2017-2018 MARKED THE BEST ATTENDED, HIGHEST GROSSING SEASON IN BROADWAY HISTORY!
The Broadway League yesterday released its end-of-season statistics for the 2017 – 2018 season, which began May 22, 2017 and ended May 27, 2018, and the numbers speak volumes. For the 2017 – 2018 season, which was a 53-week season, total attendance reached 13,792,614 and Broadway shows yielded $1,697,458,795 in grosses, making it the best attended and highest grossing season in Broadway recorded history. All new and continuing productions ran a total of 1,624 playing weeks.
The 2017 – 2018 Broadway season concluded with attendance up 3.9%, grosses up 17.1%, and playing weeks up 2.8%.
As a point of reference, attendance through week 52 was 13.48 million, which was up 1.6% over last year’s 52-week season, and still the best attended of any season on record. Grosses as of last week totaled $1.658 billion, also a record, and up 14.4% over last season.
“It’s been a remarkably diverse season with a wide variety of outstanding musicals and plays on Broadway that have attracted a record number of theatregoers proving once again that there really is something for everyone on Broadway in a wide range of price points. Over 80% of the shows on Broadway had an average paid admission of under $130 and more than half of the shows that played this season (60%) had an average paid admission of less than $101,” said Charlotte St. Martin, President of The Broadway League. “Since our last 53 week season, our attendance has grown 10% or 1.26 million theatregoers. It’s not surprising that so many have been coming to experience the best of live theatre.”
Broadway attendance in the 2017 – 2018 season topped those of the ten professional New York and New Jersey sports teams combined. Broadway surpassed the combined sports teams by over 3.5 million in attendance.
During the 2017-2018 season 33 productions opened which included: 10 musicals (7 original, 3 revivals), 20 plays (10 original, 10 revivals), and 3 special engagements.
The Broadway season is a 52-week period, running approximately from the beginning of June through the end of May; it is comprised of 364 days, as opposed to the 365-day calendar year. In order to keep consistent with the calendar, every seven years, a week must be added to the Broadway season.
THE BROADWAY LEAGUE (Charlotte St. Martin, President), 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 who present in nearly 200 markets in North America. Each year, League members bring Broadway to nearly 30 million people in New York and on tour across the U.S. and Canada. The Broadway League has recently added a new category for International membership to collaborate with professionals from around the world who produce and present Broadway quality theatre. The Broadway League annually co-presents the Antoinette Perry “Tony” Awards®, one of the most coveted awards in the entertainment industry.
