The democratization of high culture

In our last newsletter, we wrote about cultural organizations making their performances more accessible to the public, notably the Metropolitan Opera and Miami’s New World Symphony, which are leading the way.

As a postscript, the New York Times just reported that the Met’s donations hit $182 million in the last fiscal year, an all time high and 50% more than the prior year.  Peter Gelb, the Met’s General Manager, attributed this in large part to his efforts to “democratize opera” through HD transmissions worldwide. “If we can’t bring people to the opera, let’s bring opera to the people.”

The Met’s televised broadcasts reach 1,600 theaters in 54 countries, 3 million people a season. Deals are also in the works for broadcasts in Italy and Russia.  Gelb admitted that competition from the HD transmissions may have eaten into box office sales from nearby markets, but he argued that the loss was offset by donor contributions generated by the excitement from the broadcasts.

Broadway shows are starting to do something similar – converting live theater to limited-run moviehouse experiences. I question whether this strategy will work as well as it did with opera. Tickets for live opera performances can easily run into three figures, so seeing a production in the movies for $20 to $30 is a considered a real bargain – an enticement.  There is a smaller price differential for Broadway shows versus a movie ticket, so the value proposition is a lot less. It will be interesting to see what happens.