Bringing the Live Theatre Experience Home with On-Demand Streaming
When the producers of Bonnie & Clyde The Musical decided to release concert footage from a recent London production, they skipped partnering with an existing entertainment platform. Instead, they built an online store from scratch to sell virtual access directly to fans.
By leveraging Shopify and its Single app integration, the producers took complete ownership over distribution, sales, and customer data - an unusual but strategic move in the digital theater space.
Reviving Bonnie & Clyde
Bonnie & Clyde originally premiered on Broadway back in 2011 starring Laura Osnes and Jeremy Jordan. With a Tony-nominated score by Frank Wildhorn and book & lyrics by Ivan Menchell and Don Black, it dramatized the infamous criminal couple's story.
While the Broadway run was short, producers believed capturing it on film could give the show new life and tap into fresh revenue streams. So in January 2022, brought back original star Jeremy Jordan, and introduced Frances Mayli McCann as Bonnie, for two special London concerts and professionally filmed the shows. The goal was to share the magic with fans worldwide unable to attend live by distributing it online as a rental.
Taking Distribution Direct-to-Fan
Instead of signing with Netflix or other streaming platforms, the producers got creative. They built a custom website on Shopify and leveraged the Single app to sell virtual access directly to fans. This allowed them to own the customer data, branding, commerce experience, and video paywall end-to-end.
With Single plugged in, fans could buy access to the concert film as a digital rental. The Shopify site also made it easy to purchase digital access with physical merch, like t-shirts, posters and more.
Once purchased, fans could stream the concert on any device by logging into their Shopify account. This gave producers complete control over the paywall, streaming functionality, and viewing experience.
Owning the Fan Experience
Unlike relying on a third-party distributor, the Shopify store let producers own the customer relationship from start to finish.
All sales data fed into a centralized CRM. And while the site started by selling one filmed show, it created infrastructure to easily add future productions over time.
For Bonnie & Clyde's producers, this direct-to-fan approach unlocked incremental revenue and a fan email list to market future releases.
Key Takeaways for Theater Producers
The success of Bonnie & Clyde on Shopify reveals the power of owning theater content distribution directly.
Some key benefits for producers include:
- Ongoing customer relationships and data
- Bundling physical and digital goods
- Personalized branding and sales experience
- Higher revenue share (no middleman)
- Built-in payment processing and CRM
While many theater producers still looks to mainstream entertainment platforms, the Shopify approach puts control in their hands.
Feeling Inspired?
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