Australia’s live performance industry hit record highs for ticket sales and revenue in 2024, but the boom was uneven, with major declines in several key art forms, according to new figures released on Thursday 18 September.

Live Performance Australia’s 2024 Live Performance Attendance and Revenue Report shows industry-wide ticket revenue rose 6.9 percent to $3.35 billion, while total attendance climbed 4.6 percent to 31.4 million. Both are the highest levels recorded since the survey began in 2004.

Photo © Edward Cisneros/Unsplash

The return of large-scale international tours in the Contemporary Music category underpinned the surge, generating $1.81 billion in revenue – up 21.8 percent on 2023 – and accounting for nearly half of all attendances.

Musical theatre also remained strong, attracting more than 4.3 million people, a modest 2.1 percent increase.

But Live Performance Australia (LPA) warned the headline growth masked serious challenges elsewhere. Revenue and attendance fell in ballet and dance, theatre, opera, comedy and multi-arts festivals, reflecting shifting audience behaviour and cost pressures on producers.

“While the overall results paint a positive story, growth was concentrated in a limited number of categories and states,” said LPA Chief Executive Eric Lassen.

“Australians clearly value live...