DOCUMENT RESUME SO 027 502 ED 406 306 American Participation in Theater. TITLE AMS Planning & Research Corp., Fairfield, CT. INSTITUTION National Endowment for the Arts, Washington, D.C. SPONS AGENCY PUB DATE 96 NOTE 44p. PUB TYPE Research/Technical (143) Reports MF01/PCO2 Plus Postage. EDRS PRICE Attitudes; *Audience Analysis; *Audience DESCRIPTORS Participation; Audiences; Drama; Fine Arts; Participation; Social Science Research; *Theater Arts Arts Participation; *Survey of Public Participation IDENTIFIERS in the Arts ABSTRACT In Surveys of Public Participation in the Arts (SPPAs) conducted in 1982, 1985, and 1992 by the U. S. Census Bureau, randomly-selected interview subjects (age 18+) were asked a series of questions relating to their participation in the arts through attendance at live performances, exposure via mass media, personal participation in the arts, interest in attending more often, childhood exposure to the arts, and related topics. This report focuses exclusively on participation in stage plays. U.S. participation in theater or "non-musical" stage plays increased from 11.9% of all adults in 1982 to 13.5% in 1992--an increase of 13.47. and the largest among the seven benchmark categories studied (jazz, classical music, opera, musicals, plays, dance, and visual arts). This analysis also examines the theater audience and its characteristics, and explores the dynamic forces shaping theater participation. Changes in producing and touring activity are discussed, as well as the evolving nature of the art form itself. (MM) *********************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. *********************************************************************** 4 O O American Participation in Theater AMS Planning & Research Corp. rY EDUCATION U.S. DEPARTMENT OF and Improvement Office of Educational Research INFORMATION EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES CENTER IERICI been reproduced as XhCtrs document has or organization ecewed from the person originating it. made to improve Minor changes have been 0 reproduction quality. stated in this dOCu. Points of new o' Opinions represent official ment do not necessarily BEST COPY AVAILABLE OERI position or policy 2 Research Monograph Participation in Non-Musical Theater Contents Executive Summary I - iv Introduction I. 1 The Surveys of Public Participation in the Arts 2 Theater Participation in the US 4 II. Interest in Attending More Often 5 Cross-Over Participation 5 Participation Via Mass Media 6 Theater Attendance and Other Leisure Activities 8. III. The Theater Audience 10 Education 10 Income 11 Age 12 Race/Ethnicity 14 Gender 15 Marital Status 15 Type of Area 16 Region 17 Presence of Children 17 IV. Producing Activity, 1982 - 1992 21 Non-Touring Productions 22 Touring Productions 23 Ticket Prices 24 V. Artistic Focus 25 Culturally-Specific Work 25 Evolution of Performance Art 25 VI. Marketing Programs 27 VII. Future Participation in Theater 29 Appendix A: Other Arts Participation Studies 31 Appendix B: 1992 SPPA Questionnaire 34 About the Author Other Reports on the 1992 SPPA National Endowment for the Arts 3 Research Monograph Participation in Non-Musical Theater List of Tables & Figures TABLE 1: Theater Participation in the U.S., 1982 - 1992 4 TABLE 2: Cross-Discipline Participation Rates 6 TABLE 3: Participation Rates via Mass Media 7 TABLE 4: Participation in Other Leisure Activities 9 FIGURE 1: Theater Participation by Highest Level of Education Completed 10 .. FIGURE 2: 1992 Income Levels for Theater Attenders 12 TABLE 5: Theater Audience Composition by Age Cohort 13 TABLE 6: Theater Participation by Age Cohort 14 FIGURE 3: Theater Participation Rates by Race/Ethnicity 15 FIGURE 4: Theater Participation by Marital Status 16 TABLE 8: Theater Participation by Presence of Children 18 TABLE 9: Audience Composition by Demographic Segment 19 TABLE 10: Theater Participation by Demographic Segment 20 TABLE 11: Supply vs. Attendance at 42 Theaters, 1982 - 1992 23 TABLE 12: Three national surveys compared 32 National Endowment for the Arts Research Monograph Participation in Non-Musical Theater Executive Summary According to a longitudinal study of arts participation sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts, American participation in theater or "non-musical stage plays" increased from 11.9% of all adults in 1982 to 13.5% in 1992 an increase of 13.4% and the largest increase among the seven "benchmark" categories studied (jazz, classical music, opera, musicals, plays, dance, and visual arts). According to Arts Endowment, "a non-musical stage play is a theatrical production consisting of spoken dialogue." In similar studies conducted in 1982, 1985, and 1992 by the U.S. Census Bureau, randomly-selected interview subjects (age 18+) were asked a series of questions relating to their participation in the arts through attendance at live performances, exposure