About an hour into her show last Friday at the State Theatre in New Brunswick, after a series of jokes and stories about going to a low-end strip club in Georgia, the skinny people that make up Hollywood and wise cracks about her family (mainly her husband Chuck), Leanne Morgan turned to some of her best material: Getting old.
We’re almost done; she told the crowd. I’ll let you know when you can start taking your magnesium or melatonin.
And while the audience certainly was on the older side, no one seemed to be in any hurry for Morgan to finish. It was the second consecutive sold-out show — and you got the feeling she could have done three or four more.
For Sarah Chaplin, the CEO of the State Theatre, Morgan’s shows were a highlight of the fall season.
To land an act such as Morgan, one of the hottest comedians on tour, was a coup for the 1,800-seat venue. Not only were all the seats filled, many were taken by first-time visitors to the State Theatre, which sits next to the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center and across from the Heldrich Hotel.
Of course, the hard truth in the industry is that you are only as good as your last show. Morgan’s show has moved on. Getting those first-time visitors back into the State Theatre is the next task.
Chaplin and her team will spend the coming weeks and months on efforts to do just that.
“We’ll work hard to market to those folks who were new,” she said. “And we’ll do it in a deliberate way.
“We make sure we are sending communications that we feel would appeal to them. We assume people who went to Leanne’s show may have an interest in comedy. Or someone who attended a family show will have an interest in family shows. So, we’ll tailor our marketing that way.”
That marketing will likely include a discount offer to get them back.
It all adds up to a unique business model, Chaplin said.
“It’s actually more expensive to get someone to come back a second time than it is to get them to come a first time,” she said. “But, if I can get you to come a third time, then I’ve got you, which is an interesting kind of relationship ladder.”
Competition for eventgoers has never been stronger.
New Jersey is blessed to have a large variety of entertainment venues, which vary in size and the types of acts they feature. It helps make the live-event industry – which everyone interacts with but few actually understand – a fascination to many.
BINJE recently chatted with Chaplin about the industry and the State Theatre’s role in it. Here’s more from an insightful conversation, edited slightly for flow.
BINJE: Let’s start with the most intriguing question: How did you land Leanne Morgan, one of the hottest acts in the country? This is like landing KC and the Sunshine Band (the act that played the day after Morgan) back in their heyday in the 70s.
Sarah Chaplin: Leanne is a little different than our usual acts. We are a self-presenting organization, so about 85% of what you see on our stage is presented by State Theatre. That means we are at full risk for the artist’s guarantee and all the expenses.
But we also have the great fortune of working with some promoting partners as well, and Leanne Morgan’s promoter, Outback Presents, happens to be one of those. They actually purchased the entire Leanne tour. So, every date that Leanne is doing around the country is presented by Outback Presents.
They were looking for a partner in this area, and we have a strong relationship with them. They called us earlier in the year and we immediately said, ‘Yes.’
BINJE: For one show, or two?
SC: Actually one. For Friday night. But tickets were selling so fast – and we had an open date – that we were able to quickly add a second show on Thursday, which also quickly sold out.
BINJE: Is it common to add a second show?
SC: Not usually. And it’s often more about the genre than the act. Comedians and family shows are the ones that are easiest to add a second show. The Wild Kratts (featuring the Kratt brothers) sold out in hours, so we added a second show – on the same day. (They will perform at 3:30 and 6:30).
The last musical act we added a second show for was the Doobie Brothers, last summer.
BINJE: Let’s talk ticket sales. How filled is the average show – what do you need to do to break even?
SC: Our paid capacity last year was about 66%. We try to get above 60%, which is when we start to break even – and have a better shot at making money to cover the programming we do that does not make money.
BINJE: Let’s talk about programming. You said most of the acts are ones that you produce – and take the financial risk on. How do you pick the acts, the days, the show times, etc?
SC: It’s actually a lot more data driven than one may assume. There still is a certain anecdotal and an artistic decision process that happens, but it’s becoming more heavily driven by data.
How did shows similar to whatever show we’re considering sell? How did that show specifically sell the last time it was here? How is it selling across the country and in our area?
BINJE: In the area. There are a lot of venues of your size in New Jersey. Who are you most like?
SC: We all have a lot in common, but I would say we’re most like the Basie Theatre (in Red Bank) and MPAC (in Morristown).
BINJE: Do you keep with them for acts?
SC: It’s not uncommon for acts to cycle through and play one of us, and then the next time they’re through, they’ll play one of the other ones. We typically wait 18 to 24 months before we book an act again.
BINJE: Which takes us to ticketing and sales. We know, post-pandemic, there was a big bump in live entertainment. Is that still so?
SC: We probably hit the bump in January of 2023 and we rode that bump for a while. We’re in an interesting period of time now. I wouldn’t say we’re in a slump, but I would say that ticket buying habits have changed significantly since COVIDV – and they continue to change. That guides some of our decision making. Interestingly enough, we can put shows on sale much closer to their show date now, because people aren’t making decisions as far in advance as they used to.
It can be a little challenging right now, but people are always looking for something fun to do. They are looking for escapism, and we are always happy to help remind them of the wonderful things of life.
BINJE: Of course, ticket sales also bring up the scourge of the industry: Fraud. What is the latest on that?
SC: There is still a lot of fraud going on. Unfortunately, it takes two forms. One is the scalpers who sell tickets that they may not have yet for prices well above the face value, which is unfortunate for patrons. And then there’s also those people who are actually using stolen credit cards to purchase tickets and then sell them.
The live entertainment industry has seen an uptick in it since the pandemic and there’s been a lot of activity trying to control that. A lot of stuff that we do through our credit card processing helps control it.
The biggest difference has been with mobile ticketing, which now has live bar codes. So, you can’t take a picture of a PDF and sell it to a number of different people, which used to happen all the time.
BINJE: Let’s end on a most upbeat note. Leanne Morgan. Big star. In your venue. How do you get her back – and would you make her wait 18-24 months?
SC: We’d take her back right away. Of course, the next time she comes to the area, she might be playing the Pru Center. We were happy to have her. For two nights.
