That theatre is entirely unaffordable for the average family?

Try paying to take the kids to a Premier Leahue football match. It used to be a working class sport, now it’s unaffordable for many.

Supporting amateur theatre is great, but there are also plenty of professional theatre productions around that are amazing but don't come with the ticket prices of big west end plays.

Look for your local amateur productions. We have a very good theatre group and we have always enjoyed going. Tickets are usually £15 -£20.

I paid £45 for Macbeth with David Tennant. Those ticket prices do exist. You might have to be an early bird in the queue but it’s definitely possible to get cheaper play tickets. I also got an offer for Retrograde for £15 a couple of weeks ago. That’s cheaper than a date night…in McDonald’s!

Yeah, but bottom price £75.

Which is still more than I'd pay, but I think we all underestimate how much retail price inflation has affected everything.

(Just checked. Last time I went to the Albert Hall (2009!) I paid £38.50 for tickets, which works out as £61 after inflation, so £75 is within those kind of parameters.)

@bruffini didn’t know that! Thank you! I was trying to book ahead for the summer holidays but couldn’t see any seats less than £150 on the days we could go

It has got a lot more expensive recently. We live in London and don't go nearly as often as we used to. It's like gigs. Rufus Wainwright is reprising his Judy Garland set at the Albert Hall. Top price £400!

I’ve just booked 3 tickets to a London show via this, for £135 total. We do it every year and it’s a great way for kids to visit the west end without breaking the bank. Loads to choose from this year!

I've never paid that much, even for occasional trips to see big shows on the West End, but then we always get the cheap seats.

We go to the Lowry a lot to see kids shows and usually pay no more than about £30 a ticket. Smaller theatres outside of cities are usually much cheaper.

We also see a lot of amateur theatre which is usually no more than £12 a ticket. It's a bit hit and miss but once you know the names of the directors you have a better idea of what's going to be worth seeing. Sometimes they really are professional level shows, albeit with a smaller budget.

Oliver are doing a family package at the moment. Not school holidays and just Tuesday to Friday, but you get 4 tickets for £125 total in the grand circle, or £200 in the stalls/dress circle.
Also join todaytix - I get loads of cheap tickets from there.
Enter theatre lotteries.
I spend far too much time at the theatre, but never spend a fortune. Cheap tickets are out there if you know where to look x

I paid £25 for top tickets for Starlight Express, There is a weekly lottery
lwtheatres.co.uk/all-aboard-the-loco-lottery-your-ticket-to-starlight-express/

London theatre is crazy. My kids love the Starlight Express music but no way can we pay that much for a ticket.
but I don’t live in London now and kids theatre in our city is much more affordable.

I'm not sure why everyone is obsessed with the stalls! You have to look up, and can't see the stage properly. I always avoid the stalls, if I can.
I got dress circle seats for the Hiddleston Much Ado for £85, and the Tennant Macbeth was something similar. No restricted views, and excellent value for money.

Theatre is accessible for families but a short run, high demand show with well-known actors is not going to be at the cheaper end. Op is unrealistic in her expectations.

I agree. I really don't think £152 for a central stalls ticket for that production in the west end is unreasonable (though hardly cheap). Likewise, Evita at the Palladium later this summer - £185 for one of the best seats isn't crazy high.

Just been looking at theatre shows on Broadway. I don't know if there's any fans of Hacks, but Jean Smart is doing a play I'd love to see if I could get the money together. The best seats for the play are $400 each / £293! Semi-best $300 / £220. Maybe the show will transfer to London.

We go to theatre and opera very often and never pay anywhere near that much. £150 per person seems to be a top tier seat, or perhaps the show is in high demand during Christmas. If you search through Today Tix they usually have last minute deal or discounts. I think the price has indeed gone up a bit but remember these companies almost went bankrupt during the pandemic.

it will probably come round again another year - I’ll live :)

I’ve seen shows here a couple of times and always really enjoyed it.

To be fair, they’ve been on sale a while so I imagine the cheaper ones have gone but yes, I agree with you. Theatre is accessible for families but a short run, high demand show with well-known actors is not going to be at the cheaper end. Op is unrealistic in her expectations.

But on,y the price she’s quoted if you buy the most expensive seats. I don’t say eating out is unaffordable based on the price of a Michelin starred restaurant.

We usually do too. The specific show op is talking about is a short run with the original cast in London so tickets are more. Phantom was £35 a ticket for cheapest.

They have just extended Operation Mincemeat to November. Prices vary according to the day. All the seats in the theatre are £39 on Mondays going up to £59 on Tuesday and £89 from Wednesday to Saturday.

Is it finishing or will more dates be released?

I went to see a brilliantly acted play at Southwark Playhouse this week for £20. It was just as good as many plays I’ve seen at the big West End theatres or the National Theatre.

Amateur theatre is great. It’s not the same as the big pro shows though. Fortunately they aren’t unaffordable. As I keep saying, I usually pay about £20-30 for big west end shows. Never more than £50.

They aren’t though. I’ve only paid £50 once. Mostly I pay about £20-30. Not cheap, obviously, but not unreasonable.