via mass media, personal participation in the arts, interest in attending more often, childhood exposure to the arts, and related topics. The numbers of completed interviews were 17,254, 13675, and 12,736, respectively. Results from these Surveys of Public Participation in the Arts (SPPAs) have been analyzed extensively in numerous research reports and monographs commissioned by the Arts Endowment. This analysis focuses exclusively on participation in stage plays. The author's overall approach is first to examine the theater audience and its characteristics, and then to explore the dynamic forces shaping theater participation. Changes in producing and touring activity are discussed, as well as the evolving nature of the art form itself. Theater Participation Based on an adult population (18+) of 185.8 million, an estimated 25.1 million U.S. adults attended live stage plays in 1992, compared to 20 million in 1982 when the adult population was 164 million. Accounting for sampling error at the 95% confidence level, the true size of the 1992 theater audience was between 24 and 26.2 million adults. Among those reporting theater attendance, an average frequency of 2.4 times was reported (in the preceding 12 month period), yielding a total of 60.2 gross attendances at live stage plays. About 27.4% of the theater audience attends 3 or more times per year, compared to 22.4% of the audience for musicals, and 15.2% of the opera audience. A third of all survey respondents expressed an interest in attending stage plays more frequently than they do now, an increase of 9.4 percentage points since 1982 and the biggest increase for any of the benchmark activities. The potential audience for stage plays is composed of 10% current theater-goers National Endowment for the Arts Research Monograph Participation in Non-Musical Theater who IQ not wish to increase their participation, 25% current theater-goers who would like to attend more often, and 65% non-attenders with an expressed interest in going. A relatively large untapped audience for stage plays is suggested. Creating marketing and artistic "points of entry" for non-attenders is the implied challenge. Over half of all stage play attenders (53.2%) also reported attending musical theater in the preceding year, although only 41.1% of the musical theater audience also reported attending stage plays indicative of the relatively broader appeal of musicals. Stage play audiences are most likely to be drawn from opera audiences (48.1% crossover), while just 11.7% of theater- goers "feed" the opera audience. Like other types of arts attenders, theater-goers are more active in other leisure activities compared to the general population. In 1992, 53.8% of theater-goers also attended sports events, down from 68.3% in 1982. The average theater-goer watches 2.4 hours of TV every day, compared to 3.0 hours for the average American. With the exception of exercise and charity work, participation by theater-goers in all other leisure activities declined between 1982 and 1992. Audience Characteristics Education remains the single most important predictor of stage play participation. While 35% of those with graduate school education reported theater attendance, just 4% of those with high school education did so. Frequency of attendance also increases with education level. Income is most highly correlated with frequent attendance at stage plays. Households with incomes over $75,000 account for 17% of the theater audience compared to 26% of the opera audience, but only 9.5% of the general population. With respect to age, theater participation is somewhat more constant across age groups compared to other benchmark activities. The highest theater participation rate (17.2%) was observed among respondents aged 45 - 54, compared to a rate of just 6.7% for those aged 75+. An analysis of theater participation by age cohort (i.e., following those born between certain dates) suggests that participation has increased evenly across all cohorts except for those born before 1918 (the "Pre-World War I" cohort), whose participation declined sharply. Increased theater participation among non-White racial/ethnic groups is among the most significant findings of this analysis. Participation rates for African-Americans more than doubled from 5.8% in 1982 to 12.0% in 1992. Similarly, Hispanic participation in stage plays also rose from 5.5% to 8.6%. Audience diversification efforts in the non-profit theater field appear to have made a significant impact since 1982. ii National Endowment for the Arts 6 Research Monograph Participation in Non-Musical Theater --7-7-H Adults with no children comprise 81.4% of the audience for stage plays. Adults with young children (under age 6) are substantially less likely to participate in theater compared to adults with older children. Participation rises to near-average levels for adults with children