WAS TIMOTHÉE CHALAMET RIGHT ABOUT OPERA AND BALLET?
SOURCES:
Context: The interview
ICYMI, this is the full interview - link starts at the relevant part of the conversation: https://youtu.be/424w9fJRgYk?si=IZ8a8Ht2KKJqtF_3&t=2881
Section 1: Ballet and Opera Market Data
Ballet
Ballet Performance Market Report | Global Forecast From 2025 To 2033
Global ballet performance market valued at $5.8 billion in 2025
Expected to reach $9.4 billion by 2034 at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 5.5%
Classical Ballet was the largest segment (44.2%)
Europe dominated regional revenue (38.6% share)
Key drivers: increasing cultural tourism (think Sydney Opera House, which hosts 10 million visitors annually), growing youth participation programs (usually heavily discounted tickets), digital ticketing expansion.
Opera
Note: In the podcast we cited a market size of $9 billion, but more conservative estimates go as low as $3.8 billion - we’ve included both sources here.
https://www.datainsightsmarket.com/reports/opera-performance-1941959
https://dataintelo.com/report/opera-market
Global opera market valued at $3.8 billion in 2025
Expected to reach $6.1 billion by 2034 at a CAGR of 5.4%
Live Opera Performances was the largest segment (61.2%)
Europe dominated regional revenue (42.3% share)
Ticket sales accounted for 48.7% of total market revenue
Key drivers: rising digital streaming adoption, government cultural funding, global touring productions, and growing emerging market audiences (Asia Pacific has the highest growth, while Latin America and the Middle East & Africa are emerging markets).
Section 2: Funding the Arts
https://www.operaamerica.org/media/vknfsyf3/2023-annual-field-report.pdf
In the podcast we said all opera produced across America in 2023 had a total operating cost of $36 million - this number is actually the average annual operating cost for the biggest companies (San Francisco Opera, Los Angeles Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago etc.).
So, not quite as big a gap but still much less than the cost to produce a film!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_most_expensive_films
Deadpool and Wolverine (2024) cost USD$429 million to make, and received GBP£61 in government funding
https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20161004-was-modern-art-a-weapon-of-the-cia
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/08/arts/met-opera-peter-gelb-finances.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sportswashing_in_Saudi_Arabia
https://www.arts.gov.au/news/new-data-released-value-australias-cultural-and-creative-sector
Section 3: Art and Media Consumption - How it’s Changing and Impact on Wellbeing
https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/995648
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8191944/
Quote in this article about Meta executives not allowing their children to use Facebook, Instagram - Wynn Williams mentions it several times in her book
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c747x7gz249o - landmark social media addiction case
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DWcEwSSjzhS/?igsh=YnF3M2J5cXI3MWlw - Daniel Kwan on creativity and the future
https://www.wired.com/story/theres-something-very-dark-about-a-lot-of-those-viral-ai-fruit-videos/