Webinar Recap: Lessons Learned Through Reopening | The Audience Experience

September 15 (Replay at end of page)

Last week, we were delighted to host our first of four webinars in our newest series, “ABA Live! Lessons Learned Through Reopening.” Our opening webinar session focused on issues surrounding the audience experience.

ABA first launched our webinar series in March of 2020 in an effort to support arts organizations across the globe as they navigated the pandemic, closure, and what those things meant for their organization. Although we understand that many arts organizations have already opened their doors in some way, shape, or form, we also know that a number of organizations are planning to do so this fall for the first time.

We were therefore grateful to have three arts leaders joining us for a fruitful discussion of their experiences opening their doors to audiences during this past year. Below is a summary of the conversation and our panelists’ advice for others going through this same reopening process.

What has reopening looked like at your organization?

We asked each panelist to open the conversation by sharing details around their reopening, and what restrictions and process looked like. 

Kicking us off, Alan Fletcher of the Aspen Music Festival and School shared that the organization held their usual 8-week summer session, which opened in July and included 150 concerts and events (compared to their typical 350). They operated their venue with a combination of non-distanced seating for vaccinated attendees and distanced seating for everyone else. While their 24 orchestra programs were at slightly reduced capacity, they moved their chamber music concerts into their larger venue. This allowed them to sell 250-300 tickets above their normal sales. In the end, they earned about 85% of the ticket budget of a normal season. 

At Hong Kong Ballet, Heidi Lee shared, operations are a bit different. This is mainly due to the fact that the government operates all venues. Since the Ballet reopened last fall, they have staged three major productions: “Balanchine’s Jewels,” “Romeo and Juliet,” and “Alice in Wonderland.” They kept a maximum capacity of 75-85% and sold out — so much so that they have added one performance each to “Romeo and Juliet” and “Alice in Wonderland.”

Finally, regulations in Texas allowed for concerts at 50% capacity as early as June 2020, with capacity increasing to 100% by August of that same year. Kim Noltemy of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra took a more conservative approach, though — the Orchestra started holding concerts that June with 50 people in a venue meant for 1800. They slowly increased the audience over the course of the season (which went through June 2021) until they were holding 500-person concerts. Their most recent season has opened recently at 60% capacity, staying limited due to spread of the Delta variant in their region. Kim’s first priority has been to make her audiences feel safe throughout these challenging times.

How did you approach changing restrictions?

During the pandemic, arts organizations have had to remain nimble in the face of health protocols that changed rapidly in response to new developments with the virus, vaccinations, and variants. 

Kim described the support Dallas Symphony Orchestra received from their local hospital system, who partnered with them to help set protocols and source testing at a speed that allowed for daily tests for all musicians. Even now with the staff and orchestra vaccinated, the organization still conducts twice weekly testing to prevent breakthroughs. “We had artists from around the world who felt really safe coming,” Kim said. The Orchestra shared this resource with their colleagues around Dallas and were part of a group of local arts organizations who agreed to similar safety protocols — this way, all audiences attending any arts event knew that they could feel safe doing so.

A similar group emerged in Aspen, according to Alan. Executive directors of organizations across a variety of genres worked together to align their safety protocols, and then asked the county to take a stand regarding masking and vaccination protocols — ensuring that it would not be on any individual organization to set restrictions. 

Regular testing also played an important role for the music festival. The organization administered thousands of PCR tests and had instant tests available as well. Every guest artist was required to be tested before entering any venue, and over 8 weeks there were only 2 positive cases of covid, both highly contained. 

What were your safety protocols for audiences?

At the Aspen Music Festival and School, the orchestra was placed at a safe perimeter from the audience to maintain an aerosol distance, and were unmasked. For the audience, masks were optional (about half chose to wear them). The festival made vaccination status reporting optional for attendees on advice from the governor of Colorado. Finally, the concert ticketing was all made virtual — a choice that initially drew ire from audiences, but which they eventually adjusted to. Alan’s advice? Plan your protocols the way you believe makes sense, and your audience will come around to it.

The situation was quite different for Heidi, as the spread of COVID-19 slowed in Hong Kong to allow for operations to go back to nearly normal by May of this year. One safety protocol that remains is masking in any indoor space, including performing arts venues and restaurants. The government has encouraged vaccinations, but it is not mandatory. Because the Ballet’s venues are government-operated, safety restrictions are as well — every two weeks, the government announces any major changes. 

