while I like to do litigation updates because one of my pet peeves is how the media sometimes reports when a case is filed and then drop it. One such case is Chad Kimball’s lawsuit related to his departure from Come From Away. Another is the one bartenders at Shubert Organization theaters brought against the theater chain and others. What Did Chita Rivera Think Was the Best Musical Number She Performed?by Cara Joy David - February 5, 2024It’s been almost a week, but I’m still having trouble processing the loss of Chita Rivera. I expected to see her onstage again. What always struck me about Rivera, the ultimate gypsy (a term she clung to after others eschewed it in the name of political correctness), is, even in later years, she still seemed like a dancer first, a star second. League President's Abrupt Departure Leaves Industry Talkingby Cara Joy David - January 22, 2024Last week, the Broadway League announced that Charlotte St. Martin would be “retiring” after 18 years. An email went out to League members shortly before the release. And I’m not sure I’ve ever received quite so many theater-related communications before noon. Absence of Suburbanites Impacts More Than You Thinkby Cara Joy David - January 16, 2024Many folks have read in the last couple of weeks that Broadway is suffering from a suburban theatergoer drought. That is true. Two things are important to note related to that. First, this impacts more than simply pure overall attendance numbers. Second, this isn’t totally unique to New York. How Did Actors Behave at the Stage Doors of Last Year's Musicals?by Cara Joy David - January 8, 2024Last year, I spent a lot of time at stage doors. I wanted to write about what it was like. I wrote about my experience at the stage doors of straight plays and the installment about musicals was supposed to follow quickly thereafter but kept getting bumped. I could not let it sit too far into 2024 however, so here it is. SHUCKED Producer Mike Bosner on Saying Goodbye to Broadwayby Cara Joy David - December 18, 2023Late last season a musical came to Broadway from an unusual tryout city with a marketing campaign tied to a fruit. Shucked will leave Broadway in a month, though seemingly not because of either of the oddities I just mentioned. GUTENBERG! Packs Them In, But Tonys Still Veto Producers' Eligibility Requestby Cara Joy David - December 4, 2023Gutenberg! The Musical! has been one of the few 2023-2024 season bright spots at the box office. And I admit, it has outpaced my expectations. But, it’s almost 20 years old, and so the Tony Awards Administration Committee has deemed it should compete in the Best Revival category. Con Edison Becomes Latest Philanthropic Contributor to Turn Away From the Artsby Cara Joy David - November 20, 2023New York energy company Con Edison, a longtime local supporter of the arts, is the latest corporation to back away from funding them. Dwindling local corporate giving has been a problem across the country, as I’ve previously written. But this Con Ed move is surprising given that the company reinforced its dedication to the arts in recent years. Are THE WIZ's Backdrops AI Generated? And What is Scenography?by Cara Joy David - November 6, 2023It is a rare week when two topics related to set design interest me. But that is what happened last week. The first topic involves social media and AI. The weekend before last, people kept sending me a TikTok clip or related posts about The Wiz allegedly using AI to generate its “backdrops.” The second topic involves a terminology change. Bill Kenwright: There Will Never Be Anotherby Cara Joy David - October 30, 2023Bill Kenwright, who passed away last week, was an old-school dedicated leader. He committed totally to his projects. He knew more about them than anyone. And he often knew more about other people’s projects than even the people involved with those projects. The National Announces 6:30pm Experiment--Is Broadway Next?by Cara Joy David - October 23, 2023Last week, London’s National Theatre announced that starting in February 2024, select Tuesday and Thursday performances for new productions will begin at 6:30pm. Is it a good idea? Should the West End or Broadway adopt 6:30pm curtains? It’s hard to know, but it could pay off. Producers Incentivize Buying Tickets Late, Despite Desiring Early Purchasesby Cara Joy David - October 16, 2023This week, I’m going to answer a couple of questions I received in the past few weeks.
I wrote in my column a couple of weeks ago about the change in ticket buying habits. Post-pandemic Broadway research has shown people buying tickets later. The question posed to me was: 'Why?'
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