ages 6 - 11, suggesting that the theater field is adept at re-capturing parents into the audience. Increases in the levels of children's programming since 1982 help account for this phenomenon. Producing Activity Data provided by Theater Communications Group (TCG) suggests a small increase in the number of mainstage and other non-touring productions by non-profit theaters. For a sample of 42 theaters, the number of performances rose slightly from 13,304 in 1982 to 13,659 in 1992, while attendance rose from 6.4 million to 6.8 million, or 6.7%. Thus, it may be inferred that the 42 theaters became more proficient at filling their houses, although population growth between 1982 and 1992 should have driven attendance up by 13%, holding all else constant. The League of American Theaters and Producers (LATP) tracks commercial producing and touring activity. Commercial touring of stage plays decreased from 23 productions in 1982 (an average of 10.6 weeks each), to 10 productions in 1992 (an average of 21.4 weeks each). The shift to longer tours of fewer commercial productions may have resulted from several factors, including a decline in the number of new plays and play revivals on Broadway, the increasing costs of touring, and the opening of new commercial venues in cities like Palm Beach, Ft. Lauderdale, Cleveland, and Minneapolis/St. Paul. Among non-profit theaters, a renewed focus on ethnically- and culturally- specific works strongly corroborates the audience diversification observed since 1982, particularly among the African-American and Hispanic populations. Increased responsiveness to diverse constituencies became a major thrust of the funding community during this period. The growing popularity of performance art and solo performance (i.e., story-telling and monologue) undoubtedly had a positive impact on theater participation, particularly among young audiences. The observed increase in theater participation between 1982 and 1992 is a gross a broad representation of many underlying factors, some consistent measure with increasing attendance, some contradictory to it. Nevertheless, an attempt to reconcile demand for stage play programming (as measured by participation rates and frequency) with the supply of theater programming is a valuable, if inconclusive pursuit. iii National Endowment for the Arts 7 Research Monograph Participation in Non-Musical Theater Local Context to Theater Participation Another study conducted by the NEA in 1992 revealed some of the complex patterns of arts participation at the local level, adding rich context to data from the national surveys. In each of twelve areas studied (ranging from San Jose to Chicago), arts participation rates were examined in light of the local supply of arts programs and facilities. Theater participation was highest in Seattle/King County (WA) where a thriving theater community was observed, including playwrights, actors, and a plethora of small, experimental ensembles known collectively as "Seattle's fringe theaters." The study concluded that the relationship between the supply of and demand for arts programming is anything but predictable. Dynamic forces shape participation patterns in each community, including characteristics of the resident and non-resident markets, the supply of producing and presenting activity, the availability of suitable performance facilities, as well as local traditions and history. Further research at- the local level will add valuable context to theater participation in the U.S. and perhaps stimulate the transfer of audience development strategies across communities. The Future Audience Will public participation in non-musical stage plays continue to grow? Ten years from now, the field will have endured another decade of change. New theaters will open and others will fold; playwrights, directors, and actors will speak out in new ways; the funding climate will inevitably change; and new communications technology will create possibilities for both theaters and audiences. How will the Theater make itself relevant to an increasingly diverse public? Much depends on the resources made available to theaters, playwrights, and performers to develop new work and attract new audiences. Most likely, the rising costs of producing and touring professional theater coupled with changes in the funding mix for non-profit theaters will create even more pressure on earned income. However, it is the developmental component of theater free from commercial expectations that ultimately creates renewal. Audiences will continue to change and grow as new works (and old works infused with new relevancy) bring the lives of more Americans closer to the theater. Responsibility for creating new work rests not just on the non-profit theater, but also on commercial producers, the funding community, and ultimately the audience itself. Summary Report: 12 Local Surveys of Public Participation