US performing arts organisations continue to see a drop in income from ticket sales compared to pre-pandemic levels despite more being sold.
A new study from JCA Performing Arts found that ticket sales for the final quarter of 2024 was up on the same period in 2019, just before the Covid pandemic. However, the figure was down slightly on the same period in 2023.
Within ticket sales in fall 2024, some 61% of purchasers were new. This compared to 60% in the same period in 2023.
While ticket sales are up, income from sales was at just 92% of the fall 2019 figure. The figure has risen each year since the pandemic.
Average start price for tickets has increased significantly since fall 2019, and in fall 2024, it caught up to the pace of inflation. However, although average yield, or the average amount that people paid for a ticket, increased over the study period, it is still behind the overall pace of inflation since Fall 2019.
Did the US election impact sales?
JCA said the ‘Trends in Audience Behavior: Elections, Shadow Audiences & Hidden Treasures’ study was designed to examine how much a major event – the US election on November 3 – affected ticket sales. It found that ticket sales were consistent with those of the previous fall. Although election week in 2024 saw lower capacity sold compared to the same week in 2023, this is likely, JCA said, because the organisations being analysed offered more performances in 2024.
Sales at low prices increased most dramatically in fall 2024, which is likely due to fuller houses.
“Because patrons usually buy high-priced tickets first, when we see fuller houses, more low-priced tickets are sold. This is a challenge that requires keen pricing strategy to ensure that lower-priced tickets aren’t underpriced,” JCA said.
Shadow audience focus
The study puts a focus on shadow audience members – those unknown visitors who accompany a ticket buyer. A growing number of these are now referred to as “revealed” shadow audience members due to their tickets being added to their digital wallet. The number of revealed members in fall 2024 was around four times greater than in 2022 due to the expansion of digital ticketing.
JCA said: “Our study shows that shadow audiences have huge potential to make up the gap in income that we still have post-pandemic. As 60% of our audiences are shadow audiences, just imagine what could happen if you’re able to capture those audiences’ data and start to build a relationship with them through targeted communication.”
New audience members
Data for the study was gathered from 17 major organisations in different US regions, including five theatre companies, five music organisations, two opera companies, three performing arts centres (PACs), and two dance companies.
“This data presents a hidden treasure—our new audiences,” said Jamie Alexander, vice-president of growth and development for JCA.
“With the growth of new audience members, performing arts organisations have the opportunity to leverage these audiences and their data to craft re-engagement and acquisition campaigns that could fill in the gap we’ve seen in ticket sales and revenue since the pandemic.”
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