From my experience, ticket prices are all over the place depending on a lot of things besides the cost of the production - paid staff, building costs, amount of income from non ticket sales and so on.

Last weekend I went to a small professional theater (300+ seats) and paid $20 for Barefoot in the Park. It is the third production I have seen there and the acting and production qualities are equivalent to community theater. They have a 6 for 5 annual ticket. A few weeks ago, I paid $36 (600 seats) for a professional production of Bell Book and Candle.

We charge $5 for readers theater and $8 for a full production - BUT we have no employees, no one gets paid and have no building to pay for and we do minimal sets. We have never done a musical but I priced one out and doubted we could do it for less then $10 or more likely $12. One nearby theater (200 seats) charges $14 for members for a musical ($18 non members) and $10/$14 for non musicals. Another theater (53 seats) charges $18 for a musical and $14 for a non musical.

Most theaters have one or more performances with low priced tickets - a matinee for $5 a head or a "pay what you can" night - I have also been to a theater which has a $25 maximum per family (that was many years ago).

I have had a couple of discussions with a nearby theater about ticket prices and paying directors and others associated with the production. I think a consistant ticket price (one for musicals and one for non musicals) is more important than pricing each show to break even. I know from experience at another theater that Fiddler is far above average when it comes to the cost of the production.

Hope this helps.

We maintain a consistent ticket price of $9.00 for adults, $6.00 for students through age 18, and $3.00 for students age 6 and under. For our "Events," (readers theatre, recitals) we charge $2.00 across the board. Although the cost of production varies greatly from show to show, the ticket prices are kept consistent. Although musicals invariably cost significantly more to produce than a straight play, they are also a much bigger draw and we end up making much more net income from them as well. We also offer season tickets which offer a significant reduction in cost for the entire season -- it's something like a 30% discount this season -- and we encourage families to take advantage of this at the beginning of the season. The core of our season is a musical, two straight plays, and a children's theatre production; the Events vary from year to year.

We also have local businesses who "sponsor" each of the four main productions to the tune of $1000 apiece, which is a big help in meeting our budgets and helps keep ticket prices down.

Our theatre seats 210, but our Events are staged off site in much smaller venues. Our prices are as high as our local market will bear, though nearby community theatres in larger markets charge around double our cost.

I agree, it is very hard for a family with a limited income to attend a play together; it's a source of frustration to me as a board member that we don't have a better draw with families.

Some of our patrons who feel they can't afford to attend otherwise are able to see shows for free by ushering.