Stage adaptations boost West End ticket sales
2nd August 2011
The stage adaptations of many acclaimed novels and plays have helped to boost ticket sales in the West End, according to the latest industry figures.
Data published by the Society of London Theatre (Solt) shows that box office revenue rose by two per cent between April and June, while attendance jumped 13 per cent compared with the same period in 2010.
Solt chief executive Julian Bird said the rise in both revenue and attendance was due in part to sell-out performances of Danny Boyle's adaptation of Frankenstein at the National Theatre and Sam Mendes' Richard III, starring Kevin Spacey, at the Old Vic.
'It shows that London theatre is giving people something they really want and it shows that people continue to want to spend money on a great night out,' he told the Stage.
Mendes and Spacey's Richard III received rave reviews following its debut at the Old Vic, with the Guardian applauding the actor's 'powerful central performance' and the Independent praising the 'spine-tingling' atmosphere.