Brandwave

Circa Theatre vs St James Theatre:Which is more popular in New Zealand?

In October 2026, St James Theatre had more branded searches than Circa Theatre among theatres and performing arts venues in New Zealand. St James Theatre had about 8,100 branded searches, while Circa Theatre had 4,520. St James Theatre made up 10.2% of all theatres and performing arts venue searches we track, and Circa Theatre accounted for 5.7%. When we asked ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews about theatres and performing arts venues, St James Theatre appeared in all four answers and Circa Theatre in two. St James Theatre was mentioned before Circa Theatre in every answer.

Among theatres and performing arts venues in New Zealand in October 2026

Who do people search for more?

St James Theatre, about 79% more searches than Circa Theatre

St James Theatre 8.1K searchesCirca Theatre 4.5K searches

Who does AI mention more?

St James Theatre, mentioned in every answer we collected

St James Theatre in 4 of 4Circa Theatre in 2 of 4

Who does AI recommend more?

St James Theatre, named ahead of Circa Theatre in every answer

St James Theatre first in 3Circa Theatre never first

Follow Circa Theatre vs St James Theatre and get free monthly updates on what changed

By continuing you'll get index updates and occasional product news from Brandwave. Unsubscribe any time. Privacy

Track your brand against a rival →

Top theatres and performing arts venues in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews

In three ChatGPT questions and one Google AI Overview, St James Theatre appeared in all four answers. Circa Theatre was mentioned in two out of four: in two of the three ChatGPT answers, but not in the Google AI Overview. St James Theatre was listed before Circa Theatre in every answer.

Most recommended by AI

Brands get a higher ranking if they are mentioned earlier in the answers.

  1. The Civic1st
  2. St James Theatre2nd
  3. ASB Waterfront Theatre3rd
  4. Isaac Theatre Royal4th
  5. Circa Theatre5th
  6. Q Theatre6th
  7. Auckland Live7th
  8. Auckland Theatre Company8th
  9. Court Theatre–
  10. BATS Theatre–

Mentioned by AI

Each dot is one answer, filled in when that answer mentions the brand.

  • The Civic4 of 4Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 1 Google answers
  • Isaac Theatre Royal4 of 4Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 1 Google answers
  • St James Theatre4 of 4Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 1 Google answers
  • ASB Waterfront Theatre3 of 4Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 1 Google answers
  • Q Theatre2 of 4Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 1 Google answers
  • Circa Theatre2 of 4Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 1 Google answers
  • Auckland Theatre Company2 of 4Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 1 Google answers
  • Court Theatre1 of 4Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 1 Google answers
  • Auckland Live1 of 4Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 1 Google answers
  • BATS Theatre1 of 4Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 1 Google answers

See every answer about theatres and performing arts venues

4 answers

Brands are shown in the order each answer named them. The survey took place in New Zealand on October 21, 2026.

Is Circa Theatre or St James Theatre more popular in search?

This chart shows how often people search Google for Circa Theatre and St James Theatre by name. Each line represents a brand's share of searches for all ten theatres and performing arts venues we track, month by month, from searches in New Zealand.

Circa Theatre and St James Theatre among theatres and performing arts venues in New Zealand, by month

Share of searches by month for St James Theatre, Circa Theatre. The figures are in the table below the chart.

View monthly share of searches table
MonthThe CivicASB Waterfront TheatreQ TheatreIsaac Theatre RoyalCourt TheatreSt James TheatreAuckland LiveCirca TheatreAuckland Theatre CompanyBATS Theatre
Nov 202519.3%10.6%8.9%16.4%13.1%8.6%9%7.3%3.8%3.2%
Dec 202522.5%8.2%8.4%12.7%18.6%5.4%10.3%8.5%3%2.5%
Jan 202615.7%7%5.9%13.4%29%7%7.5%8.8%3.8%2%
Feb 202616.8%13.8%7.8%17.4%11.3%7.5%8.4%7.8%4.1%5.1%
Mar 202616.7%7.5%9.6%21.3%13.7%11.2%6.9%7.7%3.3%2.2%
Apr 202619.2%10.5%11.2%13.4%10.5%10.5%8.5%8.8%4.9%2.5%
May 202616%7.1%20.3%13.7%11.8%10.7%6.6%5.9%4.1%3.9%
Jun 202620.8%11.4%8%14.7%12.8%9.3%8.6%6.4%5.2%2.7%
Jul 202622.7%4.4%13%8.8%17.7%6.7%8.6%10.5%4.6%3%
Aug 202621.9%12%10.2%15.2%10.4%5.3%8.9%10.1%3.6%2.4%
Sep 202623.7%10.6%11%11.1%11%10.6%9%7.2%3.2%2.5%
Oct 202622.7%15.2%10.6%10.5%10.3%10.2%8%5.7%3.7%3.1%

How has branded search for Circa Theatre and St James Theatre changed in New Zealand over the last 12 months?

3 findings

How did search popularity change for New Zealand theatres and performing arts venues in October 2026?

2 changes

  1. In October 2026, Circa Theatre lost share of searches among theatres and performing arts venues in New Zealand, from 7.2% to 5.7%.

  2. Estimated monthly branded searches for St James Theatre in New Zealand rose 22.7% over 12 measured months, from 6.6K to 8.1K in October 2026.

How are Circa Theatre’s and St James Theatre’s branded searches counted?

4 search terms

Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Circa Theatre’s and St James Theatre’s names. When viewed over time, estimated search volumes for these branded terms can be used to understand whether interest in the brands is growing, holding steady, or fading.

Circa Theatre

3 branded search terms

  • circa theatre
  • circa theatre shows
  • circa theatre tickets

St James Theatre

1 branded search term

  • st james theatre

How the Brand Demand Index is measured

Other head-to-heads among theatres and performing arts venues

Creator with pink hair and a pink jacket

Put your own brand in this comparison

Brandwave tracks your branded demand next to the rival you actually watch, with your campaigns, spend and outcomes on the same timeline.

Start free