Melbourne - The musical/opera centre of the Southern Hemisphere

Mariner, that's it. I knew it started with an 'M'. You've got to remember that musicals are ten times easier to sell - especially ones like Phantom and Miss Saigon, etc. - than smaller, less known shows. And a large portion of Mariner's audience members will be subscription based. Then you have schools booking by the numbers, and other big groups; then merchandise; people buying tickets purely because it is a big name show and don't want to 'risk' seeing something less known/reviewed; booking fees... shows this big have to have a proven record for it to make any money from sales, and well, these shows do. Having said that, it is sad that these large venues don't often produce lesser known works, and locally created works. Plus, it's not like these venues are really competing, since they are all managed by Mariner. I'm sure their programmers know what they are doing, and choose shows which best suit their audience. Sticky Apple Legs www.freewebs.com/stickyapplelegs Puppets in Melbourne www.thepromptcopy.com/pip