Why is stand up comedy so expensive??

Is it supply or demand? Or is it just because they can??

A quite big hall (as compared to a small set) Louis CK ticket was $120, the same as a big arena U2 ticket. But U2 has probably 100 roadies building a huge stage, Louis needs a mike hooked up to the PR system. A stand up performance has minimal cost, basicly they have to put him up in a hotel.

So how come they can charge the same price??? Not to mention, you see a guy talking, as compared to a big rock show with lights, sound and fire. I just don't get it...

I assume as long as people are willing to pay $100+ bucks, they will charge as much.

 

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Well, on a related issue (and just showing how expensive stand up is) there is a gender divide among comedians' price:

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Personally I never thought females are as funny as males, so maybe that is the reason for the price difference...

And seriously, $250 for Martin Short????

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"For some reason, Seinfeld has apologized to fans in the U.K. for the high cost of tickets for his show, insisting he would be complaining to promoters about the $155 (£103) price tag.

According to Britain’s Guardian newspaper, Seinfeld said, “I’m terribly, terribly sorry. I really had to let the English promoter guide us in that, because I don’t know that market that well. So I’m going to complain to him.”

One has to wonder why he is concerned about the UK prices when a quick check of online ticket vendor Stub Hub is selling tickets for his US appearances from $83 (Clearwater, FL on January 8, 2011) to $489 (the MGM Grand in Mashantucket, CT on May 13, 2011). Who will complain for us?"

http://www.americascomedy.com/seinfeld-apologizes-for-high-ticket-prices/

 

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Lisa Lampanelli is some of the funniest shit ever...

She is always the best on the comedy roasts.

 

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Whatever price they can get and still fill the seats, they will. If people wouldn't pay the price they would charge less. As to your chart, that's like any other people that get paid because of the demand they can generate. Bigger demand equals bigger money.

 

An interesting question you pose, Syzygys, comparing the set up costs for the two venues. Also showing the range of ticket prices per performance with the gender gap clearly demonstrated.

You are comparing apples and oranges, perhaps, when you compare music to stand up comedy, would be one thought.

Good music can be performed again and again, with no loss in quality to the receptive audience, who enjoys hearing their favorite songs replayed, with a light show thrown in.

Comedic material, however, can generally not enjoy so much appreciation by a repeat audience and soon grows old, requiring that the comedian be ever adding new material.

Certainly music is also adding new material to their repertoire, yet is not as reliant upon same in the manner of the stand up comic.

Male and female comedians likely tailor their material to different audiences may be one factor in the difference in price for their performances. The performer would want to price their performance within the reach of their target audience.

Just some thoughts, as I have not attended very many live performances. From friends who have traveled to Las Vegas and other destinations where entertainment is in high demand, I learned that the prices for many shows was exorbitant, so perhaps some of the pricing is determined by the location of the performance and market pressures there.

 

Louis CK is the shit! You aren't paying for fancy lights and sounds system. If you're cheap, buy the DVD.

 

Downloaded the CD, thank you.

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Well, someone said, how many good bands are there? Hunreds? How many good comedians? Maybe a dozen. So that could be the reason. On the other hand, a good rock concert's atmosphere can not be given back on a DVD. But even just a cheap CD can repeat a good comedy performance. After all, this is just one guy talking on the stage.

My problem is with the cost. Let's assume the same venue. Obviously advertising is the same. But everything else is different. The average band has 4-5 members with a crew of let's say a dozen. They need buses, wall of sounds, lights. Just to put those guys up in a hotel costs a lot. A comedian needs a mike and that's about it.

So if they both charge the same, the comedian should make a killing and the band might just breaks even.... And in return the crowd got 2 hours of entertainment from both performances....

Now I wouldn't pay $250 for even a rock show, unless it is a Led Zeppelin reunion including Bonham coming back from the grave...

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I don't understand the difference between a comedian and a rock concert in terms of being there vs. watching a DVD. Both are live performances. In a live show, you could theoretically interact with the performer. They might even pull you on stage. In fact, a DVD of a concert would probably have better sound quality since there would be less crowd noise.

