My interpretation is that this was the cost of the cameras, cameramen, and venue (tickets, box office, ushers, sound setup, soundboard, lights, spotlights, advertisements). Basically, all the costs associated with getting people in the seats and the show on film (or whatever the cameras record to)

Yeah maybe. I think the numbers are a bit weird then. He talks about making a profit of 200k, but then admits that ticket sales largely covered production costs, so is his total revenue around 750k with profits closer to 500k?

I wonder if HBO or CC paid for the special, whether he would still get 100% of ticket sales.

i can say with near complete certainty that if HBO or CC paid for the special he would receive substantially less than 100%

Most tapings for Comedy Central standup specials are free to encourage a full house, so he would have made a lot less.

This one video spanned three performances (Nov 10, 11, 12). Three nights in the Beacon theatre + audio/video engineers + equipment + set + lighting + production assistants + security + travel expenses + other stuff I can't imagine.

I'm sure it adds up quick.

He said, in the NPR interview, that he only filmed 2 of the 3 Beacon shows.