Broadway Shows Stay Popular in the Face of Coronavirus Outbreak

(Bloomberg) -- For now, at least, the show will go on.

Attendance at Broadway shows has remained steady at around 250,000 weekly visitors, even as theaters take extra steps to warn patrons to protect themselves from Covid-19. In fact, more people visited performances last week than in the prior week, keeping shows such as “Hamilton” packed, according to data from the Broadway League.

While the rapidly spreading disease hasn’t deterred ticket holders, theaters also may be offering more deals to fill seats. The average price of a ticket was $105.35 last week, slightly lower than the week before and about $6 cheaper than at the same period last year.

That Broadway fans have so far shrugged off the impact of Covid-19 is good for the industry. But ticket sales have been sliding throughout the season, compared with last year, with fewer productions available to watch. And in London’s West End, the effects of the virus have been more acute. Famed playwright Andrew Lloyd Webber delayed the opening of his show “Cinderella” from August to October due to “global circumstances.”

A spokeswoman for the Broadway League, the trade group that represents North American theaters, said there’s no reason yet to cancel existing productions and there’s not yet a discussion about offering at-home viewing experiences such as streaming. Instead, theaters are putting out stands of hand sanitizer and encouraging sick patrons to stay home.

To contact the reporter on this story: Kelly Gilblom in Los Angeles at kgilblom@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Nick Turner at nturner7@bloomberg.net, John J. Edwards III

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