ATG Entertainment acquired by Mari

ATG Entertainment has been acquired by Mari.

Ari Emanuel’s global events and experiences company has entered a definitive agreement to acquire the West End and Broadway theatre company.

The financial terms of the agreement, which sees Mari acquiring the theatre owner from private equity firm Providence Equity, were not disclosed. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions, and as such, until completion, Mari and ATG will continue to operate as separate companies.

ATG operates a portfolio of 70 venues across the United Kingdom, the United States, Germany, and Spain, including seven on Broadway and ten in London’s West End, as well as an extensive network of regional theatres. Combined, its venues host over 16,000 performances and welcome over 18 million audience members each year, and it produces and co-produces work for the West End and Broadway.

Mari owns and operates a global portfolio of events and experiences across sports, art, entertainment and lifestyle. In the UK, these include Hyde Park Winter Wonderland and the Hampton Court Palace and Blenheim Palace Festivals. It recently acquired TodayTix.

Following completion, the company intends to act as a long-term custodian of ATG’s theatres, investing in their preservation and modernisation as well as improving audience experience and providing support for new productions.

Emanuel, founder and principal investor of Mari, said: “I’ve spent my whole career in entertainment, and I started out in theatre. I’ve seen the industry reinvent itself many times, but live has only grown more powerful. Nothing connects great talent with audiences more directly. ATG has built one of the world’s great theatre businesses around that experience. This is a long-term bet on where live goes next.”

Melanie Smith, global chief executive, ATG Entertainment, said: “Mari understands live entertainment and what matters most to ATG: our theatres, the people behind them and the relationships we have built with producers, artists and audiences. That makes Mari the right home for our next chapter. We look forward to this new era and thank Providence for their unwavering support over the past thirteen years.”

Producer Sonia Friedman added: “As a producer, I have always believed in the power of live theatre to bring people together, challenge perspectives and create unforgettable shared experiences. Our industry has always needed partners prepared to think long term, invest with confidence and support creativity with real ambition. What I find compelling about Mari is its breadth of experience across live events and its respect for creative independence. That combination gives us the chance to champion bold new work, reach broader and more diverse audiences and strengthen the future of live theatre for generations to come.”

The Raine Group and Moelis and Company acted as financial advisors, Akin Gump Strauss Hauer and Feld LLP acted as legal advisor, and EY acted as tax advisor to Mari. LionTree served as lead financial advisor and Kirkland and Ellis LLP served as legal counsel to ATG and Providence. Goldman Sachs, Jeferies and Barron International Group also served as financial advisors to ATG and Providence.