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Dateline: 12th April, 2004 Think Tank Says Cheap Opera Tickets No Use Cheap tickets to the Royal Opera House (see our story) will do little to encourage engagement with the arts from the less well off, according to the Institute for Public Policy Research (ippr). In a new book to be published next month (Mon 3 May), ippr research says such schemes are more likely to encourage the middle class to go more often, rather than bringing in a wider audience. Ian Kearns, ippr Associate Director, said, "If the arts are to tackle the poverty of aspiration which many people experience they need to do far more than offer a limited number of cheap tickets on a first come first served basis. Research shows that cost is not the major limiting factor. “It would be far better for the Opera House to give away tickets to community groups in deprived areas and to arrange trips for lower socio-economic groups outside of London.” The Royal Opera House is offering 100 top price tickets every Monday for half the season for £10. The seats will be sold one and a half hours before the performance and is sponsored by foreign exchange company Travelex. The cheap seats represent a saving of up to £165. The last train to Newcastle on a Monday night leaves at 22:00 and gets in at 01:51. So not only would you need to leave work early, travel down in the hope you'd get a ticket, but you'd also need to leave early to get home in the early hours of Tuesday morning. A return train ticket costs £85 and a night in a Covent Garden hotel costs £125. Total cost £230. ippr's For Art's Sake: Society and the Arts in the 21st Century, says that business should see support for the arts as part of the Corporate Social Responsibility Agenda. Currently business support is often either through sponsorship a means of marketing and brand promotion - as with the Royal Opera House and Travelex - or business bringing artists into their company to deliver courses or for their staff. According to a 2001 Arts Council survey those who don't regularly attend arts events (predominately lower social class) lack of interest was the main reason given for non-attendance at cultural events (39%), lack of time was second (33%) with cost third (25%). In 2001 (the latest stats available) only 4% of lower social classes went to the opera compared to 16% higher social classes. For Art's Sake: Society and the Arts in the 21st Century is published on Monday 3 May 2004. To order a copy call Central Books on 0845 4589910 / fax: 0845 4589912 / www.centralbooks.com Please note that all three Archive indices are very long and will therefore take some time to download.
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