NEA announces latest arts participation survey results

According to a take a view of by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), almost 40 percent of adults in the U or 81 million tribe attended at least one arts activity during the year. That's up from 76 million in the previous NEA head conducted in 1992.

Counting all art forms and all impressed signs of participation, 76 percent of adults, or 157 million family made the arts part of their lives during the review period. Nearly one-third of adults reported going to at least individual jazz, classical music, opera, musical, play or ballet performance, not including elementary or high seminary shows. About one-fourth of adults said they visited an art museum or art gallery. Forty percent reported personally performing or creating art, while more than half watched or listened to the arts upon television, radio, recorded media or the Internet.

Similar to patterns in previous observes women generally had higher attendance rates, particularly at musicals, arts and crafts fairs, and ballet performances. In 2002 women made up almost 70 percent of ballet audiences and about 60 percent of adults attending musicals, plays, and arts and crafts fairs. Among respondent arts attendance rose with age, education horizontal and income.

As with the adult population as a whole, arts attendees grew older between 1992 and 2002 For example, the median age of adults visiting art museums increased by dint of five years to reach 45 and the median age of opera attendees was 48 up from 45 With a median age of 49 classical music audience members were the oldest participants. Jazz concertgoer remained the youngest cluster with a median age of 43

For more information contact NEA at (202) 682-5570

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