Entertainment Venues See a Post-COVID Return

Yesterday marked the five-year anniversary of the COVID shutdowns that consequently hobbled the entertainment industry. Looking at the state of it today, things have landed somewhere between “back to normal” and “cementing a new normal.”

The Big Picture: As the world reopened during the waning days of the pandemic, entertainment companies wondered if people would go back to doing things in person, or if the advent of streaming technology would keep them glued to the couch. Turns out, it’s a bit of both.

Behind the Scenes: It’s high time for an entertainment-industry physical. Here’s a health check, courtesy of NYT:

• Film: Hollywood is in contraction mode. Compared to 2019, there are now fewer wide-release movies (94 vs. 112), fewer theater screens (35,481 vs. 41,172), lower overall grosses ($8.7 billion vs. $11.3 billion), and lower attendance (800 million vs. 1.3 billion).
• Theatre: Broadway is surprisingly almost back to pre-pandemic business, with attendance this season at roughly 95% of what it was during the 2018-2019 season. This year is also the first time that 41 Broadway theaters have running shows.
• Music: Superstar tours are powering the industry to new heights, spending a whopping $9.5 billion on the top 100 tours — 71% more than in 2019. But all that spending on the biggest acts is squeezing middle-class artists and the venues that play them.
• Sports: Every major league has enjoyed an uptick in attendance, even beating 2019 levels. The NFL and the MLB lead the way — the former saw game attendance jump to 18.7 million from 17 million, and the latter increased to 71.3 million from 68.5 million.

The Future: So, what’s the prognosis? By and large, people still enjoy gathering IRL for their favorite movies, shows, concerts, and games. But they’ve become pickier about what gets them out of the house. They’ll attend blockbusters like Inside Out 2 in theaters opening weekend or spend whatever it takes to see Taylor Swift when she comes to town… but almost everything else is up for debate. The key to the industry’s long-term health may be in creating a sustainable infrastructure for more than just the biggest to survive.