in the Arts, Research Division Report #26, National Endowment for the Arts, 1993 National Endowment for the Arts iv 8 Participation in Non-Musical Theater Research Monograph I. Introduction For nearly twenty years the arts participation patterns of Americans have been studied through a series of research efforts sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), including three nationwide Surveys of Public Participation in the Arts (SPPAs) conducted in 1982, 1985, and most recently in 1992. Results from these and other research efforts have advanced our understanding of the complex patterns of arts participation in the U.S. With data available from three surveys spanning a decade, broad trends in arts participation can be monitored, adding a new dimension to the collective knowledge of arts participation in the U.S. This analysis focuses on participation in non-musical theater or "stage plays" just one of the eight "benchmark" arts activities defined by the NEA. The goal of the analysis is to offer perspective on theater participation in the U.S. in terms of the demand for theater programming, the supply or availability of theater programming, and other forces impacting theater participation. In terms of demand, a variety of quantitative measures have been developed through NEA-sponsored research, including attendance rates, frequency of attendance, and the demographic and other characteristics associated with attendance. On the supply side, measurement is substantially more difficult due to the diversity and constant state of flux of the theater field. Providers of theatrical programming include resident theaters, commercial producers, children's theater companies, presenters, broadcast media and other types of organizations. The rapid evolution of the "theater delivery system" in the United States, is driven by a number of inter-related forces: a constantly changing arts public, both demographically and culturally artistic developments in the theater field management and organizational changes among producers and presenters a changing funding and political climate technological advances economic forces that impact both consumers and producers Thus, the simple observation that theater attendance increased 13% between 1982 and 1992 belies a panoply of underlying forces, some correlative and some contradictory. Ultimately, the changing patterns of theater participation are as National Endowment for the Arts 9 Participation in Non-Musical Theater Research Monograph rich, subtle, and complex as the art form itself. Theater unlike the more wieldy artistic disciplines of opera, ballet, and even musical theater easily speaks to contemporary audiences, not only through new plays but also through new interpretations of older works. The traditionally smaller scale of theater productions affords the art form an element of spontaneity (if not portability) and a facility for relevance that opera, ballet, and musical theater do not enjoy. If theater as an art form reflects our society and its search for identity and understanding, then the study of theater participation is a window looking into the cultural development of America. The Surveys of Public Participation in the Arts In response to a growing need to understand the changing arts participation patterns of Americans, the National Endowment for the Arts commissioned a scientific, longitudinal study called the Survey of Public Participation in the Arts (SPPA). Conducted by the U.S. Bureau of the Census, the first survey in 1982 established benchmark data from which trend analysis is now possible, with data from the second and third SPPAs in 1985 and 1992, respectively. In terms of survey design, the SPPAs addressed these primary topic areas: rate and frequency of attendance live performances of jazz, opera, classical music, musical theater, museums, ballet, other dance, and non-musical stage plays (the eight "benchmark" arts activities), as well as several other types of arts programs arts participation through electronic media, including television, video, and radio interest in attending different types of arts activities more often participation in other leisure activities personal participation in the arts (e.g., painting, writing, playing an instrument) music preferences childhood exposure to the arts Respondents to the SPPA were part of a larger, continuously rotating panel of randomly-selected respondents who had agreed participate in the research. Census Bureau population counts were used to draw the sample in such a way that all individuals living in households in the United States had a known and equal chance of selection. The sampling frame used in 1992 was essentially the same as those used in the 1982 and 1985 surveys. All individuals aged 18 and older in the selected households were eligible for inclusion in the survey. Less than 20% of all National Endowment for the Arts 2 10