I would think the same as you all regarding the shows. Not doing any high level research just a quick count on a ticket sale site. There are about 30 theaters in Branson with each doing 3 to 4 shows daily - everything from pets, tributes, country, etc. - now if they averaged only 100 people in attendance at each show you would get a number that was quite a bit more than I expected:
30 Theaters
4 shows
100 people
265 days (not counting 100 days for January, February, March)
= 3,180,000 tickets
And we know some shows get quite a bit more than 100 people, some quite a few less, etc. But Dolly's Stampede, Sight and Sound, etc. get a lot more than 100 people to their multiple shows.
I personally have only seen two shows in the 41 years of going to Branson, so these numbers don't apply to me either.
Jay