Broadway takes massive hit as NYC suburbanites steer clear over ‘safety concerns’: survey
03.01.2024 - 21:40
/ nypost.com
shut down because of the pandemic, according to data the Broadway League released last month. New York metro suburbanites accounted for a mere 14% or 1.7 million of the overall tickets last season — the lowest number on record in the 23 years the Broadway League has tracked such data.The Broadway League declined to comment on the dip. “We do not speculate generally about the numbers,” spokesperson Scalla Jakso said in an email.
Even as tourism to the Big Apple is rebounding, the city has a perception problem among New York metro suburbanites who are over 55 years old, said Damian Bazadona, president of Situation Group. Half of suburbanites who have not returned to Broadway cited “concerns about safety” as a primary reason why they see fewer shows, according to a survey by the marketing and advertising firm. A whopping 41% of suburbanites said, “I travel to Manhattan for pleasure less often than I did in 2019.”Overall crime in the five boroughs was down 5% through Dec.
24, compared to the same period a year ago, according to NYPD data. Murders declined 11% and shootings were down 24% from a year ago. Nevertheless, assaults were up 6% and car thefts were up 15%.
The Situation Group survey, which polled some 1,700 Broadway ticket buyers nationwide, found that just 30% of suburbanites attributed their cutback on shows to work-from-home issues. “Our data shows that the [reasons] are much broader than just a reluctance to work in the city,” Bazadona told The Post.The Situation Group survey also found that 50% of suburbanites who are pulling back on theater say there are fewer shows they are interested in seeing.Charlotte St. Martin, president of the Broadway League, said in a statement last month that the most recent season
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