2024 was a ‘banner year’ for downtown’s Eccles Theater. Here’s how much money it made

SALT LAKE CITY — Last year was a smashing success for Eccles Theater, from its Broadway lineup down to its end-of-year finances.

More than 400,000 attendees attended the 304 performances from dozens of different titles that took place at the downtown theater’s various facilities last year. All of this helped bring in more than $11 million in revenue, a 53% increase from 2023 and the highest total recorded since the venue opened in 2016, according to the Salt Lake County data.

All of it far exceeded the venue’s budget, resulting in a $5.1 million profit. About $1 million of that will go into a reserve account for capital projects, while the rest will go to its owners — Salt Lake County, Salt Lake City and the Salt Lake City Community Reinvestment Agency — according to Matt Castillo, director of Salt Lake County’s arts and culture division.

The county is wrapping up a final audit of the numbers before the distributions are made, but he pointed out that the profit will help the entities pay off debt services and other items tied to the construction of the $119 million facility.

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“Last year was really a banner year for us. … I think these numbers really show how loved this is by the local community, but also what a draw it is regionally,” he said during a financial update he provided members of the Community Reinvestment Agency board last week.

What helped was that Eccles Theater’s Delta Hall was utilized 56% of the time last year, up from 41% the year before. “Hamilton” and other touring shows that are part of the theater’s Broadway at the Eccles series were a particularly popular draw. They accounted for over 60% of attendees despite representing about 40% of all the 2024 events, according to the county.

Not surprisingly, a vast number of ticket sales came from within Salt Lake County. Over 180,000 tickets were sold to county residents, but events also drew in people from all over the state. Utah’s 28 other counties combined to purchase over 150,000 tickets.

Residents from nearly all U.S. states also attended events at the Eccles Theater last year. Idaho was the largest out-of-state market, followed by California, Arizona, Wyoming and Colorado.

What’s more, its operators believe 2025 could produce an encore performance. Castillo said this year’s Broadway numbers are already strong, thanks largely to shows like “Les Misérables” and “Wicked,” the latter of which wrapped up its six-week Salt Lake City run late last month.

“Many of our runs end up breaking all sorts of records because Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County and the whole region just absolutely loves Broadway, and ‘Wicked’ was no exception,” he said. “We were the highest-grossing run of ‘Wicked’ of any touring season for Broadway across America. The last was held by Chicago in 2019, so that just shows how successful that particular run was.”

Last year’s results also helped bolster the theater’s Arts for All program, which provided over 2,000 tickets to low-income county residents, said Angela Vanderwell, general manager of Eccles Theater. The program is funded by a 50-cent fee tacked onto all events held at Delta Hall, the main performance space at the theater.

The county is exploring other ways to attract customers, including the potential to partner with Utah Transit Authority on a “ticket as fare” partnership. Success beyond 2025, however, will likely depend on which Broadway shows are touring.

“The Phantom of the Opera,” “Back to the Future: The Musical” and “Hadestown” are some of the shows slated for next year. Those types of headliners are huge for the revenues the theater generates, Castillo advised the Community Reinvestment Agency.

“We certainly expect to continue seeing positive financial results, but I also don’t want you to think we’re going to be coming every year with a $5 million net income,” he said.