Behind the scenes, dancers are required to get tested every two weeks, while in the front of house the auditorium capacity has been reduced to 85% and plexiglass barriers are installed at information booths and in the pit. Overall, many of the measures in place are as much for psychological wellbeing as they are for physical safety.

Were there issues with “no show” ticket holders?

One of our webinar attendees inquired about audience members who purchased tickets and then did not attend due to health concerns.

For Hong Kong Ballet this has not been much of a problem — audiences are so excited about coming back to the theater, especially as they are unable to travel to other countries and so finding exciting activities at home is paramount. Heidi made the decision to cancel subscription packages for the year to alleviate the workload on their limited ticketing staff, and this has been helpful both for their time and for audiences’ commitment to attending.

Kim shared that the Dallas Symphony Orchestra saw a fairly high no show rate of around 15% last year — surprising, especially given their limited audience numbers. This year, the Orchestra has been excited to see their highest renewal rate in several years; however, the Delta surge has been a blow to their single ticket purchases. Kim hopes for a stronger showing once they eventually reach full capacity.

Finally, Alan spoke to the Aspen Music Festival and School’s decision to delay the start of their ticket sales by four months in order to have more time to assess what was happening with the pandemic. Additionally, they decided not to validate season passes until right before a concert, which helped prevent no shows for single tickets. Additionally, each festival attendee received an email the day before the concert with reminders about protocols and what to expect. This helped remind audience members of their ticket purchases as well. 

How did you use this past year as an opportunity for operational experimentation?

Throughout the pandemic, many of our members have found that the chance to experiment with their offerings and practices has been a silver lining. We asked our panelists to share some of the ways they have tested new ways of operating that might carry forward beyond this period.

For the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, the biggest innovation was their installation of a fiber optic control room last July. This gave them the ability to livestream or post-produce content from any of their concerts. Kim shared that last year they released around 35 concerts digitally, and they put a huge amount of effort, expertise, and technology into having digital assets and connecting with people beyond their local community. Digital is also helpful for those in the community who are unable to attend concerts in person. While Kim said she would love for digital to be a stronger revenue stream than it is, online assets are still incredibly valuable for marketing and branding. It is now a daily part of the management team’s lives, and allows them to have a different relationship with existing patrons (who now have developed the habit of and interest in watching online). “That can’t be overstated in terms of its value in audience development,” Kim noted.

Alan shared that the Aspen Music Festival and School also brought on in-house expertise to do live streaming, and their weekly streams attracted 1,000 engaged households. He definitely plans to keep that up — especially with Aspen being a destination venue that is not always easy to get to. In terms of monetization, he may try to use digital to entice people to visit, but he said his team found more success in using it to drive contributed income. Their donate button on the screen of their live streams led to their most new donors in history.

Heidi took a different approach at Hong Kong Ballet: rather than full versions of past ballets, they treated themselves like a television channel. “HK Ballet @ Home” included content like “Ballerina Chef,” which could relate to audiences who were not necessarily fans of the art form already. When online was the only channel of entertainment, the Ballet was able to enrich their audience group and let them know about our dancers in an intimate way which could ultimately attract them to live performances. In addition to these short videos (which were even included in some film festivals), the Ballet was given the chance to broadcast their production of “The Nutcracker” on one of Hong Kong’s most popular television stations, with 150,000 households connecting to this holiday tradition. Today, Heidi shared that the organization has changed its organizational structure and is hiring a video creative director to further prioritize this type of content.

What are your top lessons or pieces of advice for moving forward?

To close, we asked our panelists to share advice for other arts organizations who are planning (or starting) the reopening process.

Kim emphasized the significant change in the communications strategy at the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. The relationship they have developed with their audience has evolved in a very positive way, and the team has been able to create a level of trust that is higher than in the past. She feels the Orchestra has a higher level of engagement overall, visible in their digital success and the fact that they have received more donations now than they ever have. With the industry having grown more transactional over the years, this crisis brought back the personal element.

Alan recalled how last year we were wondering if audiences would begin to feel that they did not really need the arts in their lives, and therefore would move on to other forms of entertainment. Fortunately, he has found that this is not true — people have tremendously affirmed how important art is to them. Aspen Music Festival and School is also prioritizing music from composers and conductors of underrepresented backgrounds, a journey for which their audience has been showing a great appreciation.

Finally, Heidi encouraged arts leaders to think about their mission to convey the message that it is safe to attend performances as long as citizens remain self-disciplined. She knows we cannot take live performances for granted, but must encourage responsibility and care for others.

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