Most people invest in theatre because they love theatre. (Or they love someone who loves theatre…)


Other reasons people invest in theatre:

– Supporting the arts and the artists

– Diversifying their portfolio with an alternative investment opportunity (high-risk, but potentially high-reward)

– Meeting other theatre industry people (actors, creatives, producers, investors) – parents of kids interested in theatre is an increasingly popular segment of theatre investors!

– Potential tax benefits (consult with a tax professional to learn more)

– Other perks! Invites to the show, the Tony Awards, Broadway League membership, etc – see more below

It’s not called “show business” for nothing! Each show is literally a company – typically formed as a limited liability company (LLC) or limited partnership (LP), where the lead producers are the managing members/general partners and investors are members/limited partners.

Investors fund the “capitalization” of the company, which covers all “pre-production” costs to get the show to opening night.

Once the show is open, Gross Weekly Box Office Revenue (GWBOR) offsets the weekly running costs of the show, hopefully resulting in a Weekly Net Operating Profit (“WNOP”).

That weekly profit is set aside for investors, who are each paid their pro-rata share of the profit until they recoup 100% of their initial investment.

Other revenue from merchandise, licensed productions (tours, regional theatres, schools, etc.), cast album, streaming, and more also factor into the profit distributed to investors. 

Once a show has recouped, the net profits are usually split 50/50 between the producers and the investors in perpetuity. Note that producers don’t make money until investors are repaid in full, which incentivizes them to be good financial stewards of the show.

Many different types of people invest in theatre! For more information about who has historically invested in theatre, check out this survey conducted by producer Ken Davenport.

At Squeri Theatrical Productions, we specialize in supporting first-time theatre investors. All of our investors to date have started their theatrical investing journey with us (and many have come back for more!) We believe in the importance of inviting more diverse voices into the room, and that starts with investors – it’s not enough to only have diversity in the cast, crew, and design teams, as underrepresented folks also should have the opportunity to share in the financial success of shows too.

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Financial Criteria: to invest in most Broadway shows, you must meet the criteria of a US Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) “Accredited Investor”, which means you must meet certain financial requirements to determine that you can financially handle the risk of the private offering.

Note you will not be asked to provide personal financial or net worth information to verify your accredited status, but you will need to sign a document confirming that you are able to invest as an accredited investor.

The average theatre investment is around $25,000. The minimum investment varies from show to show based on the budget size and is determined by the lead producers.

Broadway shows generally have investment “units” of $50,000-$100,000, and shows typically will accept a “½ unit” investment (e.g. $25,000 for a unit of $50,000. Off-Broadway shows generally have investment units of $5,000-$10,000. Investors may also opt to form an entity with other investors to invest smaller amounts that add up to a full investment unit.

Absolutely, that’s part of what makes theatre investments so unique!

Perks may include:

– Invite to the opening night performance and party, a dress rehearsal or preview before opening, select media and cast events, etc.

– Access to behind-the-scenes knowledge of the production and the theatre industry

– Invite to Tony Awards if the show is nominated

– Access to purchase house seats (aka producers’ seats: premium tickets for not-premium prices) to most Broadway, Touring, and West End shows

– First dibs on future investment opportunities – but you can also click here to sign up to be the first to know about future investing activities!

Short answer: yes.

Investing in theatre has a similar risk profile to investing in any start up or small business – it’s a high-risk investment, with the potential for high reward. Most shows lose money and there is no guarantee that you will make money, so you should only invest money that you can afford to lose. (Note, investors can never lose more money than they initially invested)

Theatre investing is also a long-term and highly illiquid investment. It can take many years for investors to see a return on their investment, sometimes even after the show closes – especially given “secondary” windows of profit such as licensing revenue, cast album sales, streaming revenue, etc that continue on in perpetuity.

You can help mitigate your risk by doing your due diligence on the show: the financial picture, the producers and creatives involved, the competitive landscape, etc. Ask the producer a lot of questions and for supporting materials as you make your decision.

Bottom line – make sure that your theatre investment is something to be proud of, no matter what the financial outcome may be… and any profit you might receive would just be icing on the cake!