{"id":3779,"date":"2025-04-18T05:41:29","date_gmt":"2025-04-18T12:41:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/?p=3779"},"modified":"2025-04-18T05:41:31","modified_gmt":"2025-04-18T12:41:31","slug":"on-the-hidden-economics-of-live-theatre","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/2025\/04\/on-the-hidden-economics-of-live-theatre\/","title":{"rendered":"On the hidden economics of live theatre"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Freakonomics Radio has a new three part series on the economic landscape facing live theatre. Part One is here<\/a>, and part two is here<\/a>, which as a supporting act in an episode with Lin-Manuel Miranda, has me trying to coherently explain cost disease<\/a> in the theatre, where it comes from and its implications. Part three will come next week, but if I say so myself it is a really informative series so far.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Freakonomics Radio has a new three part series on the economic landscape facing live theatre. Part One is here, and part two is here, which as a supporting act in an episode with Lin-Manuel Miranda, has me trying to coherently explain cost disease in the theatre, where it comes from and its implications. Part three […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":3780,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[26],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-3779","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-issues","8":"entry"},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/image-2.png","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3dIW5-YX","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":3794,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/2025\/04\/even-more-on-the-economics-of-live-theatre\/","url_meta":{"origin":3779,"position":0},"title":"Even more on the economics of live theatre","author":"Michael Rushton","date":"April 25, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"The Freakonomics series on the economics of live theatre continues with this third and final episode, in which I talk about its value - no, not economic value: all the other kinds... https:\/\/freakonomics.com\/podcast\/will-3-summers-of-lincoln-make-it-to-broadway\/","rel":"","context":"In "issues"","block_context":{"text":"issues","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/category\/issues\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/image.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":2976,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/2024\/03\/on-the-high-price-of-west-end-tickets\/","url_meta":{"origin":3779,"position":1},"title":"On the high price of West End tickets","author":"Michael Rushton","date":"March 6, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"The Guardian has\u00a0a new editorial\u00a0up about how the price of a theatre ticket in London is too darn high. I imagine it would be possible to write a similar piece about theatre in any big North American city as well. But it makes some questionable claims and assumptions, so, here\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "issues"","block_context":{"text":"issues","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/category\/issues\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/image.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/image.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/image.png?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2916,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/2023\/07\/whats-wrong-with-the-theatre-is-whats-wrong-with-society\/","url_meta":{"origin":3779,"position":2},"title":"What’s Wrong with the Theatre is What’s Wrong With Society","author":"Michael Rushton","date":"July 20, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"In the New York Times, Isaac Butler sounds the alarm for the fate of live theatre in the US: The American theater is on the verge of collapse. ... Regional and nonprofit theaters were in trouble well before 2020 and the force majeure of the pandemic. Most regional and nonprofit\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "issues"","block_context":{"text":"issues","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/category\/issues\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/image.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":2078,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/2016\/08\/on-proper-attire-for-attending-the-theatre\/","url_meta":{"origin":3779,"position":3},"title":"On proper attire for attending the theatre","author":"Michael Rushton","date":"August 4, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"We have links to two stories today, Elisabeth Vincentelli asking that people try a little harder to look decent when they attend the theatre, much as they might be comfortable in their cargo pants and their Black Sabbath 1982 Mob Rules tour official t-shirt, and Alexis Kleinman in rebuttal -\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "issues"","block_context":{"text":"issues","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/category\/issues\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"you don't have to be rich","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/dressed-up.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/dressed-up.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/dressed-up.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1310,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/2014\/05\/why-tax-breaks-for-commercial-theatre\/","url_meta":{"origin":3779,"position":4},"title":"Why tax breaks for commercial theatre?","author":"Michael Rushton","date":"May 23, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"The Stage reports (and I repost the story in full here): Tax breaks for the theatre industry to be introduced this autumn could bring in \u00a3100 million for commercial theatre and \u00a320 million for touring productions in coming years, Arts Council England\u2019s chair PeterBazalgette has said. He said the initiative\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "issues"","block_context":{"text":"issues","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/category\/issues\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"coherent arts policy","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/Pound-Sterling-Progress.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1812,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/worth\/2015\/02\/pay-what-you-decide-at-the-theatre\/","url_meta":{"origin":3779,"position":5},"title":"Pay-what-you-decide at the theatre","author":"Michael Rushton","date":"February 2, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"The Stage News reports on a trial run of pay-what-you-decide pricing at the regional theatre in Stockton, UK: The Pay What You Decide system is now in effect for all theatre productions at the arts centre for six months, following a trial on a one-man show at the venue. 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