 

I've been to a few different comedy clubs in my life and they were small places that held perhaps a few hundred people at a show. Those prices were very reasonable for whoever was onstage there and we had drinks and some foods to buy as well. I saw Rich Little, Steve Martin and George Global back in the day at these types of venues and had a great time for a cheap price. Of course when these people went to larger venues they did receive more as their popularity grew but they always came back to smaller clubs for cheaper prices even though they could get much more. That was then but today isn't the same unfortunately.

It seems that the personalities made the payment decisions more so than today where a few global talent agencies handle anyone who has merit. These large corporations make and set prices for the talent in todays world so prices are manipulated by a few businessmen/women who get as much as they think they can because they get a very big cut of the payments. That wasn't true back in the day for the talent did the bargaining and didn't have that much to pay out to their managers.

The places where talent play/perform have allot to do with prices also as their employees there are many times unions that require more than non union venues in all cases. Back in the day there weren't as many union venues as today which made the expenses much lower and more reasonable. I've not been to many performances for prices have , to me, gone way to high for what I'm hearing/seeing so I refuse to pay that kind of money. There are times when performers play in smaller venues and then prices are much cheaper and I sometimes attend these events if I enjoy who is performing enough.

 

there is a place in Old Sac or use to be that had very affordable comedy shows. Part of a circuit for new talent and many went on to great heights .
The business is a tough environment and you got to be at the top of your game to make a living at it just like any musician. The thing is for every one that makes the big bucks there are hundreds that don't make a dime . This is common in the entertainment business . There is extreme talent out there that never sees the light of day for one reason or another . It is very hard to get your head above the crowd .

Every body wants to make a buck and that is why tickets are so high priced . It is getting tougher by the day for the promoter and after those 2 stage collapse they gonna cost even more for some events if those objects are even gonna be still available . They may be cost prohibitive and there by going away .
The world as we know it is all about Money . Fuckers

 

People, I wasn't talking about comedy clubs with 500 seats, I am talking about a decent sized venue with at least 2-3000 seats. Now why do they charge $100+ for one guy talking???

Now it could be the comedian gets a fixed price for the whole tour, and the promoter decides which venue can handle what prices. For example Jerry Seinfeld in Vegas' Ceasar Palace is 200-450$, but in Atlanta they only charge $86 and up....

The Blue collar comedy tour playing in Energy Center charges only $76 and up. That is a reasonable price, specially seeing 3+ guys all at once...

 

Did you read my post about unions and talent agencies?

 

I started to read it, but it sounded like a Fraggle post, memories and non-related stuff and I got bored. Did you have a point?? (maybe that the comedians union is very strong?)

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Anyway, let's go back to the pricing issue. Let's say I am a carpenter and I make chairs. It costs me $50 to make a chair and I have to put a price on it to sell. How much am I going to ask for it? Well, as much as the market for chairs can bear. If I can get away with $1000 and sell it, I will price it a thousand bucks for sure.

So I guess we can't blame the promoters of the shows, because if we are willing to pay $150 for a comedian talking in an arena for 20 000 people, then hell, they are going to sell that ticket for us...

 

Oh yeah, the best part I haven't mentioned is the length of the shows. Most comedians (the major act) perform usually for an hour and almost no band plays less than 90 minutes. So there, you have another 50% difference between the 2 entertainers' price...

 

Do some stand up. Tell us how much you make.

 

It's not an easy profession to be in. Even the best of them go through some very hard times getting to a point where they can support themselves on the money they make. Can you imagine how you would feel if you were learning the trade and you went out on stage and nobody laughed?

A good comedian has paid his dues and deserves whatever he is making.

 

Yup.

 

Because it is not the same for good musicians?? Not to mention in a band, it is teamwork, in comedy, one person makes it or doesn't.

Note for Nicse: Still on my Ignore, still don't give a fuck what you think.

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I think musicians deserve the money they make. But not many comedians produce and sell albums. A few big selling albums and the musicians feel like big lottery winners and they keep making royalties for years after the release.