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London's booming Theatreland

Summary2 February 2012

London's theatres are one of the city's biggest tourist draws. And new figures show that audiences swelled by over three percent in 2011 - that's despite rising unemployment in the UK. The Society of London Theatres said the capital's 52 major venues took around $840 million in ticket sales.

Reporter

Zoe Conway

The Theatre Royal opened in Covent Garden in 1732

Report

Last year 8 million people were off to see the Wizard of Oz and other musicals. 6 million went to the opera, to the ballet or to see a play.

London's West End is not cheap - tickets to see a play can cost $75 - so there's been surprise here in the UK that when the country is going through one of the worst economic downturns for decades, people can still afford to go.

Mark Rubinstein at the society of London theatre says it's really not that hard to understand why people are spending the money.

It's not just in London that Britain's plays are proving a sell out - they're transferring to New York where they're drawing big audiences and winning awards.

But will audiences keep coming when the Olympics arrive in London this summer? Theatre owner and impresario Andrew Lloyd Webber says there's going to be a bloodbath and theatres will close. But not everyone in Theatreland's so gloomy. Adam Spiegel the producer of Midnight Tango thinks the Olympics could help draw people in.