SEVEN THEATERS IN SEARCH OF REVENUE

PRICING FUTURE
THEATRE OBJECTIVES STRATEGY
STRUCTURE GOAL

1) Atlanta’s to maximize the revenue  Demand- broadway 

Alliance of blockbusters in order based musicals,
Theatre pricing new
to allow the theater to
 marketing plays,
produce riskier, newer classical
plays that will not bring staff carefully
plays and
in as much revenue tracks sales
family
and raises fare
ticket prices
when demand
has grown to
the point
where
audiences will
pay a
premium
Targeted rather
than offered in
public, allowing
Alliance to
continue selling
as many tickets
as possible at the
original price.

2) La Jolla two pricing objectives 6 to 8 main stage  Product-Form

Playhouse are to maximize income plays and the theater sets
musicals the price of the
from their most popular
$40 - $72
 performances and to Musical $30 - $60 ticket in relation to
maximize audience Play best seat $75 - the production’s
$100
through variable pricing attractiveness to
for different the
performances, seating marketplace(based
sections, and special on the type of
opportunities. show, and the day
of the week on
which the show is
performed), rather
than setting one
price across a
season
 “highest highs and
lowest lows” –
means raising
prices with high
demand and
lowering prices for
shows with less
demand

3) Center to maximize revenue  Three-Strategies

Theater Group while making affordable  Ahmanson –
of Los Plays and musical “scaled house”
seats available so the
Angeles
entire market has the theater, with
opportunity to attend several pricing
Plays First 15 $40 - levels based on
rows $100 desirability of seat
 Ahmanson $20 - $85 locations
 Mark Taper Forum
 – frontload
$35 -$45 subscribers into the
 Mark
season, offering
Taper Experimental and
Forum new shows gallery $20 deep discounts for
subscriptions
 Kirk during previews to
Douglas start word of
mouth sales early.
Single ticket prices
only vary by date
and time of
performance
(weekday versus
weekend and
evening versus
matinee)
 Kirk Douglas
Theatre – has a
gallery, for which
seats are always
$20. Main floor
seats are one price,
though it varies
based on the
production as well
as performance
date and time
4) Actors Theatre   Seven-play Weekend dates and $10 - $20 Price-  Meeting
at Louisville main-stage evenings sensitive Consumers
series consumers Behavior
 Experimental Students,  adjusting to
shows seniors and consumer behavior
 Three holiday educators
in order to
shows and are heavily
 the Humana discounted maximize revenue –
Festival of 4-6 pm AAA setting competitive
New $25 members
pricing, scaling the
American Local
Plays corporations house, and offering
 Broadway General discounts
productions group sales  Setting competitive
pricing, scaling the
house, and offering
discounts
 Uses data and
analyses other
performing arts
groups in the city to
find the going rates
of the tickets
 Raises prices for
musical
 Lower prices for
previews
 Offers promotions
for first three to five
performances
 $17 rush tickets are
offered to seniors
and students 30
minutes before
performances
5) Berkely New works, Sat nights Premium, $40  Maximizing
Repertory commissions, and A- Attendance
Theatre in classical play Section,  Yearly Value of
California B- Customers (YVOC)
Section  High but
competitive pricing
before, however,
they use multi-price
structure to
maximize revenue
 and to increase
attendance
6) Stratford  Predictive  age-specific  Optimize revenue
Festival of Stratford has three Modelling discounts,  Maximize capacity
Canada pricing objectives: and Yield utilization within the
focusing on
Management theater
young people
 Optimize  Maintain
and seniors, accessibility for
revenue.
which are youth, seniors,
 Maximize available only families, and local
capacity for audiences
specifically  Rush tickets and
utilization tailored discounts
within the scheduled
are promoted
theater (fill performances through direct
the theater  discounts for marketing
to capacity previews in  2003-2004 price
at each the spring levels increased by
and fall 10% 60 days before
price the show and 15%
point).  offers rush
30 days before the
tickets and
show depending on
 Maintain tailored demand. 2005 –
accessibilit discounts 2006 15% 60 days
y for youth, promoted before the show
seniors, through  2007 the Festival
direct increased by 15%
families,
60 days before the
and local marketing
show, encouraging
audiences.  online-only the customers to
discounts book early.
 2005 best available
seats go on sale
two hours before
the show at a 50%
discount
 In the future,
historical data is
 better used to
forecast actual
revenue from
shows and use that
data to help season
planning
7) New York’s  Demand-based American plays $15  Pricing for Access
Signature pricing and playwrights $20  2005
Theatre  marketing staff $55  2007
carefully tracks sales  Pricing structure
$40 30% initiative was a one-
and raises ticket
prices when demand price house
 Subscribers price
has grown to the
 The theatre
point where increased single
audiences will pay a ticket price when
premium star actors featured
Targeted rather than in the show $5 to
offered in public, allowing $10 above standard
Alliance to continue ticket prices
selling as many tickets as
possible at the original
price.