Introduction
Live Performance Australia (LPA) takes great pleasure in presenting our inaugural Supplementary Ticket Attendance and Revenue Survey for 2013 (“Supplementary Survey”). This report follows on from the 2013 Ticket Attendance and Revenue Survey (“Primary Survey”) previously published by LPA in partnership with Ernst and Young (EY), and provides additional data for performances not previously reported.
The development of LPA’s research reports, integral to promoting the value and importance of our industry, would not be possible without the generous support of our long-term partner Media Super. Media Super has a long and respected history as a key supporter of Australia’s creative industries through sponsorship programs, employment and financial education support, as well as celebrating the excellence of Australia’s cultural offerings. LPA sincerely thanks Media Super for their continued partnership and support of this research.
Performances by the small to medium sector, and at regional venues, have been underreported in our annual Primary Survey. In recognition of this data gap, we have been working closely with the Australia Council for the Arts, and the Australian Performing Arts Centres Association (APACA) to redress this issue in this new Supplementary Survey.
LPA’s annual Primary Survey is the principal source of reliable industry statistics for the Australian Live Performance Industry, and represents the most comprehensive available survey of ticket sales for Australian Live Performance events. As the Industry’s leading source for up-to-date results and trends, the Primary Survey is drawn upon extensively by the industry, government, media and business. We are pleased to present additional data reported in the Supplementary Survey, which provides a “snapshot” of live performance activity in the small to medium sector and regional locations.
As reported in our Primary Survey, there were substantial gains made in 2013, in what was overall a strong year for the Live Performance Industry. This reflects a year of improved consumer confidence across Australia.
In 2013, approximately 737,000 tickets were issued to 5,100 live entertainment performances in Australia at regional and metropolitan venues and through the Australia Council’s Key Organisations (small-medium sector), generating revenue of $20.5 million. In combining this additional data with that reported in the Primary Survey, revenue for the Industry overall increased steadily, from $1.205 billion in 2012 to $1.5 billion in 2013 – the highest revenue recorded since the Primary Survey was initiated.
Combined figures from both the Primary Survey and Supplementary Survey report 18.66 million tickets (including paid, complimentary, sponsor and zero-priced tickets) for Live Performance Industry events were issued in Australia in 2013 (16.27 million in 2012).
It is important to note that the data included is not a comprehensive survey of regional and metropolitan venues, as only 21 APACA member venues out of a total of 108 non capital city member venues provided data. However, it is our intention to continue to build this additional data set in future years. Improvement to the reach and coverage of the Supplementary Survey is dependent upon increasing the number of APACA venues providing data. We strongly encourage venues not presently included in the Supplementary Survey to become data partners.
Compared to the previously reported 2013 data in the Primary Survey, there is a more even spread of revenue and attendance across categories as the supplementary data does not include major concert tours or musical theatre productions in capital cities. Notably, Theatre’s share of attendance and revenue in the supplementary data is significantly higher compared to the 2013 data reported in the Primary Survey, with Theatre accounting for 24.3% of total attendance. This is markedly different to the attendance results in the Primary Survey for 2013, where Theatre accounted for 10.3% of total attendances. This is a reflection of the type of works produced by Key Organisations, and the type of performances that typically tour to regional and remote locations.
We thank our Survey Consultants EY for their professional services in compiling and analysing the Survey data, and our Website Designers Digital Bridge, for their preparation of the Digital Report. We hope you find the digital format informative and intuitive.
Finally, we sincerely thank the Australia Council for the Arts, APACA, and APACA venue members that provided data. The generous cooperation and effort of all parties involved is, as always, greatly appreciated.
Evelyn Richardson
Chief Executive
Live Performance Australia
May 2015
The Ticket Attendance and Revenue Survey is proudly sponsored by
Media Super
