When the chips are down do drama lovers stay in and count their coppers or is it on with the show? With box office figures for West End theatres showing a healthy profit, perhaps the performing arts really have bucked the recession. But at what cost…?
If you think recession culture begins and ends with pit bands and skip sculpture, then think again.
While the ACE funding cuts have undoubtedly had an effect on the health of smaller theatre organisations like The Almeida in London and the Northcott Theatre in Exeter, blockbusting West End theatre is bucking the recession like a bronco in a thunder barn.
According to the Society of London Theatres (SOLT), 2010 saw record-breaking revenues for the seventh year in a row. The West End box office broke through the £500m mark for the first time; thanks, in part at least, to big-name turns from actors like Jude Law, Helen Mirren, Tom Hollander, Judi Dench, Sir Ian McKellen and Dominic West.
At the beginning of the year, SOLT president Nina Burns released a statement arguing that “Despite economic woes, volcanic ash, and huge transport disruption, notably during our busiest time of the year at Christmas, we have managed our seventh successive year of growth at the box office. A huge range of superb productions ensured that a visit to the theatre was a must-do for large numbers of the public. London theatre is something for everyone to be proud of and is a great ambassador for UK plc.”
What sorts of shows are providing this banking bonus to the capital’s box offices? That’s right, you guessed it: musicals. We might be cutting back on holidays, shopping, gadgets and nights out, but audiences are, it seems, as happy as ever to invest in big-ticket musicals like Wicked, Avenue Q and, more recently, Shrek.
But before we all start washing our hair in champagne and throwing our tellys in the bin, a word of caution from SOLT’s 2011 figures. Apparently, compared to the beginning of last year, box office revenue has dropped by 6%, while attendances were down 10%.
Outside of London, the picture is mixed. However, in the case of the West Yorkshire Playhouse, this doesn’t necessarily mean falling back on tried-and-tested musical hits.
Artistic Director Ian Brown, writing in the Guardian, recently argued that “even with all the cutbacks, theatre is still a vital part of many people's lives. Audiences here and more generally have held up remarkably well during the recession. We're not looking to alienate our existing audiences, and we'll continue to produce the sort of high-quality theatre for which we are already celebrated. But I'm convinced that a greater diversity of programming in a theatre such as ours can encourage a greater range of people to venture through our doors.”
Fellow Guardian writer Lynn Gardner echoed these sentiments in a piece on regional theatre and risk, arguing that “if regional theatre wants to safeguard its future it can’t play things too safe. It’s risk-taking that keeps theatre alive.”
So, is boundary-pushing theatre the secret to beating the recession? Or are big names and even bigger musical numbers the only hope for theatre in hard times? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below….
Photo of Wicked by Tristram Kenton
