How I know when I'm seeing something great. by Ken Davenport

When I was a teen, I used to take day trips from suburban Massachusetts to the city to see shows.  I’d drive to New Haven, CT and board a Metro North train bound for Grand Central. …

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 12:20pm on July 30, 2015☆⚑

3 Steps to pricing your show. by Ken Davenport

Because this blog is going to be about pricing, let’s just get this out of the way first . . . ready, say it with me, “Broadway tickets are too expensive!” Ok, we all feel …

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 9:07pm on July 29, 2015☆⚑

Would I have produced Rent if I had seen a reading? by Ken Davenport

Demos of Rent were famously circling the biz for years before the show was eventually picked up for a tryout at New York Theatre Workshop, and then eventually revolutionized musical theater …

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 11:06am on July 28, 2015☆⚑

Broadway Grosses* w/e 7/26/2015 by Ken Davenport

The following are the Broadway grosses for the week ending July 26th, 2015. The Broadway grosses are courtesy of The Broadway League Read more here:

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 10:47pm on July 27, 2015☆⚑

Podcast Episode #30: Kurt Deutsch from Sh-K-Boom tells all on the 'record.' by Ken Davenport

What do Tower Records, Colony Records and Footlight Records all have in common? They were all some of my favorite places to shop for cast albums in the 90s. And now they’re all gone…

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 1:10pm on July 27, 2015☆⚑

Fun on a Friday: Laura Benanti and The Skivvies teach you Theater Etiquette by Ken Davenport

Everyone is talking theater etiquette these days, thanks to our Theater Etiquette Ambassador . . . or should I say Theater Etiquette Dictator . . . Patti LuPone, and her latest from-the-stag…

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 12:40pm on July 24, 2015☆⚑

Why selling tickets may not be what you want to push first on your website. by Ken Davenport

Simple web marketing will tell you to make your “Buy Now” button big and easy to find so a consumer feels drawn to clicking it and making that purchase. The right button shoul…

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 7:16am on July 24, 2015☆⚑

It's the Spring Awakening Associate Producer Scholarship! You can be an AP! by Ken Davenport

I’ve done a bunch of fun things on this blog, from Will It Recoup?, my fantasy Broadway game (this year’s results coming soon) to crowdfunding Godspell, and a lot more. …

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 3:51pm on July 21, 2015☆⚑

Broadway Grosses* w/e 7/19/2015

The following are the Broadway grosses for the week ending July 19th, 2015. The Broadway grosses are courtesy of The Broadway League Read more here:

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 5:30pm on July 20, 2015☆⚑

Podcast Episode #29: A guy on the front lines " Broadway Usher John Raymond Barker by Ken Davenport

I’ve been lucky enough to have some pretty influential people from Broadway on this podcast, from Tim Rice to Ben Brantley to Kevin McCollum and a bunch more. But like any industry,…

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 12:59pm on July 20, 2015☆⚑

Do Broadway shows need bigger reserves? Part II by Ken Davenport

Ok, now we get to the good stuff. Yesterday, we talked all about the all-important reserve in Broadway Budgets, and how they are used and when they are used (and how we all dream of doing sh…

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 10:35pm on July 17, 2015☆⚑

Do Broadway shows need bigger reserves? Part I by Ken Davenport

Before we decide if Broadway shows need bigger reserves, we should probably define what a reserve actually is. As I described in Breakin’ Down a Broadway Budget, a reserve is a chun…

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 9:19pm on July 16, 2015☆⚑

So you want to work in the entertainment industry? by Ken Davenport

Based on the emails I get, I know that a lot of you are looking to work in this sexy biatch of an industry.  I know, I know, it seems so cool, and fun and mysterious. It’s a very cl…

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 1:20pm on July 15, 2015☆⚑

Broadway Grosses* w/e 7/12/2015 by Ken Davenport

The following are the Broadway grosses for the week ending July 12th, 2015. The Broadway grosses are courtesy of The Broadway League Read more here:

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 10:35pm on July 13, 2015☆⚑

Podcast Episode #28: She runs the TKTS booth! Victoria "Tory" Bailey, the Executive Director of TDF by Ken Davenport

It’s quite symbolic that the TKTS booth is in the center of Times Square.  Because TDF, the company that runs the booth, is a core part of our industry. What started out as a sim…

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 11:46am on July 13, 2015☆⚑

What I learned about business from a homeless guy. by Ken Davenport

I must confess.  I read the NY Post. It all started because I was reading Broadway gossip columnist (and former podcast guest), Michael Riedel.  But then, well, I got sucked into their…

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 5:23pm on July 10, 2015☆⚑

50 Years of Pulitzer Prize for Drama Winners: A By The Numbers Infographic by Ken Davenport

My staff and I got into a conversation at our last Fun Food Friday (every so often, we order pizza on Fridays and shoot the sausage and peppers) all about the Pulitzer. What kind of shows…

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 9:49pm on July 9, 2015☆⚑

And the winners of the 2014-2015 Broadway Marketing Awards are . . . by Ken Davenport

You guys love you some marketing. I don’t know what it was, but we had a record number of votes for this year’s Broadway Marketing Awards . . . and I’m not talking about ju…

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 8:31pm on July 8, 2015☆⚑

Why I'm producing Deaf West's Spring Awakening on Broadway. by Ken Davenport

You know me . . . I’m an analysis guy. Before I make a decision, I do research, study charts, and conduct focus groups.  Heck, I even dial test. And despite my innate desire for cop…

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 1:47pm on July 7, 2015☆⚑

Broadway Grosses* w/e 7/05/2015 by Ken Davenport

The following are the Broadway grosses for the week ending July 5th, 2015. The Broadway grosses are courtesy of The Broadway League Read more here:

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 5:01pm on July 6, 2015☆⚑

Podcast Episode #27: An American in Paris Producer, Stuart Oken. by Ken Davenport

This season put a lot of new hits on the boards, but none of them bigger than An American in Paris, which grossed a whopping $1.4mm last week (and I expect that number will get bigger as …

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 12:11pm on July 6, 2015☆⚑

An email that reminded me of why we're lucky to be independent. by Ken Davenport

There’s a lot of things to whine about in this one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. The health care system is still a mess.  We disagree about things …

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 4:51pm on July 3, 2015☆⚑

Here's the thing about adapting movies . . . by Ken Davenport

I’ve been thinking a lot about adapting movies into musicals these days.  Maybe it’s because we’ve got a couple movie-turned-musicals coming up this season.  Or maybe…

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 8:13pm on July 2, 2015☆⚑

What will happen to Broadway when the Millennials take over. by Ken Davenport

Every day there seems to be another article crackin’ on the work ethic of the millennial.  They jump from job to job, they check their Facebook more than they check their work email…

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 10:54pm on July 1, 2015☆⚑

Five Shows that Stand Out at NYMF: 2015

Ahhhh, festival time.   It’s as much a sign of summer as BBQs, water parks, and people wearing short shorts who shouldn’t be wearing short shorts. And the New York Musical The…

SOURCE: The Producer's Perspective at 8:09pm on June 30, 2015☆⚑