Pittsburgh Arts, Regional Theatre, New Work, Producing, Copyright, Labor Unions,
New Products, Coping Skills, J-O-Bs...
Theatre industry news, University & School of Drama Announcements, plus occasional course support for
Carnegie Mellon School of Drama Faculty, Staff, Students, and Alumni.
CMU School of Drama
Monday, September 07, 2026
Can More Pro-Shots Help Broadway’s Money Issues? Maybe, Says the Hadestown Film Team
Playbill: The Hadestown live stage film has successfully completed its run in movie theatres, taking home a very handsome $20.7 million over four weeks and making it the highest-grossing live stage film of all time (surpassing Hamilton)—and that's before you start counting on demand sales and rentals.
Utilizing pro-shot films of Broadway shows, especially extremely popular ones such as Hamilton or Hadestown, very well could help bring in more revenue to Broadway itself. The use of movie theaters to reach a larger audience and tickets at a cheaper price might help shows reach people across the country, and bring in more money to Broadway. It also makes Broadway shows more accessible to audiences who might not otherwise be able to travel or afford to see these shows. However, the accessibility of Broadway shows in movie theaters might sway frequent Broadway-goers from seeing the actual show. Additionally, I think that seeing a live performance on a screen takes away from the essential elements of a production: that it is live. Ultimately, I think that while pro-shot productions might help keep Broadway alive, these films should be saved for largely popular productions, rather than more obscure shows.
YES. I really think more pro shots could help with Broadway's money problems. I got into musicals in a place where slime tutorials were pretty much my only option, so I would have loved an official way to actually pay for the shows I loved. That said, anyone who has seen a musical in person knows it is just not the same. I lived in New York for five years and saw a lot of shows, and the feeling is different every single time, even for the same production. Almost every time I catch some small detail that changed, or an actor does something a little differently. That is probably why theatre did not die when movies came along. So I don't think pro shots are a replacement. I think they are a way in for people who don't have one yet, and I was definitely one of those people!
Generally, I am very much in favor of pro-shot movie versions of Broadway productions, as they make theater much more accessible to many more people, both in terms of location and in terms of finances. Generally, I think it is also great for those on Broadway, although that relies on fair distribution of the royalties to all of the parties involved, not just the producers and lead actors. I think pro-shot Broadway films also have the advantage of already having name recognition and people know what they are getting into, opposed to straight films, where who knows if Hadestown would have been so well received and found such success. At the same time, I agree with some of the other comments: filmed versions take away from the critical live aspect of theater, and I would hate for producers to start to create shows to primarily be filmed and distributed because it is more profitable. I think the best usage of this is to film the best version of a show (original cast and location, for example) and then release it once the run is over, after the show becomes largely inaccessible to most people. If it is a step after the live production is over and not a simultaneous priority with putting on a show, I am in favor of pro-shot theater films.
I think recording Broadway shows is a great idea both for the prosperity of the show and also for expanding access to live theater. Where this gets tricky is when to release the film. Hadestown released the film after they had established themselves as a good show and had made a lot of money. Most shows want to try and make as much money as possible, so they want people to come to the theater, spend money, and make it feel exclusive. the worry between producers is that a film version would discourage people from coming to New York to see their show. Another case to look at is Merrily We Roll Along. They released their filmed version after they closed on Broadway, so it gave new life to the production and allowed them to squeeze even more money out of the show. I feel like I say this in almost all of my posts, but Broadway is a business and anything a show does is for the purpose of making money in one way or another.
I think that making more proshots would be good for both the theater industry and its audience. There are so many people who love theater but because of their location in the world cannot experience it. Personally I have only been able to see shows when my family travels so my chances to watch shows is limited. I know there are people with even less luck on this front and currently our only option is to try and see if there is a proshot or some fanrecording. By recording theater it becomes more accessible but also profitable. There are only so many seats in theaters so recordings on the internet can bring in more funds for the show. I think Hadestown’s success should be a message to producers that filming theater is a good choice and has a large invested audience. On the worry of people not visiting theaters because of a recorded version, I think this is a non issue since those with enough funds know and want to experience the feel of live theater and those who don’t aren’t limited by circumstances.
5 comments:
Utilizing pro-shot films of Broadway shows, especially extremely popular ones such as Hamilton or Hadestown, very well could help bring in more revenue to Broadway itself. The use of movie theaters to reach a larger audience and tickets at a cheaper price might help shows reach people across the country, and bring in more money to Broadway. It also makes Broadway shows more accessible to audiences who might not otherwise be able to travel or afford to see these shows. However, the accessibility of Broadway shows in movie theaters might sway frequent Broadway-goers from seeing the actual show. Additionally, I think that seeing a live performance on a screen takes away from the essential elements of a production: that it is live. Ultimately, I think that while pro-shot productions might help keep Broadway alive, these films should be saved for largely popular productions, rather than more obscure shows.
YES. I really think more pro shots could help with Broadway's money problems. I got into musicals in a place where slime tutorials were pretty much my only option, so I would have loved an official way to actually pay for the shows I loved.
That said, anyone who has seen a musical in person knows it is just not the same. I lived in New York for five years and saw a lot of shows, and the feeling is different every single time, even for the same production. Almost every time I catch some small detail that changed, or an actor does something a little differently. That is probably why theatre did not die when movies came along. So I don't think pro shots are a replacement. I think they are a way in for people who don't have one yet, and I was definitely one of those people!
Generally, I am very much in favor of pro-shot movie versions of Broadway productions, as they make theater much more accessible to many more people, both in terms of location and in terms of finances. Generally, I think it is also great for those on Broadway, although that relies on fair distribution of the royalties to all of the parties involved, not just the producers and lead actors. I think pro-shot Broadway films also have the advantage of already having name recognition and people know what they are getting into, opposed to straight films, where who knows if Hadestown would have been so well received and found such success. At the same time, I agree with some of the other comments: filmed versions take away from the critical live aspect of theater, and I would hate for producers to start to create shows to primarily be filmed and distributed because it is more profitable. I think the best usage of this is to film the best version of a show (original cast and location, for example) and then release it once the run is over, after the show becomes largely inaccessible to most people. If it is a step after the live production is over and not a simultaneous priority with putting on a show, I am in favor of pro-shot theater films.
I think recording Broadway shows is a great idea both for the prosperity of the show and also for expanding access to live theater. Where this gets tricky is when to release the film. Hadestown released the film after they had established themselves as a good show and had made a lot of money. Most shows want to try and make as much money as possible, so they want people to come to the theater, spend money, and make it feel exclusive. the worry between producers is that a film version would discourage people from coming to New York to see their show.
Another case to look at is Merrily We Roll Along. They released their filmed version after they closed on Broadway, so it gave new life to the production and allowed them to squeeze even more money out of the show.
I feel like I say this in almost all of my posts, but Broadway is a business and anything a show does is for the purpose of making money in one way or another.
I think that making more proshots would be good for both the theater industry and its audience. There are so many people who love theater but because of their location in the world cannot experience it. Personally I have only been able to see shows when my family travels so my chances to watch shows is limited. I know there are people with even less luck on this front and currently our only option is to try and see if there is a proshot or some fanrecording. By recording theater it becomes more accessible but also profitable. There are only so many seats in theaters so recordings on the internet can bring in more funds for the show. I think Hadestown’s success should be a message to producers that filming theater is a good choice and has a large invested audience. On the worry of people not visiting theaters because of a recorded version, I think this is a non issue since those with enough funds know and want to experience the feel of live theater and those who don’t aren’t limited by circumstances.
Post a Comment