New Research Shows Nearly 70% of Gen Z & Millennials Are Curious About Broadway. So Why Aren't They Coming?

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Apr 24, 2024, 07:00 ET

Nearly 40% of Gen Z & Millennials Have Never Seen Broadway Mentioned on Social Media

60% of Respondents Are As Familiar With Fake Shows Made Up For The Study As Tony Award-Winning Musicals Like Hamilton

Shockingly, Gen Z & Millennials Don't Want Broadway TikTok-ified, They Want a Classic Experience

NEW YORK, April 24, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- New research released today reveals that while nearly 70%* of Gen Z and Millennials are curious about Broadway, they have been left in the dark by an industry recovering from a period of turbulence. With the industry in need of new, engaged audiences, what must Broadway do to get young people to the theater? The full report, Broadway's Next Act: Gen Zs and Millennials, can be downloaded at NoGuarantees.com.

Broadway’s Next Act: Gen Zs and Millennials, was commissioned by No Guarantees, the Tony Award-winning, theatrical production company, in partnership with leading trends and generation research firm Culture Co-Op. Through quantitative and qualitative research, No Guarantees sought to examine younger generations' opinions and knowledge of Broadway to understand how the industry can cultivate new audiences.

The research was commissioned by No Guarantees, the Tony Award-winning, theatrical production company, in partnership with leading trends and generation research firm Culture Co-Op. Through quantitative and qualitative research, No Guarantees sought to examine younger generations' opinions and knowledge of Broadway to understand how the industry can cultivate new audiences.

Key Finding 1-Broadway Has Left Gen Z & Millennials In The Dark

While there has been extensive reporting about Broadway's struggle to attract new audiences, this study shows that theater-curious Gen Z and Millennials have been left in the dark by the industry. Fifty percent of respondents say that what would make them more interested in theater would simply be knowing and hearing more about it. In fact, one in five say the solution is to "Just advertise!" as they never hear about Broadway.

Not surprisingly, Broadway's lack of a social media presence is largely responsible for low awareness. Nearly 40% say they don't think they've ever seen anything about live theater or Broadway in their social media feeds, while three-quarters agree that social media could help Broadway entice them to attend. This lack of awareness is made clear with 84% of young people thinking there are 20 or fewer shows on Broadway and nearly half, 46%, think there are 5 or fewer (there are 41).

This is made all the more shocking given the yearly advertising spend for all Broadway productions is an estimated $276 million.

Most respondents make clear they know little about live theater and admit they'd be hard-pressed to name more than a handful of shows. There is even a blurry line between fact and fiction, with many respondents "familiar with" shows that don't exist. A whopping 60% of respondents report being familiar with fake shows made up for this study. For example, "The Duke'' is as recognizable as Tony Award-winning musicals like Hamilton. This suggests that individual show brands, even the most popular, cannot reach young, engaged audiences in a meaningful way.

73% agree social media could help Broadway take off—and 71% say they learn about "pretty much everything" through social media—yet 37% don't think they've ever seen anything about Broadway in their social feeds.
50% of respondents say that what would make them more interested in theater would be just knowing more about it.
84% of young people think there are 20 or fewer shows on Broadway and nearly half, 46%, think there are 5 or fewer (there are 41).
61% say they'd be hard-pressed to think of more than a handful of shows. And 36% say the only Broadway show they know is Hamilton.
More young people are "familiar with" shows that don't exist (58%) than they are familiar with the most popular show among young people—Hamilton (56%).
Fewer than half of young people are familiar with the highest-grossing shows playing on Broadway, including Wicked (46%), Moulin Rouge (45%), and The Lion King (40%).

Key Finding 2- Gen Z & Millennials Think Broadway Slaps

Broadway's ghosting of Gen Z & Millennials hasn't turned off their interest. Two-thirds of respondents describe themselves as "Broadway curious" rather than "Broadway agnostic" and about one-quarter of those who haven't been to live theater or Broadway in the past year are interested, or very interested, in attending in the upcoming year. Notably, 91% of respondents say that taking this very survey made them more interested in going to a Broadway show or discovering more about theater.

91% of respondents say that simply taking this survey made them more interested in Broadway.
81% of young people living outside of the Tri-state area wish there were more Broadway shows near them.
79% agree, "The pandemic has made me appreciate live entertainment more than ever before."

Key Finding 3- Gen Z & Millennials Don't Want Broadway TikTok-ified

Young people see Broadway as a social media escape. Live entertainment, including live theater and Broadway, is a place to flee social media and double down on IRL. Eighty-five percent agree, "Live entertainment is a place for me to unplug and tune into IRL" and 78% agree, "Live entertainment becomes more powerful as the world becomes more digital."

Respondents respect Broadway and like its classic appeal—77% would prefer that Broadway remains Broadway and not change a thing. In fact, three-quarters of respondents don't feel that Broadway will lose relevance among younger generations and 42% say that it will make a comeback among younger generations.

