Would a buying cartel for plays kill artistic diversity?
Marshall Roy — September 9, 2009 @ 6:59 pm
I read Seth Godin’s blog daily. He’s like the Dalai Lama of marketing and business advice, able to distill the loftiest wisdom down to kernels of incredible clarity. (Today’s is a gem: “What if, just like becoming a cannibal or painting your face green, you eliminated righteous indignation as an option in your list of responses to various situations, no matter how unfair?”)
But one of his posts last week is sticking in my craw. He had recently seen a youth production of Grease. (It’s mathematically stupefying how the average American, if he has something like 2.4 children and a few grand in the bank, will manage over the course of his lifetime to see 8,621 amateur productions of Grease. But I digress.) It surprised him that the rights to the musical cost about $3,000. The reason for this, he explained, is that the customers (the high school or theatre troupe) are isolated and have no bargaining power.
What if, he wondered, a few hundred high schools or community theatres used the magic of technology to get together and form a buying cartel—essentially forcing the rights holders of various plays into a long-overdue price war. It would be win-win, right? Whoever lowered the price enough would suddenly acquire hundreds of new customers, and the customers could enjoy enormous savings (and thereby lower ticket prices—$7 for a high school musical seems excessive to Seth Godin).
But—macroeconomics 101: There is no such thing as a free lunch. In the above scenario, what’s forgone?
Artistic diversity.
In order to make the price drop worthwhile for the rights holders, the buying cartel would have to offer a commensurate uptick in distribution. In order for that to happen, more and more high schools, community theatres, and other performers would be forced to choose from a very narrow selection of only the most mainstream plays. And I have to predict that, as often occurs, the lowest common denominator would carry the day.
Seriously, have you seen Bye Bye Birdie? Once is enough. (A little too much, actually.)
Admittedly, high schools and regional theatres are not often trailblazers of the craft—but consider that most Americans don’t live in New York City or Chicago. For most, the local high school or community theatre is the only place to go see a play. Wouldn’t it be a shame if they just rotated through the tired, overdone classics?
My point is: good theatre (and good theatre is produced at all levels: Broadway, regional, community, and yes—even high school) will always be (relatively) expensive because it must always be unique. Wouldn’t you rather see one superb, emotionally stirring play than ten so-so ones?
(If you let me leave my snob hat on for just a moment longer I want to point out—Shakespeare’s plays, the best plays ever written, are all in the public domain and completely free to all.)
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Marshall,
your post, and your point, display the fact that occasionally good business sense simply deserves a kick in the pants.
“I love originality”, says Spinal Tap.
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Great post – - and while I’m giving feedback…great pants too. Quick question though: (demonstrating my naivity in rights issues) Couldn’t all the High Schools wanting to produce their own version of Grease not gang up and drive down the price of the rights to a particular version…and then spice up that version? Is that not allowed under the ‘rights agreement’? Shouldn’t the HS have the liberty to ‘interpret’ the play any way they want, thus regaining their artistic diversity? Just curious…interesting blog post nonetheless!
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