Broadway Audiences Return With COVID Out Of Limelight, Study Finds

NEW YORK CITY — Broadway's post-COVID revival is drawing audiences, but attendance is still falling short of showstopper numbers, a new study found.

Shows drew more than 12 million admissions for Broadway's most recent season, according to The Broadway League's audience demographics analysis released this week.

Those tickets were down 16.8 percent of the 2018-2019, the last complete season before pandemic shutdowns darkened theaters, the study found.

“While we are not yet back to pre-COVID attendance levels, audiences are returning,” said Charlotte St. Martin, president of The Broadway League, in a statement.

But the survey did show good news for the 2022-2023 season — the first complete season back from COVID-19.

The season had the highest percentage of audience diversity in the study's history, with 29 percent of attendees identifying as Black, Indigenous or people of color.

"This is likely from a combination of outreach efforts as well as more shows being written and/or starring people of color," St. Martin said.

Roughly 35 percent of attendances hailed from the New York City metropolitan area, with nearly 22 percent from the city itself, the study found.

And audiences were filled with repeat theatergoers — the average number of attendances was four, according to the study.

Devoted fans who attended 15 or more performances were only about 5 percent of audiences, but counted for 30 percent of all tickets, the study found.