06/08/1987 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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e e e Mr. Holmer praised the recent performances by Isaac Stern and Lazar Berman, and he asked whether those types of events posed adverse competition for resident companies. Mr. Roan said research had been done on the "co-patronage phenomenon" and showed that patrons, especially of classical events, were twice as likely to attend a first type of series if a second type of series in the same genre was offered annually. He said staff felt that top name events were creating an audience for local performers. He also said all of the hundreds of studies available indicated that discount and price had no effect on purchases in the culture patron group and that in some cases, discounted series did not sell as well as those that were not discounted. Mr. Hansen noted that opportunities for well-known performers sometimes were passed up in order to protect the scheduling for local arts groups. Mr. Roan said staff this year also had used some of the major events as premiums for local arts organizations, for example offering Isaac Stern tickets first to Bach Festival subscribers, and other tickets available first to Eugene Symphony and Eugene Opera subscri bers. He also said it was an extremely sensitive issue to schedule another event during a local arts event, and while some conflicts may have occurred, staff had a commitment to avoid adverse impacts, which was the reason for the master scheduling conference begun this year. Mr. Holmer expressed approval for that commitment. Ms. Bascom asked about information presented to the Budget Subcommittee that had indicated a national trend of ticket sales declining by 12 percent, which would have to be accounted for in the budget. Mr. Smith said a decline was expected and had been experienced during the Vancouver Expo. He said staff had attempted to adjust revenues according to the projected market. Ms. Ehrman asked what type of events were most likely to sellout. Mr. Roan said sell-outs occurred in a diverse range of events. Ms. Bascom read a list of sell-outs since the beginning of 1986, and Mr. Roan said half of those events had been promoted or co-promoted by the Hu1t Center. Mr. Gleason said he was excited about how well the Hu1t Center had done in stimulating arts productions of all types and in offering affordable events during a very difficult period. He commended teamwork by staff members. Ms. Wooten asked about the difference in the number of shows for the upcoming, past, and opening seasons. Mr. Smith said staff was attempting to program 35 outside productions this year, which he said was about the same as the opening season and compared to an average of about 29 shows in the intervening years. He also said all of the "Wonders Never Cease" seri es wou1 d be presented by the Hult Center. Mr. Fox noted that today's Register-Gourd had contained a letter to the editor about Hult Center ticket prices. He said he thought the rates were reasonable, and he asked staff to address that issue. Mr. Smith said discussions with local performers showed they felt rates were reasonable. He noted that the theater and stagehands union offered a 20 percent discount to local performing arts organizations and that those groups also received a 70 percent discount on the large hall, in addition to discounted advertising MINUTES--Eugene City Council Dinner/Work Session June 8, 1987 Page 5