Australia's live performance industry generated $531 million in annual revenue last year, a 2 per cent decline from the prior year, even as audience numbers increased, according to a report by Live Performance Australia. The chief executive of the industry body attributed the squeeze to rising labour, technical, and freight costs, with freight alone up more than 50 per cent.
Australian live theatre sector faces rising costs despite growing audiences
Australia's live performance industry generated $531 million in annual revenue last year, a 2 per cent decline from the prior year, even as audience numbers increased, according to a report by Live Performance Australia. The chief executive of the industry body attributed the squeeze to rising labour, technical, and freight costs, with freight alone up more than 50 per cent.
Live Performance Australia CEO Eric Lassen said the cost pressures are consistent across all markets and genres of live performance nationally. Producers, he said, face increasing risk and shrinking margins because they cannot raise ticket prices beyond a certain point while still recouping costs.
Several major theatrical productions touring Australia have recently been cancelled due to those cost pressures. The national tour of the musical Beetlejuice was cancelled in June, the source states, as one example.
Lassen has called for tax incentives to help producers offset the up-front costs of mounting a new show — including building sets, designing costumes, and workshopping productions before opening night. He described the proposal as a percentage offset of those pre-production costs against future profits, not an offset of ongoing running costs. The federal government's consultation on a new National Cultural Policy is currently underway.
Dracula's Cabaret, a theatre-restaurant on the Gold Coast, has operated for 41 years. It was founded by the Newman family in 1985, inspired by the Rocky Horror Picture Show and Vaudevillian theatre of the 19th century. CEO Luke Newman, who began working at the venue washing dishes, said it takes a crew of 50 people to stage productions five nights a week, with a separate show touring Australia and New Zealand for six months.
- The source does not state which year the Live Performance Australia attendance report was published beyond 'last year,' nor the specific reference period for the $531 million revenue figure.
- The source does not state the revenue figure from the prior year against which the 2 per cent decline was measured.
- The source does not state whether the federal government has responded to or taken a position on Lassen's proposed tax incentive.
- The source does not state how many productions were cancelled in total due to cost pressures, naming only Beetlejuice as an example.
- The source does not state Dracula's annual revenue or attendance figures.
- The source does not state which other musicals touring Australia and New Zealand Dracula's is currently running alongside its Gold Coast production.
Read the original at ABC News Australia