When it comes to having phones in Broadway theaters, the verdict was unanimous—no phones are better, with only 10% of respondents saying that having access to phones at shows would improve the Broadway experience. The point is young people appreciate a classic Broadway theater experience.

That said, social media has its place. Gen Z & Millennials are all about keeping Broadway true to its roots while modernizing its marketing via social media.

86% of digital natives see live entertainment as a place to unplug and tune into IRL, and 66% say social media has ruined live entertainment.
61% of young people have a hard time going one hour without checking their phones, but 68% agree that having phones at live theater would make it worse. Only 10% wish they could have used their phone at a recent live theater performance.
77% would prefer that Broadway remains Broadway and not change a thing.
76% of respondents don't feel that Broadway will lose relevance among younger generations and 42% say that it will make a comeback among younger generations.

Key Finding 4-Gen Z & Millennials Think Broadway Tickets Are 50% More Expensive Than They Are

The cost of going to a Broadway show was naturally on the minds of those surveyed. Young people were concerned about the cost of all live events and cited recent Beyonce and Taylor Swift tickets as proof, which went for $323 and $1,088 on average, according to CNBC.

But this shows that the industry has some work to do and a massive opportunity to set the record straight. There's a misconception amongst Gen Z and Millennials that Broadway tickets are around 50% more expensive than they are, thinking they cost at least $200 vs. the actual average of $123 (many shows have tickets as low as $49). The good news is that once people experience Broadway, price becomes less of an issue, with a full 90% of Gen Zs and Millennials who have been to a Broadway show saying it was worth the price.

Megan O'Keefe, Executive Vice President of No Guarantees, commented:

"This study makes clear that while Gen Z & Millennials may not know much about individual shows or what's happening in the theater industry, the Broadway brand remains extraordinarily strong. The question that all of us in the industry must ask ourselves is, how do we take this Gen Z & Millennial interest and convert it into regular Broadway attendance?

This research shows that lack of attendance is not about the cast, subject matter, or number of awards of an individual show, it has to do with deeply entrenched misconceptions about Broadway itself, things like ticket price, the number of shows, access to tickets and who Broadway is even meant for. This problem is simply not solvable by individual shows with finite budgets. Instead, producers need to join forces and take on the responsibility of reaching and educating these interested Gen Zers & Millennials about these threshold misconceptions.

The good news is that Broadway has a clear path forward in appealing to the existing interest of new, young audiences demonstrated by this research, and it's time for all of us in the industry to develop a modern, actionable strategy to make it happen - to meet people where they really are."

*Individuals who have not been to live theater in the past year and who reported they had no interest in attending live theater in the upcoming year were not included in this study.

Methodology

This study is based on a 1,012-person online survey fielded in January 2024 among 498 Gen Zs, ages 18-to-28, and 514 Millennials, ages 29-to-44.

Three-quarters of survey respondents (753) were from the tri-state area (New York, New Jersey, Connecticut) and one-quarter (259) were nationally reflective of the U.S. population outside of the tri-state area. Two-thirds of survey-takers were women (642), and one-third were men (359); less than 1% identified as gender nonbinary. The racial and ethnic composition of respondents reflected that of the national population. Theater rejectors--individuals who had not been to live theater in the past year and who reported they had no interest in going to live theater in the upcoming year--were not included in this sample.

Findings were analyzed by 40 different demographic and psychographic cuts, including age, gender, race/ethnicity, geographic region, and various theater-going profiles, among other areas of interest.

In addition, twelve, 30-minute one-on-one Zoom interviews were conducted with a hand-recruited group of diverse, culture-forward Gen Zs and Millennials, ages 21-to-39, representing 8 U.S. markets including New York, NY; Brooklyn, NY; Stamford, CT; Jersey City, NJ; Washington D.C.; Dallas, TX; Chicago, IL; and Los Angeles, CA.

Independent research firm, Culture Co-op, conducted and analyzed research and findings.

About No Guarantees

No Guarantees is the Tony Award-winning, theatrical production company bringing artist-driven, universally appealing stories to life. Founded in 2017, No Guarantees is working to reinvigorate and reimagine Broadway through outstanding productions, strategic investments, community engagement, innovative tech initiatives, and bold creative decisions. No Guarantees' dynamic and creative team, considerable resources, and dedication to artists allow it to take the risks needed to make amazing stories accessible to the masses and gather the unique insights, learnings, and data needed to have a meaningful impact on the industry. No Guarantees has produced James Ijames' Pulitzer Prize-winning play, Fat Ham, Andrew Lloyd Webber's Bad Cinderella and co-produced Merrily We Roll Along starring Daniel Radcliffe, Jonathan Groff & Lindsay Mendez, and Hadestown, among many other shows. Current and upcoming productions include Player Kings starring Ian McKellen and Saheem Ali, Jocelyn Bioh, and Michael Thurber's new musical Goddess.