Numbers Game Tricky Business

By Mike Weatherford

For some movie fans, learning “Epic Movie” was last weekend’s top- grosser, with a take of $18.6 million, was of more interest than seeing the dumb thing.

Broadway publicists frequently send out press releases like this one: ” ‘Butley,’ starring Nathan Lane, has recouped its $2,250,000 capitalization.”

But in Las Vegas, if you want to find out how a show is doing, good luck. Even though the numbers side of entertainment news has developed its own sportslike following, casino show attendance and bottom-line figures remain clouded in secrecy. It’s hard to say exactly why, beyond deep roots of history and hype.

In the old days, shows were loss leaders to bait the gambling hook, so it didn’t matter if they made money. Nowadays, you can pore through a corporate report or monitor a conference call with stock analysts for clues to a show’s health. But don’t expect a press release; words such as “recoup” don’t make for sexy ad copy. And really, in this great city of superlatives, don’cha know every show here is always sold out, all the time?

But you can learn a few things about supply and demand from the secondary market, ticket sales that are beyond the control of the casino or producer originally selling them. Fueled by Internet sites such as Stubhub.com, online sales in the secondary market added up to $1.6 billion in 2006, says Don Vaccaro, president of the TicketNetwork software company and its Web site, TicketNews.com.

Should local editions of Broadway musicals use scalpers as an omen? Vaccaro says “The Producers” on Broadway has “lost a lot of steam very quickly,” while “Monty Python’s Spamalot” is a title that “still holds up very well.”

Recently, Vaccaro decided to post on his site a list he had been compiling and sharing with more than 300 ticket brokers who use his system. His list of Top 10 theater events puts Cirque du Soleil’s “Love” and “O” in the No. 4 and 10 spot respectively, on the list headed by “Wicked.”

“It’s interesting to see people are buying so much in advance now,” Vaccaro says of the “increasing dominance” of Las Vegas titles. More people are planning their Vegas trips around the date they got tickets instead of the other way around, he adds of a list admittedly skewed by “high-end customers who might spend five to 10 times” the going price.

Local competitor Ken Solky, of the brick-and-mortar Nevada Ticket Services, says Vaccaro’s “inventory for those shows is miniscule,” so the list doesn’t mean anything.

So, ignore Vaccaro’s list or have fun with it. If nothing else, as he suggests, it’s a reminder to check out a casino’s official site for direct availability before buying inflated tickets.

But who knows? Maybe lists such as these will inspire producers to join the real numbers game.

Mike Weatherford’s entertainment column appears Thursdays and Sundays. Contact him at 383-0288 or e-mail him at mweatherford@reviewjournal.com.

(c) 2007 Las Vegas Review – Journal. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.