Pre-sales of tickets for the new theatre season have dropped 14% compared to this time last year because of the increase in sales tax (BTW) from 6% to 19%, the theatre managers’ organisation said on Tuesday.

People are also picking the less expensive shows, leading to a downturn in turnover of 18%.
Theatres had already taken the sales tax rise into account when planning their programmes and there are 9% fewer performances this season.
Theatres and concert halls had already seen a drop of 15% in demand in 2009 and 2010, mainly due to the financial crisis.