Broadway and New Media

For the average New Yorker, a night at theatre consists of eating dinner, seeing a Broadway show, and then heading back home and going to sleep. A night at the theatre for many theatergoers includes buying tickets online, posting a review for other theatergoers to read, as well as discussing the show with others on a message board.

Before the internet became popular, people would buy tickets to shows by going to the box office at the theatre. Websites such as Ticketmaster and Telecharge have made ticket buying easier than ever. To order tickets online, people select the number of tickets they want, choose a date or range of dates, select where in the theatre they want to sit, see a virtual seating chart while selecting their seats, and even see a photograph of what the stage looks like from that section. Once the seats are selected, payment is as simple as entering a credit card number. After the tickets are paid for, audience members receive electronic tickets by e-mail that they simply print and bring to the theatre.

If a person does not know what show s/he wants to see, s/he can visit a site like Broadway.com, BroadwayWorld.com, or Playbill.com and read reviews of different shows, watch video clips of the shows, and read interviews with cast members.

The world of theatre has grown smaller. Many Broadway shows have message boards, either official or run by fans. On these message boards, theatergoers can meet each other, discuss favorite performers and musical numbers, and even see who will be attending a certain performance. On Compulsive Bowlers, a message board about the show “Rent,” fans can discuss happenings at the theatre that once housed the now-closed Broadway production, reminisce about the Broadway show, talk about the current North American tour, ask questions about the show in general, and learn about different projects of former cast members, also known as alumni.

More than just learning about the show, theatergoers have an opportunity to join a community. It can be hard to find classmates and co-workers who share a love for Broadway, so the internet can be a great vehicle for meeting people who share the same passion of live theatre. I post on different message boards, and I have met many of the people I talk to online at the theatres. Since we don’t all live close, the internet provides a forum for keeping in touch.

Many people dream of meeting their favorite movie stars or singing sensations. For Broadway buffs, talking to a favorite Broadway performer is just a click away. Many Broadway performers have websites and message boards. On the message boards, fans can interact with the performers. Fans can ask performers questions about different aspects of the Broadway world, and many times, they will get an answer.

As with all businesses, the internet is great for advertising. Broadway shows are often advertised by their official websites, which host information on the cast and crew, various downloads, unknown facts about the production, pictures and video clips. The marketers of Broadway shows often work with such sites as Broadway.com and BroadwayWorld.com by advertising on their sites and hosting different features. For example, Broadway.com hosted a video blog about the creation of “Legally Blonde The Musical,” showing interviews with the director, cast members and crew members from rehearsals to the opening night.

The possibilities of the internet are endless. Every day, new websites are created with different features. Eric Idle, the creator of “Monty Python’s Spamalot” has recently launched an interactive website for Monty Python fans. I think that in the future, the gap between Broadway and fans will shrink, and theatergoers will have a lot more interaction with different aspects of shows. Hopefully the media of the future can help the life of Broadway in these difficult economic times.