LPA Ticket Attendance and Revenue Survey 2014

Photo: Henry V - Bell Shakespeare, Michele Mossop

OperaClick for more info

In 2014, the Opera category experienced a slight decrease in revenue and an increase in total attendances. Gross revenue declined by 1.5% from $43.28 million to $42.62 million while total attendance grew by 12.2%. The decrease in average ticket price by 14% from $145.28 to $124.92 helps to explain the decrease in revenue despite the growth in attendance.

The majority of ticket sales and thus revenue came from productions which were staged by AMPAG companies. Within AMPAG, Opera Australia was the largest company in 2014, followed by Opera Queensland, West Australian Opera Company and The State Opera of South Australia.

In 2014 there was an increase in the number of Opera performances by the AMPAG companies, which helps to explain the increase in attendance for the category. Notably, Opera Australia staged its regular spring season in Melbourne during 2014, following limited performances of The Ring Cycle in 2013 which replaced the regular season and contributed to the higher average ticket price for 2013.

Major performances by Opera Australia included Madama Butterfly and Eugene Onegin. In particular, performances of Madama Butterfly for the highly successful Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour further strengthened New South Wales in this category.

Outside of AMPAG, other notable Opera performances in 2014 included La Traviata by Victorian Opera and Opera in the Reservoir performances by the Underground Opera Company in Brisbane.

Close Table

Opera - Revenue and Attendance (2004–2014)

Revenue ($) Growth (%) Total Attendance* Growth (%) Average Ticket Price ($)** Growth (%)
2004 $62,562,433 629,808 $108.88
2005 $46,390,544 -25.8% 531,595 -15.6% $94.38 -13.3%
2006 $48,331,324 4.2% 515,927 -2.9% $102.40 8.5%
2007 $47,249,031 -2.2% 591,605 14.7% $85.28 -16.7%
2008 $41,316,885 -12.6% 402,549 -32.0% $114.46 34.2%
2009 $44,044,027 6.6% 448,096 11.3% $111.62 -2.5%
2010 $40,128,943 -8.9% 409,541 -8.6% $112.86 1.1%
2011 $47,305,786 17.9% 439,041 7.2% $124.66 10.5%
2012 $47,843,971 1.1% 430,904 -1.9% $126.84 1.8%
2013 $43,283,705 -9.5% 344,761 -20.0% $145.28 14.5%
2014 $42,620,749 -1.5% 386,927 12.2% $124.92 -14.0%

*Based on both paid and unpaid tickets

** Average Ticket Prices are calculated based only on paid tickets

State/Territory Breakdown Close Table

Close Table

Opera - Revenue by State/Territory (2014)

State/Territory Revenue ($) Proportion Industry Share Change From 2013 Attendance Proportion Industry Share Change From 2013
NSW $28,053,377 65.8% 4.6% 206,788 53.4% -2.6%
VIC $9,128,735 21.4% -6.0% 96,312 24.9% 0.9%
QLD $2,485,857 5.8% 2.7% 44,743 11.6% 5.9%
WA $1,403,469 3.3% -1.1% 19,680 5.1% -2.9%
SA $1,296,985 3.0% -0.7% 15,049 3.9% -2.1%
TAS $0 0.0% 0.0% 0 0.0% 0.0%
ACT/NT $252,327 0.6% 0.5% 4,355 1.1% 0.8%

Photo: The Turk in Italy - Opera Australia, Lisa Tomasetti

Individual Category Results