

Compensation for engineers in the Bay area will average much higher than $200k, and that’s not counting benefits (medical, etc.). So cost to the company will be way higher than 200k/employee.
For a project that has hardware, there will be large expenses associated with that — custom silicon has huge setup costs, for example.
It’s for 5 performances on the calendar, tickets are $30. It’s a 49 person theater — and some of those seats are sure to be friends and family comps. Venue costs between $200-$250 per performance.
It would be a miracle if they got $6k from tickets after venue fees. And that’s not counting time, cost for props, transportation, etc.
This is small time artsy theater. Suggesting that it’s a cash grab is a bit insulting to those involved.