Following a $32-million renovation, the Alliance Theatre opened the Coca-Cola Stage this past January. Even as construction was being completed during the 2017–2018 season, the show had to go on, and leadership at the Alliance made the untested (and rather bold) move to produce 12 shows in different locations around Atlanta, selecting venues that complemented themes of the work being produced. The hope was that they could meet Atlantans where they lived and bring them back to the newly renovated stage once it opened.
Audience Building Innovation on Display at the Alliance Theatre
By Gevin Reynolds, Fellow, The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation
At the Audience Building Roundtable workshop on July 27, 2018, the Alliance Theatre presented the results of their Audience Building Innovation Grant, awarded by the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation to fund innovative audience building initiatives in their 48th, 49th, and 50thseasons. Below is a summary of their presentation.
Alliance Theatre: Seeking New Patrons During a Year of Off-Site Productions
Make New Friends: Arts Marketing Innovations
By Caitlin Thomas White, Marketing Director, Synchronicity Theatre
Make new friends, but keep the old.
To me, this sentiment from a familiar children's folk song succinctly captures the central goal of audience building. It certainly speaks to Synchronicity Theatre's current focus, as we work to attract new audiences to our three-year-old performance space and build innovative programs without losing sight of our core mission and audience.
DAD’S GARAGE
Since moving to our new location, we’ve struggled to get our previous patrons to learn where we are. We focused on the people who had attended a show at our previous location during the past three yearsbut had not yet attended a show at our new location. We sent a half price offer toget them to our new location and had a success rate of more than 33%.
Atlanta Opera
What are some of the things you've done this last season?
- We have a new Discovery Series that features smaller, modern works in venues all over the city. We have learned the imrtance of matching the right show to the right venue.
Keywords
- Site Specific Programming