630. On Broadway, Nobody Knows Nothing
Episode
61 min
Read time
2 min
AI-Generated Summary
Key Takeaways
- ✓Why do Broadway production costs keep increasing faster than inflation?
- ✓How do theater landlords control the economics of Broadway shows?
- ✓What makes some musicals succeed while others fail commercially?
- ✓How do failed Broadway shows make money through touring and licensing?
What It Covers
Broadway producer Jeffrey Seller and economist Michael Rushton explain why theater costs keep rising through Baumol's cost disease theory, examining Hamilton's success and industry economics.
Key Questions Answered
- •Why do Broadway production costs keep increasing faster than inflation?
- •How do theater landlords control the economics of Broadway shows?
- •What makes some musicals succeed while others fail commercially?
- •How do failed Broadway shows make money through touring and licensing?
Notable Moment
Luis Miranda describes raising forty thousand dollars for his son Lin-Manuel's early musical through a backers audition, asking friends to contribute one thousand dollars each based purely on parental faith.
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