Summary: Theater industry insiders and media outlets are celebrating Broadway’s “record-breaking” $1.89 billion season, but our analysis of inflation-adjusted data tells a different story entirely. When properly analyzed using standard economic methodology, the 2024–2025 season significantly underperformed compared to pre-pandemic levels, revealing how misleading headlines can obscure economic reality.
Part 1: The “Record” That Wasn’t
When the Broadway League released its end-of-season numbers last week, the headlines were unanimous: “Historic!” “Record-breaking!” “Broadway’s biggest season ever!” BroadwayWorld trumpeted that Broadway earned $1.89 billion, finally surpassing the $1.83 billion from 2018–2019.
But dig into the numbers, and a different picture emerges—one that the headlines don’t reveal.
Why 2018–2019 Matters
The 2018–2019 season wasn’t chosen as a comparison point by accident. It represents the last “normal” year before COVID-19 devastated the theater industry. The 2019–2020 season was cut short in March 2020 when Broadway went dark for 18 months. The 2021–2022 season was a truncated comeback attempt. Only now, five years later, has Broadway claimed to have “recovered.”
Broadway producer Ken Davenport, who tracks industry grosses weekly, called 2018–2019 a “record-breaking season” with $1.829 billion in total revenue—making it the perfect benchmark for measuring true recovery.
But that recovery story crumbles under scrutiny. The 2024–2025 comparison omits several crucial facts that completely change the narrative:
- The 2024–2025 season ran 53 weeks, not the standard 52—an extra week that automatically inflates the totals
- In inflation-adjusted dollars, 2018–2019 significantly outperformed 2024–2025
- Attendance actually declined despite more theaters being operational post-pandemic
- Average ticket prices in real purchasing power were lower in 2025
Full Season Comparison (Inflation-Adjusted to 2025 Dollars)
| Metric | 2018–2019 | 2024–2025 | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross Revenue (nominal) | $1.83B | $1.89B | +$60M (+3.3%) |
| Inflation-Adjusted Gross* | $2.34B | $1.89B | –$450M (–19.2%) |
| Attendance | 14.77M | 14.7M | –70K (–0.5%) |
| Season Length | 52 weeks | 53 weeks | +1 week (+1.9%) |
| Weekly Average (inflation-adj.) | $45.0M | $35.7M | –$9.3M (–20.7%) |
| Average Ticket Price (nominal) | $123.87 | $128.85 | +$4.98 (+4.0%) |
| Average Ticket Price (inflation-adj.) | $158.40 | $128.85 | –$29.55 (–18.6%) |
Inflation adjustment based on NYC Metropolitan Area core CPI data (BLS), totaling 27.6% cumulative inflation from 2018 to 2025.
When properly adjusted for both time and inflation, the 2024–2025 season generated nearly $450 million less revenue and attracted fewer total attendees despite running an extra week. The “record” is an accounting trick—not a recovery.
Part 2: Behind the Media Hype
The Broadway League’s announcement quickly generated a wave of uncritical media coverage celebrating the “historic” achievement. The Hollywood Reporter proclaimed it “the highest-grossing season in Broadway history” while The Guardian echoed the “record-breaking” narrative. News outlets across the country repeated the same basic story: Broadway was back, bigger than ever.
But this coverage universally failed to account for inflation—a fundamental error in economic reporting that transforms the entire narrative.
The Media’s Missing Context
When the entertainment industry reports “record” revenues, the standard practice should be to adjust for inflation, just as economists do when measuring GDP growth or comparing historical stock market performance. Yet virtually every major outlet covering Broadway’s announcement repeated the League’s nominal dollar figures without performing this basic analytical step.
The pattern reveals how industry press releases can drive media narratives when reporters lack the tools—or time—to independently verify the underlying economic claims.
Why This Matters
The gap between Broadway’s “record” headlines and economic reality illustrates a broader problem in how we measure and report economic recovery. When industries and media outlets focus solely on nominal dollar figures, they can create misleading impressions of growth and success.
For Broadway specifically, the implications are significant. Investors, tourists, and policymakers making decisions based on the “record” narrative may be operating with fundamentally flawed assumptions about the industry’s actual health and trajectory.
The 2024–2025 season represents genuine progress toward recovery—Broadway is staging more shows and selling more tickets than during the darkest pandemic years. But calling it a “record” obscures the reality that, in terms of actual purchasing power and economic impact, the industry still has ground to make up before truly surpassing its pre-pandemic performance.
📌 What we Found:
- The 2024–2025 “record” disappears when adjusted for inflation and season length
- Broadway generated $450M less in real revenue than 2018–2019
- Nominal ticket prices rose 4.0% but fell 18.6% in inflation-adjusted terms
- The “recovery” narrative relies on nominal dollars and an extra week
- Media coverage universally failed to account for basic economic analysis
- Industry marketing successfully shaped news narratives without scrutiny
When billion-dollar industries report “record” performance, basic economic analysis should be standard practice. The Broadway story reveals how easily misleading narratives can take hold when that analysis is missing.
Sources: Broadway League Statistics, BroadwayWorld Weekly Grosses, Ken Davenport’s Broadway Grosses Analysis, The Hollywood Reporter, The Guardian, Bureau of Labor Statistics NYC Metro CPI Data
Written by,
Sam Antar
© 2025 Sam Antar. All rights reserved.