--- title: "St James Theatre vs The Civic: Which is more popular in New Zealand?" description: "Is St James Theatre or The Civic more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Theatres and performing arts venues set in New Zealand. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time." canonical: "https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/compare/st-james-theatre-vs-the-civic" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # St James Theatre vs The Civic: Which is more popular in New Zealand? Is St James Theatre or The Civic more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Theatres and performing arts venues set in New Zealand. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time. ## Key facts - **Compared**: St James Theatre and The Civic - **Competitive set**: Theatres and performing arts venues - **Market**: New Zealand - **Month measured**: Oct 2026 - **St James Theatre Share of Search**: 10.2% - **The Civic Share of Search**: 22.7% ## Is St James Theatre or The Civic more popular in search? - In October 2026, The Civic had more branded searches than St James Theatre among theatres and performing arts venues in New Zealand. The Civic had about 18,100 branded searches, while St James Theatre had 8,100. The Civic made up 22.7% of all theatres and performing arts venue searches we track, and St James Theatre accounted for 10.2%. - The Civic was ahead of St James Theatre in every measured month of the 12 months ending October 2026. - Across the 12 months ending October 2026, St James Theatre’s share of searches among theatres and performing arts venues in New Zealand moved from 8.6% to 10.2%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 6.6K to 8.1K. - Across the 12 months ending October 2026, The Civic’s share of searches among theatres and performing arts venues in New Zealand moved from 19.3% to 22.7%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 14.8K to 18.1K. ## Top theatres and performing arts venues in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and one Google AI Overview, both St James Theatre and The Civic showed up in all four answers. The Civic was listed before St James Theatre in two of them. Brands get a higher AI rank if they are mentioned earlier in the answers that list options. | Brand | AI rank | ChatGPT answers that named it | Google AI Overviews that named it | All answers that named it | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | The Civic | 1st | 3 of 3 | 1 of 1 | 4 of 4 | | St James Theatre | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 1 of 1 | 4 of 4 | | ASB Waterfront Theatre | 3rd | 2 of 3 | 1 of 1 | 3 of 4 | | Isaac Theatre Royal | 4th | 3 of 3 | 1 of 1 | 4 of 4 | | Circa Theatre | 5th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 1 | 2 of 4 | | Q Theatre | 6th | 1 of 3 | 1 of 1 | 2 of 4 | | Auckland Live | 7th | 1 of 3 | 0 of 1 | 1 of 4 | | Auckland Theatre Company | 8th | 2 of 3 | 0 of 1 | 2 of 4 | | Court Theatre | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 1 of 1 | 1 of 4 | | BATS Theatre | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 1 of 1 | 1 of 4 | ## Every AI answer about theatres and performing arts venues - Asked ChatGPT "Which theatre or venue should I book in New Zealand?": 1. The Civic, 2. ASB Waterfront Theatre, 3. Isaac Theatre Royal, 4. St James Theatre, 5. Auckland Live, 6. Auckland Theatre Company - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best theatres and performing arts venues in New Zealand?": 1. The Civic, 2. ASB Waterfront Theatre, 3. Q Theatre, 4. St James Theatre, 5. Circa Theatre, 6. Isaac Theatre Royal, 7. Auckland Theatre Company - Asked ChatGPT "What's the best theatre or venue in New Zealand for a night out?": 1. St James Theatre, 2. The Civic, 3. Circa Theatre, 4. Isaac Theatre Royal - Searched Google, AI Overview "theatres and performing arts venues": 1. The Civic, 2. Q Theatre, 3. ASB Waterfront Theatre, 4. St James Theatre, 5. BATS Theatre, 6. Isaac Theatre Royal, 7. Court Theatre Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in New Zealand on October 21, 2026. ## How did search popularity change for New Zealand theatres and performing arts venues in October 2026? - In October 2026, The Civic lost share of searches among theatres and performing arts venues in New Zealand, from 23.7% to 22.7%. - 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 has branded search for St James Theatre and The Civic changed in New Zealand over the last 12 months? | Month | St James Theatre estimated searches | St James Theatre Share of Search | St James Theatre rank | The Civic estimated searches | The Civic Share of Search | The Civic rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Nov 2025 | 6.6K | 8.6% | 7 | 14.8K | 19.3% | 1 | | Dec 2025 | 2.9K | 5.4% | 8 | 12.1K | 22.5% | 1 | | Jan 2026 | 3.6K | 7% | 7 | 8.1K | 15.7% | 2 | | Feb 2026 | 5.4K | 7.5% | 8 | 12.1K | 16.8% | 2 | | Mar 2026 | 9.9K | 11.2% | 4 | 14.8K | 16.7% | 2 | | Apr 2026 | 8.1K | 10.5% | 5 | 14.8K | 19.2% | 1 | | May 2026 | 9.9K | 10.7% | 5 | 14.8K | 16% | 2 | | Jun 2026 | 6.6K | 9.3% | 5 | 14.8K | 20.8% | 1 | | Jul 2026 | 4.4K | 6.7% | 7 | 14.8K | 22.7% | 1 | | Aug 2026 | 4.4K | 5.3% | 8 | 18.1K | 21.9% | 1 | | Sep 2026 | 8.1K | 10.6% | 6 | 18.1K | 23.7% | 1 | | Oct 2026 | 8.1K | 10.2% | 6 | 18.1K | 22.7% | 1 | ## How are St James Theatre’s and The Civic’s branded searches counted? Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using St James Theatre’s and The Civic’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. - **St James Theatre**: Measured on the search term “st james theatre”. - **The Civic**: Measured on the search term “the civic”. - [St James Theatre profile](/demand/nz/brands/st-james-theatre) - [The Civic profile](/demand/nz/brands/the-civic) - [All theatres and performing arts venues in New Zealand](/demand/nz/categories/nz-performing-arts-venues): The set both shares are measured inside, 10 brands. ## Methodology - [How is the Brand Demand Index measured?](/demand/methodology): Where the figures come from, what they compare, and how they may be reused. ## Frequently asked questions ### Is St James Theatre or The Civic more popular in search? In October 2026, The Civic had more branded searches than St James Theatre among theatres and performing arts venues in New Zealand. The Civic had about 18,100 branded searches, while St James Theatre had 8,100. The Civic made up 22.7% of all theatres and performing arts venue searches we track, and St James Theatre accounted for 10.2%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "St James Theatre vs The Civic: Which is more popular in New Zealand?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/compare/st-james-theatre-vs-the-civic This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/compare/st-james-theatre-vs-the-civic. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.