Catalan theater increases to 640,000 spectators, surpassing Spanish theater.

BarcelonaCatalan theater is experiencing a period of euphoria. The 2024-25 season has consolidated and expanded the record of the previous year, in which for the first time in history the number of performances surpassed the three million viewersThis season, 3,133,494 theatergoers attended the theater, which is 108,467 more than the previous year (a 4% increase), and the box office was also a record, with €94,125,259 (€1.8 million more, a 2% increase). Theaters had an average occupancy rate of 64% last season.

The president of Adetca (Barcelona's association of theater companies), Isabel Vidal, stated: "We have the wind in our sails; we have to take advantage of it and celebrate. Audiences today choose theater more often than before the pandemic and before the economic crisis. We have reached a level of quality and diversity of content." She explained the positive figures for Barcelona theaters, which she asserts can be extrapolated to the whole of Catalonia. Although there are no global figures (the regional government has committed to having them by next year), she did point out that occupancy in municipal theaters is 72%.

'Mar i cel' fires the Catalan

The Catalan regains the lead (after the slight overtaking from last year's Spanish) thanks to the musical Sea and sky –the most watched show of the season, by far: it has attracted 327,000 viewers– and comedies Escape room 2 and Rural tourism. One and a half million spectators have seen plays in Catalan, 26% more than the previous year: 49% of theatergoers see theater in Catalan, while Spanish stands at 29%. Bilingual shows, in other languages, or without text, capture 22% of spectators. In no other cultural sphere is there an overwhelming predominance of Catalan, with a 50-30 ratio over Spanish. Catalan theater has 640,453 more spectators than theater in Spanish.

This season also confirms the importance of homegrown productions: 59% of the shows exhibited are created in Catalonia, 47% of the authors are from here, and 39% of the shows are in Catalan. Regarding the presence of voices from outside Catalonia, 34% of the authors were foreigners and 19% were from Spain.

"A record demands motor shows like Sea and sky, but also that both adults and children do well; a record needs everyone," Vidal reflects. The challenge will be to maintain these good figures for Catalan, because "there are no private companies large enough to take on large-format productions in Catalan," he says. In fact, there are only two. This coming year, Focus will be doing Blood brothers and will program La Cubana, but Nostromo doesn't have a major musical in Catalan planned. "Public theater also needs good funding to take on large-format productions," Vidal explains, as was already the case with the musical. Soul, which could have a second life after its success at the National Theatre.

The success of the dramatic theatre

If half of the 3.1 million spectators watch theatre in Catalan, it is also noteworthy that two out of four choose dramatic theatre and one out of four watches musical theatre; the remaining genres (dance, family, lyrical, others) share the remaining 25% of spectators.

The good theatrical moment is also explained by the success of smaller venues, which have grown by 28% in audiences and have attracted 372,129 spectators. It is not surprising that in the last two years, eight new performing arts spaces have been launched or are planned in Barcelona; the next ones will be public spaces such as the Club Capitol and the Arnau Theater, the Genesis Theater of Focus, the reopening of the Raval Theatre and the new auditorium of Mar High School"There's always a shortage of venues when we have successful programming and we have the audience," notes Isabel Vidal.

"More than three million spectators allow us to plan for the future. We want everyone to be able to grow and become more established. Theaters are opening, and that means more work," said Isabel Vidal. The sector's goal is to make theater "more accessible and inclusive," especially for children and young people, and also to achieve "better working conditions" for everyone. They also call for "more sectoral data to plan policies and to increase programming throughout the country." "Catalonia leads the performing arts throughout Spain," noted Vidal, who called for tax incentives for the sector, a 2% public budget for Culture, and a reduction in bureaucracy.

A gala to raise the curtain

The gala will be held this Monday night Catalonia raises the curtain at the Gran Teatre del Liceu, broadcast on TV3 at 10 p.m. A gala directed by Joan Arqué and presented by Jordi Oriol. This year's honorary award will go to Bitò Produccions, for Salvador Sunyer and Josep Domènech, two icons of Catalan production.

Adetca also took advantage of the sectoral event to denounce the genocide in Gaza: "Enough is enough. From every speaker, as people of culture, we will speak out and point out the executioners, to defend the most important of our qualities as a human society: dignity."

The 10 most-viewed works of 2024-25

Sea and skyVictoria Theatre. 326,947 spectators

Improshow. Teatronieve. 88,203 spectators

Escape room 2. Condal Theatre. 65,399

Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. Tivoli Theater. 57,168 spectators

Rural tourismBorrás Theatre. 41,953 spectators

Chicago, the musical. Tivoli Theater. 41,375 46 spectators

The doctor. Apolo Theater 40,430 spectators

The Little Prince. Parallel 62 37,019 spectators

A surrogate father-in-law. Goya Theatre 36,958 spectators

Groundhog Day. Coliseum Theater. 36,591 spectators

The 5 most-watched shows in venues with fewer than 200 seats

Cut the red wireMuntaner Theatre. 28,862 spectators

And there will be no one left. Ars Theater Room. 19,975 spectators

Archimedes' principle. Texas Space. 11,040 spectators

Kramig. Texas Space. 7,321 spectators

69, the comedy. Ars Theater Room. 6,013 spectators