Freakonomics Radio
629. How Is Live Theater Still Alive?
Published: 11 April 2025 at 11:00 Europe/London
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Episode notes
It has become fiendishly expensive to produce, and has more competition than ever. And yet the believers still believe. Why? And does the world really want a new musical about ... Abraham Lincoln?! (Part one of a three-part series.)
- SOURCES:
- Christopher Ashley, artistic director of La Jolla Playhouse.
- Quentin Darrington, actor.
- Joe DiPietro, playwright and lyricist.
- Crystal Monee Hall, composer, singer, actor.
- Rocco Landesman, Broadway producer, former owner of Jujamcyn Theaters, former chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts.
- Alan Shorr, Broadway producer.
- Daniel Watts, writer, choreographer, actor.
- Richard Winkler, Broadway producer.
- RESOURCES:
- 3 Summers of Lincoln (2025)
- “Live Performance Theaters in the US - Market Research Report (2014-2029),” by Grace Wood (IBISWorld, 2024).
- Leadership: In Turbulent Times, by Doris Kearns Goodwin (2018).
- Big River (1984)
- EXTRAS:
- “How to Make the Coolest Show on Broadway,” by Freakonomics Radio (2024).
- “You Can Make a Killing, but Not a Living,” by Freakonomics Radio (2024).
