Do empty seats make you angry? They should! They should make you BOILING MAD. Each empty seat represents a direct cost: the wasted expenditure of advertising, the loss of immediate cash flow, pressure to increase ticket prices and/or spend even more on marketing, a diminished pool of future donors. Each empty seat also carries the indirect cost of the APPEARANCE OF FAILURE to artists, audiences, members & donors, visitors, … [Read more...]
Would YOU call these “Tough Times”?
I'm not, by nature, a pessimist. So I was struck by the reply of a respected colleague to an e-mail I sent that included the sentence, "As you well know, these are very tough times for the arts & cultural sector." She replied, "Interesting you say these are tough times. I don't hear that very much." Wow. Let's take a moment to take stock of where we are, shall we? I invite you, dear ArtsJournal blog readers, to respond: Would YOU … [Read more...]
A Rose By Any Other Name … Doesn’t Sell
"Sometimes, We Want Prices to Fool Us" is the title of today's New York Times article that notes that "...most shoppers, coupon collectors or not, want the thrill of getting a great deal, even if it’s an illusion." You want proof? The article reports that J.C. Penney suffered a whopping 25 percent drop in sales over the last year due to its decision to stop promoting sales and offering coupons and instead focus entirely on offering “everyday” … [Read more...]
Gymnacafatorium
The word rolled off his tongue so easily, I almost didn't catch it. Steve Martin is the Managing Director of Childsplay, the renowned professional theatre company here in the Phoenix area whose chosen audience is children. We were discussing the evolving nature of the cause of “audience development” and the various implications of its growing number of metaphors – pathways, on-ramps, entrances, channels, passages, approaches, avenues, … [Read more...]
A New Dimension for Engagement: “Fan-Funding”
With gratitude, I share this interview with Brian Camelio, the founder of ArtistShare - a pioneering "fan-funding platform for artists" to which I was introduced just a few weeks ago. I contacted Brian through his website's general information e-mail and asked if he'd be willing to share his experience & insights. I am profoundly grateful for his willingness to do so. In addition to reading this interview, I encourage you to thoroughly … [Read more...]
Kerry Lengel: A Critic’s Take on Arts & Entrepreneurship
Kerry Lengel is the Arizona Republic's theatre critic. His articles are most readily found HERE: Recently, I invited Kerry to address the Seminar on Arts Entrepreneurship that I am teaching at Arizona State University this semester. In preparation for that class, we got together for a lengthy (and lively) discussion about the nature of arts & entrepreneurship. The discussion was so fascinating and insightful that I asked Kerry to … [Read more...]
The Most Important Theatre Company
In the Greater Phoenix region, Actors Theatre isn't the oldest, largest or even most popular professional theatre company. It's just the most important. And this morning, Actors Theatre announced: "...the Board of Directors and Management have decided to take a PAUSE to assess and redesign our business model and to consider all options to “take control of our future.”... We are not closing. We are stepping back because we need to change … [Read more...]
The Myth of “Our Audience”
You serve an audience but you don't "have" an audience. An audience is not something you own. Your venue is the shore. It's a place where an audience washes up to connect with your arts & cultural experience. Your organization is a beachfront property. You stand on the deck and watch as the audience tide periodically surges in attendance. And as it ebbs. You may own a property "on the shore" but you do not own any particular … [Read more...]
Defining Our 3 Most Important Questions
Visiting with a colleague recently, we got to talking about what would be the THREE MOST IMPORTANT QUESTIONS that a mid-career professional in ANY sort of arts or cultural organizations should be asking. We further imagined that the process of ANSWERING such questions might serve as some sort of rite of passage for early/mid-career professionals - with the organizations that employ them expecting, supporting and respecting a staff member's … [Read more...]
Miz’ed Opportunity
Do you hear the people sing? I really want to. I absolutely loved the new Les Misérables movie. In fact, I just returned from doing something I have NEVER done before: saw the movie again while it is still in the movie theater. I wanted another opportunity to drink in in the film's visual richness. I wanted another injection of the emotional heroin that literally left me sobbing. I wanted to wrap myself in the virtuous flag of … [Read more...]