In Sunday’s (3/14) Courier-Press (Evansville, Indiana), Roger McBain reports, “After years of steadily declining ticket sales, the Evansville Philharmonic has settled on what may seem an unlikely solution—cutting ticket prices. That may sound counterintuitive even in better times, much less as the orchestra deals with declining attendance and reduced contributions, but that’s exactly what the philharmonic plans to do. It will reduce ticket prices across the board for the 2010-2011 season while significantly increasing the number of ‘economy’ seats. Under the new configuration, 70 percent of The Victory’s 1,831 seats will sell for $25 or less, said Glenn Roberts, the orchestra’s executive director. Compare that with this season, when seats in just 8 percent of the hall go for $25 or less. It’s all part of a new long-range plan ‘to reposition the orchestra in the community,’ Roberts said. ‘One of the major barriers (to attendance) has been price. We’ve heard it over and over again.’ … it already has spurred a couple of spontaneous donations. When the board agreed to make the changes, one member gave $2,500 to the orchestra and another gave $700.”
Posted March 15, 2010
