Price of best West End tickets up by a fifth
THE average cost of the most expensive West End tickets has rocketed by a fifth as theatres reopen after Covid.
The musical Cabaret topped the charts for the most expensive top-price tickets – with audiences having to fork out more than £300.
The average cost of top-price West End tickets reached £140.85 this year – an increase of 21.3 per cent since 2019.
Before production runs were hit by the pandemic the average cost of the most expensive tickets was £116.09.
This year also saw the highest number of top-price seats in commercial theatres priced at more than £100, according to the annual ticketing survey by The Stage.
Seats reaching the record-breaking price were found in 28 theatres, accounting for 80 per cent of the productions in commercial theatres. New productions have driven the rise in prices – the top-price tickets for long-running plays fell over the period.
Top tickets at Wicked fell by £58, while those for Hamilton and The Book Of Mormon fell by £50.
The top ticket prices are influenced ‘by a very small number of high-profile shows’ and ‘fluctuate year on year,’ a Society of London Theatre spokesman said.
In May, audiences condemned ticket prices for Cock, which was not included in the survey, after seats went on sale for £400, plus £60 in processing fees. Producers for the play starring Bridgerton’s Jonathan Bailey defended the astronomical prices, citing ‘supply and demand’.
West End plays saw a steeper rise in prices than musicals, with the most expensive ticket increasing by up to 40 per cent compared to 3.5 per cent for musicals.
To Kill A Mockingbird at the Gielgud Theatre had the most expensive top-price play ticket at £199.50. Cabaret, which won seven Olivier awards including best actor and best actress in a musical for Eddie Redmayne and Jessie Buckley, was the most expensive musical with top seats at £303.80.
The cheapest tickets have seen a comparatively low increase of 3.3 per cent since 2019 – the average now £22.56, up from £21.84. Dear Evan Hansen offered the best deal in the West End, with the cheapest ticket coming in at £7.50.