NYITF OOB Budget Study Released Today

Survey results that are a step in the right direction, especially in terms of talking realistically about the cost of doing business...

Download the PDF here.

Here's what their press release says...

Groundbreaking Off-Off Broadway Budget Study

New York, NY-April 7, 2008: The New York Innovative Theatre Foundation, a not-for-profit organization supporting the Off-Off-Broadway community, released the findings of their statistical analysis of Off-Off Broadway's budgets today. Questions for the survey focused exclusively on production budgets. The results prove that the OOB community is actively producing high-quality productions at affordable prices with paid actors and production value. The survey is the first in a series that will help raise awareness of the contributions of the OOB community.

Some of the highlights of what the Foundation learned are:

* 67% of the community is spending between 1k-20k on their productions
* Over half of the community is paying their actors
* THE COMMUNITY SPENDS OVER 31 MILLION DOLLARS A YEAR ON PRODUCTIONS!

"I found some the results to be very surprising," said Shay Gines, co-founder of the IT Awards. "It is important for our community to have this kind of baseline statistical information. Whether a company is trying to get a good deal on a space rental or trying to obtain sponsorship from a local restaurant, knowing the standards within our community will prove to be very helpful."

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So...what do you see here, dear readers?

For example...paying their actors...how much? The stipend? Seems like if 85% of all Off-Off Broadway productions are 16 performances and under (at least according to this data) that most productions are working either non-Union or within the Showcase Code.

This also shows just how many companies are directly affected by the Showcase Code and its cap of numbers of performances.

I'd be curious what non-New Yorkers think of what they see here too. In fact, especially.