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Hamilton Producer Jeffrey Seller: Live Theater Is the Antidote To Digital Overload (recode.net)
As more people come online and get hold of smartphones, we are witnessing a generation that is reliant on their phones to get news, entertainment, and educational resources among other things. They watch movies and TV shows on Netflix and other services, and they listen to music on Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube. Naturally, you would think that people in the Broadway theater business must be threatened that nobody will physically attend their show anymore, but that's not necessarily the case, at least not with everyone. Take Jeffrey Seller, for example, the producer of Broadway megahit Hamilton refuses to fold to the virtual reality laden world, and he has numbers on his side. From a Recode article (you can also found an hour-long podcast on this there): The success of "Hamilton," which is sold out in New York through May 2017 and will soon spread to Chicago, San Francisco and London, has convinced Seller that demand for a real, non-digital experience is stronger than ever. He said 13 million people went to see Broadway shows in the past season, and only 500,000 of those were "Hamilton" attendees. By contrast, when Seller first made a splash as the co-producer of "Rent" in 1996, he estimated total Broadway attendance was around eight million to nine million people. "Experiencing art live with friends, with family, with people we love, is so rewarding that people are searching it out amidst the digital age, in which our faces are in our phones seemingly every other hour of the day," he said.Explaining why he thinks that virtual reality cannot completely take over, in a rather crass example, Seller adds, "Do you want to have sex or do you want to have a virtual reality experience of sex?"
There are MULTIPLE ways to see lots of live theater without breaking the bank!
1. Purchase subscriptions. This cuts the per-ticket price by 10-20% while guaranteeing you a good seat for each performance. Plus they will endlessly nag you to contribute to their foundation (many theaters are 501c3 non-profits).
2. Purchase discounted tickets via TIXS or Goldstar. Many theaters want a full house, but more importantly want to always avoid an empty house (it's tough on the artists to give their best in a nearly empty theater). You do get to choose your seat, with typical discounts of 20-60%. Check what's available in your town.
3. Purchase SRO (Standing Room Only) tickets, which are often discounted by to 75% or more. While you won't get to choose your seat, if you attend the less-packed performances (the box office will tell you which they are), you will ALMOST always get a seat. But you typically must show up in person well before the performance to buy your ticket: I typically get the SRO tickets on my way to dinner. I've attended even sold-out performances via SRO tickets!
4. Attend dress rehearsals and previews. While the play may not yet have all its rough edges smoothed, this is actually the best way to learn about how theater really works, what it takes to pull a production together. These tickets are either free or heavily discounted, though they may not be mentioned on the theater's web site, so you may have to call or physically go to the box office.
5. GO FOR FREE! Be a volunteer! When my theater addiction exceeded my budget, I bought a black suit, black dress shoes, white shirt and black tie, and became a volunteer usher. While small theaters may need only 2 ushers per performance, large theaters may need 20 or more, and EACH performance is handled by a DIFFERENT usher crew, which means each theater needs hundreds of volunteer ushers, with the largest needing over 1000. The opportunities are there!
I now see 20-30 plays each year (I usher for several theaters), and my total cost is gasoline, parking, and occasional suit dry cleaning.
Better yet, once I became known to the theater staff I was offered special perks, such as ushering for opening and/or closing night (with an invite to the after-party!). I've also ushered for one-night-only performances, including comedians (such as Billy Crystal, Second City, etc.) and special seminars and workshops held by visiting directors and artists (generally intended as perks for major donors).
But best of all I've been able to meet and interact with thousands of theater patrons. Some are rich or famous, most are old, but the vast majority are just normal folks who love live theater. As an usher, my favorite patrons are the disabled (who need me to get to/from their seats, not just point out the row), and the children (who have endless streams of great questions, especially ones adults may be too embarrassed to ask).
As a volunteer usher, I've also become an ambassador for local live theater, a relationship I treasure.
Theater is far more than just a great way to enjoyably pass a couple hours: It's an entire world with a unique and very diverse culture that also thrives off-stage.
NEVER let money be your reason for not attending!