Photo: Samuel Graves

The data is in, and numbers are looking good for arts attendances in South Australia as the sector recovers from COVID-19. Recent surveys of South Australian arts audiences, and the broader community, show that attendance rates are reaching pre-pandemic levels. In even better news, audiences are valuing their arts experiences more than ever.

Surveys

In the past few months, Creative Australia (formerly Australia Council for the Arts) has released two reports into national arts audiences – Creative Value: Results of the 2022 National Arts Participation Survey (NAPS), and the Audience Outlook Monitor 2023 (AOM). Arts South Australia has reviewed the South Australian-specific data.

Audience numbers

NAPS data shows that in 2022, 96% of all South Australians engaged with the arts in some way. This figure shows strong audience recovery after the impact of COVID-19.

Live attendance is back to pre-pandemic levels, with nearly one million South Australians attending arts events in the past 12 months (64% of the population aged 15 years and over). The most attended events were:

• Festivals (43% of people attended – half of this figure is music festival attendees)
• Music (36% of people attended)
• Visual arts and crafts (31% of people attended)
• Theatre (26% of people attended)
• Book and literary events (13% of people attended)
• Dance (12% of people attended).

Both surveys highlight the growing role of digital engagement with the arts. Almost 90% of South Australians now engage with arts online or through digital platforms, including listening to music, discovering new artists and finding out about arts and cultural events.

Attitudes to arts

Both the surveys ask questions around how people feel about engaging with the arts.

The results show that in the wake of the pandemic, South Australian audiences are in the mood for social, uplifting experiences and events. There is a significant increase in the number of people reporting that arts and culture make for a richer, more meaningful life (69%, up from 63% in 2019), and that attending arts improves their wellbeing (56% up from 52% in 2019).

Almost half of South Australians would like to attend more arts events. Cost of tickets (58%, up from 39%) and distances from home/ no transport options (37%, up from 22%) are the main barriers to attendance.

There is a strong desire for more free, accessible events, particularly for young people and families.

Audiences also noted their desire for more touring to Adelaide and regional communities, to increase the variety and accessibility of events available.

Connecting with audiences

The difference in audience behaviours has become more noticeable around three key groups – young audiences, families and older audiences. These groups are thinking and behaving very differently in 2023 in terms of mood, priorities, spending patterns and media consumption.