The country’s economy, as in a cyclical and endless litany, is always in trouble. But, when everything gets complicated, the theater resists and fights. Countless offers account for the successes that, since the beginning of the year, populate the Buenos Aires billboard. In addition to the quality of the shows and popular figures that appear in them, it is interesting to think about what are the other factors that affect the amount of public that packs the different proposals.
Probably one of the reasons for the explosion of the ticket offices is the prolonged quarantine that we suffered due to the coronavirus pandemic, which forced the massive closure of the theaters and their subsequent reopening with protocols that implied different percentages of capacity. Another reason that adds up is the increase in tourism from neighboring countries.
The concrete thing is that the flood of recent releases is impressive due to the hierarchy of productions. To try to analyze this phenomenon, NOTICIAS spoke with three of the most important producers in the country and with the actor who has led the collection table since March.
after quarantine
Carlos Rottembergowner of the Multiteatro theaters (Comafi and Tabarís) and one of the producers of the musiche “Matilda”, whose recent premiere is preceded by a historical record with the advance sale of 30,000 locations, is one of the accurate words when it comes to taking stock of the situation: “We are still experiencing a post-pandemic effect. In March 2020, a private audio went viral when I went out to say that the first 14-day quarantine meant a closed year for our activity. That same day I decided to put a banner in front of the Comafi Multiteatro that said: ‘Let’s lower the curtain to take care of ourselves. There will be time to return to the theater. I preferred to go, on the one hand, with the conviction of prioritizing health and on the other, the positive message of a future return”.
It seems very far away, but it is worth remembering the joint effort of all those who participate in the performing arts, by ensuring that the rooms could reopen on Friday, November 13, 2020, with a strict protocol that required the use of a mask and a capacity of 30 % of audience Later it would grow to 50%, then to 70% and only on October 1, 2021, through a vaccination campaign, did it reach 100% capacity. At first, the reopening attracted a young public since older people, not having the second dose of vaccine, continued to take precautions to go into closed spaces. In the summer of 2022, the appearance of the Omicrón variant began to cause infections in some casts that were forced to cancel performances in CABA, Mar del Plata and Carlos Paz. Already in April, viewer figures similar to those of 2019 were reached.
with another look
Gustavo Yankelevich, from RGB Entertainment, producer of “Married with children”, which had a whopping 198,000 tickets sold, contributes his view: “With an enormous number of quality proposals, the public has once again bet on the theater. The numbers speak for themselves. In our particular case, we have contributed to the historical sales record in the summer season in the capital with the great success starring Guillermo Francella, one of the highest grossing actors, Florencia Peña and a great cast”, he affirms.
A regular hitmaker, Yankelevich, currently has the local version of the comedy “Tootsie”, which leads the collections with 70,000 tickets sold in 70 performances, at the Lola Membrives, with the outstanding work of Nicolás Vázquez. Likewise, he produced the one-person show of Oficial Gordillo (the Tucuman comedian Miguel Martín), at the Apolo, with sold-out locations for two months. Now, he is getting ready for the premiere of “Lo mejor de mí”, a new show by Roberto Moldavsky, and for the future landing of “Married with Children”, in Córdoba, starting on July 7.
New strategies
Ariel Stolierproduction director of the La Plaza group, with 24 works on the bill, distributed among the rooms of the traditional avenue of Corrientes Avenue (“Star Pasta” with Soledad Silveyra and “Amor mío” with the return to the stages of Damián de Santo, among others) and the Metropolitan (“Let’s vote” with Gustavo Garzón, Juan Gil Navarro and the cast), he is very clear that part of the boom that is being experienced must be accompanied by strategies that sustain interest in the long term.
“The economic crisis forces us to be creative both on and off stage. This means that we try not to make price an obstacle. In other words, each viewer profile can find the ideal equation. That is why we have wide options, not only by stalls or pullman but there are days that have more favored tickets than weekends. Also from AADET (chamber that brings together theater businessmen), we co-manage the discount ticket sales position located in front of the Obelisk. In addition, in our case, we carry out promotional actions with sponsors that extend benefits to their customers, subscribers or partners. That is a little more than half of the total sale, which gives us a complete answer regarding the benefit of being able to encourage this type of action. I believe that we respond to the endemic crisis that our country is experiencing by creating more projects and more work. That creates a dilemma about how to make them sustainable so that we all have more work activity with artistic growth ”, he contributes.
king of comedy
Artists, being an intermittent profession, are always willing to put up a fight when it comes to finding a livelihood. The well-remembered comedian, Fidel Pintos, said many years ago: “An actor is a man who today eats pheasant and tomorrow eats the feathers”, alluding to the ups and downs of the trade. Perhaps this push also adds up when looking for the roots of success.
In the opinion of Nicolas Vazquezprotagonist of “Tootsie” and current holder of the comedy throne on the local billboard: “The public has been accompanying me for 9 years, first with ‘The Other Side of the Bed’, then with ‘One Week Only’ and now with ‘Toosie’, which It exceeded any expectations I might have. I believe that the theater, beyond the concrete fact, has to become an experience and in my production company we work for that. To get people to come and forget about their problems, at least during the performance. To ensure that, regardless of the situation they are experiencing, they are happy inside a theater. That’s why I like to produce laughs and I try to associate myself, just for now, with comedy. At some point I might produce something dramatic. It makes me very happy that success happens not only to us but to a lot of companies. That reflects something that I always say: the theater is more alive than ever”, he maintains with enthusiasm and adds: “We must not underestimate the public and we must give them the best show since they make a great effort to see us”.
The tourism factor
An important link in the chain of the Buenos Aires theatrical explosion is the tourism that comes from neighboring countries, especially on holidays. In this regard, Rottemberg had oiled reflexes: “I had to learn the ephemeris of neighboring countries. Fundamentally from Uruguay because due to holidays we could add a second show on a Sunday, for example. Today I know that Artigas was born in Uruguay on June 19 and it will be a long holiday. What may be missing from the Argentine family, on the 18th, for Father’s Day, we have made up for it with the Uruguayans who are going to come. In addition, another detail, when tourism arrives, the majority of sales, which are by card, go down and become with cash, because the dollars are exchanged at the little trees on the street and sales go up, ”he asserts.
In short, different variables, such as the desire to return to a normal life after isolation or the arrival of Spanish-speaking visitors, favored by the devaluation of our currency, are generating an unprecedented phenomenon, which brings to mind the phrase of the Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw: “Without art, the harshness of reality would make the world unbearable.”
Image gallery
