Attendances at the 53 commerical and grant-aided theatres in London soared to a record 13.6 million in 2007, according to figures released by the Society of London Theatre (SOLT).
This represents a rise of 1.25 million people on the previous year. Musicals, including blockbuster TV tie-in shows, were the biggest draw, attracting over 8.9 million attenders – 19% more than in 2006. Attendance at plays grew by 1% to almost 3 million; but numbers fell by 8% in other artforms, including dance and opera, to 1.7 million. Takings rose to almost £470m, an increase of 17% on the previous year, representing 60% of total potential revenue for the 17,500 performances staged. “This is obviously excellent news for the industry,” said SOLT’s President, Rosemary Squire, but she also remarked on the growing cost of “putting on world-class theatre” and pointed out that theatres are “investing more and more in productions to meet public expectations.”