April 22nd, 2005
On Broadway, Ads Now Get to Play Cameo Roles
By Stuart Elliott
The New York Times
Product placement and endorsement deals have long been staples in television shows, movies and radio programs and even, more recently, on video games. But they have been rare on Broadway. Now, advertisers, casting about for new ways to attract increasingly distracted consumers, have turned their attention to the theater world. And producers, always looking for extra cash to offset rising costs, are receptive.
‘’It’s sad to see Broadway become part of the marketing machinery, turning into another vehicle to help marketers bombard us with ads,’’ said Gary Ruskin, executive director of Commercial Alert, a nonprofit organization in Portland, Ore., that seeks to stem what its members consider the creeping commercialization of American culture.