Just how hot is the experience economy? So hot that Madison Square Garden, which first opened its doors (at its current location at least) in 1968, will have more shows this summer than it ever has in the arena’s history.
“We’ll be doing 57 shows at the Garden this summer, from June through August, which is the most shows that we’ve actually ever done,” says Josephine Vaccarello, executive VP of live at MSG Entertainment, in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter. “Our second highest number was 37 so we’re surpassing it by a pretty big chunk.”
By now its obvious that, post-COVID, consumers are hungry for experiential entertainment. That has been evident in the boom in theme parks from the likes of Disney and NBCUniversal, not to mention soaring ticket prices and demand for top-tier concerts and sporting events (courtside tickets at the Garden for the upcoming NBA Finals have topped $100,000 in some cases).
“I do think that people want that connectivity, they want to feel the same thing with people with like-minded people, and experience it live. There’s really nothing like it, you know?” Vaccarello says. “Watching something on TV or video, sure, it’s great, but there really is nothing like this feeling of standing in an arena with 18,000 people, with every single person singing every word to the same song.”
MSG Entertainment, which owns the Garden as well as venues like Radio City Music Hall and the Beacon Theater, is hoping to lure more people into the fold through a campaign that it is calling See It Now Summer, in order to “increase the experience for any fans that are coming to our venues.”
Between the three New York City venues, MSG Entertainment has over 100 events booked for the summer.
“We have over 100 events at our venues over the summer,” adds Vaccarello, “And it’s really a celebration, and it is for fan engagement and to increase the experience for any fans that are coming to our venues, letting everyone see that it’s the best place to see a show over the summer, including annual events like the Tony Awards or and Tribeca Film Festival, concerts from Bon Jovi and Olivia Dean, and a three week Les Miserables concert experience at Radio City.”
In fact, a big reason why the Garden and the other MSG venues are so busy this summer is simply due to the fact that artists and shows aren’t limiting themselves to one weekend. Vaccarello says that to meet the rising demand for live entertainment, artists are doing residencies, mini-residencies and adding more shows than they would have previously. Bon Jovi, for example, will do nine shows at MSG, while Rush will do four. John Oliver and Seth Meyers have had a residency at the Beacon since 2024, performing dozens of times.
To amplify the experience, MSG’s See It Live Summer will include an Instagram-ready activation in the Garden’s Kalshi Concourse, as well as a See It Live Summer Snack Shack serving up fare like lobster-topped hot dogs, boardwalk fries and fried Oreos.
A branded Scream Truck will be stationed outside of MSG Tuesday, Radio City July 13 and the Beacon August 17 offering free ice cream to passersby, with other giveaways planned. And the company will ramp up backstage tours of Radio City and MSG for experiences outside of the concerts and shows.
“It’s not just about coming to see a show at the Garden,” Vaccarello says. “We want the entire experience, from ticket purchase to when they show up at the venue and throughout the entire thing to be memorable, and we’re trying to create those little touch points.”
In an entertainment economy increasing being defined by real-life experiences (see Barry Diller’s $18 billion deal to buy MGM Resorts), those little touches can turn a night out into longer-term fandom.
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