Author: Eric Marder Associates

Publication Year: 1973

Media Type: Report

Summary:

This volume presents and analyzes data from a national survey begun in 1971. It discusses audience composition as well as audience attitudes, desires, and expectations and then analyzes how these relate to decisions of attendance or non-attendance. The final section examines opportunities to expand audiences. The study involves 12 cities in which arts performances are readily available.

Abstract:

This volume presents and analyzes data from a national survey begun in 1971. It discusses audience composition as well as audience attitudes, desires, and expectations and then analyzes how these relate to decisions of attendance or non-attendance. The final section examines opportunities to expand audiences. The study involves 12 cities in which arts performances are readily available.

This is a study of the audience for four performing arts, theatre, symphony, opera, and ballet, in twelve cities. The cities were chosen to provide geographic balance (three cities from each of the four regions of the country) and were limited to cities in which all four, or at least three of the four, arts are normally available. In particular, the study covers in the East: New York, Philadelphia and Boston; in the South: Washington, Atlanta and Houston; in the Midwest: Chicago, Cincinnati and Minneapolis: and in the West: Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle.

The sample was drawn on a city-by-city basis. An equal number of interviews was used to represent the greater metropolitan area of each city. This makes it possible to examine the data separately for each city when required. For the most part, however, the data are reported as an aggregate average of the twelve cities. As such, the study describes the general public and the audience for the performing arts, as these might be seen from the vantage point of a performing arts organization in an average city in which these arts are active.

From the outset, the study had three related but separate purposes:

1. To measure the size and the characteristics of the audience for the four performing arts; to answer the question: How many people attend what? How often? Under what circumstances?   
   
   
2. To measure the attitudes and motivations of attenders and prospective attenders; to answer the question: what satisfactions do people want from a performance? What satisfactions do they believe the performing arts provide?
   
   
3. To identify opportunities for the performing arts; to assess what might be done by performing arts organizations or by others to attract more people to attend performances and to induce those who now attend occasionally to attend more frequently.

In keeping with its threefold purpose, the study was conducted in three separate phases, and the report is correspondingly divided into three parts.

Part I, entitled: The audience, is based on a sample of 6,000 interviews, 500 per city. This sample is identified as the general sample. The interviews were conducted over the telephone. For each city, a sample of telephone homes was selected by a random procedure from telephone directories covering the standard metropolitan statistical area as defined by the U. S. Census. On contact, a listing was made of all people over 14 years of age living in the household, and one person was chosen by a random method to be interviewed. After the interviews were completed, the sample was weighted. The final weighted sample on which the data are based conforms closely to the sex, age, and education distribution of the population of the twelve cities as reported by the 1970 census. Characteristics of the general sample and technical details about the sampling and weighting procedure employed are provided in
Appendix A.

Part II, entitled Desires and Beliefs, is based on a sample of 2,400 interviews, 200 per city. This sample is identified as the special sample. The interviews were conducted in person at the homes of the respondents and provide an extensive, in-depth view of people's desires and beliefs concerning the performing arts. The special sample consists of attenders (people who have attended performances of one of the four arts during the year) and of prospects (people who indicated that they might attend such performances during the year). In each city, a number of geographic clusters was first selected. Inrterviewers called in person at homes in these clusters and established whether the household contained any attenders or prospects. One person was chosen to be interviewed from the attenders and prospects in the household by a random method. Characteristics of the special sample and technical details about the sampling and weighting procedure employed are provided in Appendix C.

Part III of the report, entitled Opportunities, provides an assessment of various courses of action that might be taken for attracting more people to the performing arts. The conclusions are generated by means of systematic, statistical analyses of the data obtained from the special sample.

CONTENTS
Preface.
Introduction.

1. The audience: 

a. Exposure to seven arts.
b. Characteristics of the audience.        
c. Circumstances of attending.

2. Desires and beliefs: 

a. The topics. 
b. Measuring desires.
c. Measuring beliefs.      
d. Highlights.

3. Opportunities:

a. The Rationale.
b. Considerations of dress, audience composition; and atmosphere.
c. Physical factors.
d. Tickets and planning.
e. Price.

Appendix:
      A. The general sample.
      B. Exposure by city.
      C. The special sample.       
      D. Desire and belief measurements. 
      E. Desires and beliefs for prospects and attenders.

Arts & Intersections:

Categories: Participation