Live Theater Worth More Than Entertainment to CNY
From cnycentral.com:
By Sam Carter
Live theater has been shut down across New York State for almost a full year.
The Executive director of the Red House Theater, Samara Hannah said, being able to go to the theater is about more than entertainment.
“For the entire industry to be completely dormant, whether it’s movies, live theatre whatever,” Hannah said. “There is so much content out there just wanting to come back and really to nurture the soul of everyone in the community.”
According to the Broadway League in 2017, tour productions generated nearly $4 billion nationally. For CEO of NAC Entertainment Albert Nocciolino, live theater creates wide economic ripples.
“The sooner we can get these shows open, the sooner restaurants can reopen, and hotels can be at full capacity,”
For Hannah, when it finally is safe to hold plays and musicals again, they will need help to get back going again.
“I think the first thing we need is we need some funding,” Hannah said. “Our revenue streams have been turned off, and we are coming up on a year of no funding.”
According to the Broadway League, in 2018-19, the New York City theater industry supported more than 90,000 jobs.