Musical theatre is big business in Australia, with international shows a significant source of revenue for both Melbourne and Sydney. Not surprisingly fierce competition has developed between the New South Wales and Victoria state governments to host the premieres.
Theatre Producer Rodney Rigby says regional and interstate tourism to shows accounts for up to 40 percent of ticket sales to some shows such as Jersey Boys, which opened in Melbourne and is opening soon in Perth.
Rigby is premiering an Australian production of the broadway show The Addams Family in Sydney this week: “It's a great deal to have it here in Australia and opening here in Sydney. The timing when shows open is so complicated. It's got to do with the availability of theatres, creative teams."
“Sydney is the home, we are number one for first run musicals in Australia,” says Sandra Chipchase, CEO of Destination NSW, the State government bidy set up to attract major events. "Destination NSW has a very unique strategy to the way we package musicals."
Victoria is downplaying the rivalry.
"For us, it's getting the biggest and the best of the available musical productions that are coming to Australia," says Brendan McClements, CEO of Victoria Major Events Company. "To be perfectly frank, we don't spend a lot of time thinking about Sydney, for us it's really how do we work best with the producers in the West End or on Broadway."
And in the musical tales of two cities, there are plenty.
Melbourne recently host the Australian premiere of the West End's War Horse, heading to Sydney this week, and it will stage the global premiere of King Kong in May; while Sydney recently premiered Legally Blonde the musical and has secured the world premiere of Baz Lurhman's Strictly Ballroom, to open in 2014 or 2015.
Next week, the musical Grease will reveal where it will launch in Australia.
Hosting an internationally renowned musical generates around $3 million a month for the State. The two biggest states, almost head to head in revenue, are NSW with $102 million in ticket sales and Victoria at $91 million. That's in a country that brings in $250 million every year in musical theatre.
A good natured, healthy rivalry, perhaps for those not directly involved at least.
Rick Elice, writer of The Addams Family Broadway show, in Australia for the premiere, says "Competition always brings out the best work I think, as long as it's a healthy competition between Melbourne and Sydney. The real winner is the vast numbers of people who have the opportunity to come and see the theatre."
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