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Neil Howe is a historian, economist, and demographer, and a leading authority on generational trends. He coined the term "Millennial Generation" and is the bestselling author of over a dozen books, including Generations, The Fourth Turning, Millennials Rising, and The Graying of the Great Powers. Howe is the Managing Director of Demography at Hedgeye and president of Saeculum Research, which helps managers and investors anticipate changes in markets, consumer preferences, and the public mood. Howe has served hundreds of clients—from Nike and Fidelity to Disney and the U.S. Marine Corps.
The author is a Forbes contributor. The opinions expressed are those of the writer.
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A changing of the guard is underway in America’s art museums. According to an Economist survey, more than a third of directors today are age 60 or older—many of whom postponed retirement to ride out the recession. Seven years later, turnover has begun in earnest, bringing an influx of new blood to the top. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said about their visitors. The audiences for these museums—along with other forms of the visual and performing arts—have been steadily graying and shrinking, leading some to proclaim that entire genres are on their last legs. Arts leaders are trying all kinds of strategies to boost engagement and shed the stuffy image surrounding these activities.
Rates of attendance at fine arts events have declined significantly over the past few decades. According to the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), only 33% of Americans attended a “benchmark” cultural event even once in 2012—down from 39% in 2002 and 41% in 1992. The numbers are even bleaker when broken down by individual activity: art museums (21.0%); musicals (15.2%); classical music (8.8%); non-musical plays (8.3%); jazz (8.1%); ballet (2.7%); and opera (2.1%). From 2002 to 2012, the average number of events attended per person also dropped from 6.1 to 4.8.
This decade-long decline has occurred across nearly every age group. Attendance has fallen most sharply among 35- to 44-year-olds (down 10%) and 45- to 54-year-olds (down 12%)—in other words, the brackets Generation X has been entering. Their overall participation rate now hovers just slightly above that of Millennials. The only age group to have seen statistically significant increases in arts attendance has been the oldest Americans (age 75 and over).
This shift has transformed audience composition: In 1982, the median age of a jazz concertgoer was 29; by 2008, it was 45. The same figure for classical concertgoers jumped from 40 to 49. “The last generation to broadly love classical music,” writer Mark Vanhoenacker remarks in Slate, “may simply be aging, like World War I veterans, out of existence.”
The strain on the arts is showing in plenty of other ways as well. As of 2014, jazz and classical music combined have dwindled to 2.8% of total music consumption. Symphony orchestras in New York, Philadelphia, Detroit, and Chicago have faced bankruptcies, strikes, and layoffs. And world-renowned organizations like the Metropolitan Opera are increasingly relying on contributions from deep-pocketed donors instead of earned revenue.
Forward-thinking arts directors are rushing to refashion these activities for a new generation. Many initiatives focus on providing more interactive experiences. The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Los Angeles County Museum of Art, for example, have taken a page from retailers and installed “beacons” in their galleries, which serve to enhance the knowledge of veteran visitors while demystifying the content for newcomers.
Others are offering audiences alternative ways to enjoy what’s onstage—including from their couch. A growing number of orchestras and opera companies now offer live HD webcasts of shows—most notably the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, which streams about 20 free concerts each season. Cincinnati’s Lumenocity, a symphonic and light show launched in 2012, has proven so popular that organizers had to cut crowd size for public safety reasons. And with full-season subscriptions dwindling in popularity, many performing arts groups are rethinking traditional programming schedules, repackaging shows into themed mini-festivals.
Rates of attendance at fine arts events have declined significantly over the past few decades. According to the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), only 33% of Americans attended a “benchmark” cultural event even once in 2012—down from 39% in 2002 and 41% in 1992. The numbers are even bleaker when broken down by individual activity: art museums (21.0%); musicals (15.2%); classical music (8.8%); non-musical plays (8.3%); jazz (8.1%); ballet (2.7%); and opera (2.1%). From 2002 to 2012, the average number of events attended per person also dropped from 6.1 to 4.8.
Share of Americans who Attended a "Benchmark" Arts Event in the Past Year, by Age (2002-2012)
The strain on the arts is showing in plenty of other ways as well. As of 2014, jazz and classical music combined have dwindled to 2.8% of total music consumption. Symphony orchestras in New York, Philadelphia, Detroit, and Chicago have faced bankruptcies, strikes, and layoffs. And world-renowned organizations like the Metropolitan Opera are increasingly relying on contributions from deep-pocketed donors instead of earned revenue.
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Others are offering audiences alternative ways to enjoy what’s onstage—including from their couch. A growing number of orchestras and opera companies now offer live HD webcasts of shows—most notably the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, which streams about 20 free concerts each season. Cincinnati’s Lumenocity, a symphonic and light show launched in 2012, has proven so popular that organizers had to cut crowd size for public safety reasons. And with full-season subscriptions dwindling in popularity, many performing arts groups are rethinking traditional programming schedules, repackaging shows into themed mini-festivals.
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