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AboutI am a first-year Master’s student in Arts Administration at the University of Oregon.  For this project, I looked at six music venues in Eugene, Oregon. I framed attributes of the venues in the larger context of an audience member’s live music experience and a venue’s potential contribution to this experience. I also conducted an informal survey about what made respondents’ favorite concerts so special. Additionally, I looked at models that increase or subvert traditional modes of participation at a live concert. Finally, I drew some conclusions concerning how a venue might increase or retain their audience base by bearing some of these considerations in mind.

About

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Eugene VenuesEugene and its surrounding area is blessed with having many options for seeing live music. The venues I chose to profile for this project are: Luckey’s, WOW Hall, Cuthbert Amphitheatre, McDonald Theatre, Hult Center for the Performing Arts, and Cozmic Pizza. I chose these because of their variety in programming, demographic served, size, and building type. I also chose them based on their popularity; as a new resident of Eugene, I have heard more buzz about shows at these venues than many others found in the Venue Guide. My objective was to investigate audience engagement in these six select venues by gathering and analyzing staff perspectives and making my own personal observations, when possible.

Eugene Venues

Cozmic

Hult Center

Kesey Enterprises

Luckey’s

WOW Hall

best show everHome Eugene

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CozmicI attended a performance at Cozmic on November 17th, 2012. Celebrate Africa was an all-day event, its programming taking place at both Cozmic and the University of Oregon. At Cozmic, events included a marimba class, live music and dance performances, and a Fair Trade Goods Sale, where local nonprofits with connections to Africa sold their wares. This was more of a festival than a concert, and by its very nature required the direct engagement of audience. The event was well attended; at about 8 pm I would estimate approximately 150 attendees. I saw two bands during the evening: Denbaya Drum and Dance and The Solutions. Throughout both performances, I saw many patrons dance and commune with friends. It was the most demonstrated sense of community I’ve seen at any event I’ve attended in Eugene in the short time I’ve lived here.

Cozmic

Cozmic

Hult Center

Kesey Enterprises

Luckey’s

WOW Hall

best show everHome Eugene

VenuesBest Shows Ever

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ReferencesCozmic

Hult Center

Kesey Enterprises

Luckey’s

WOW Hall

Hult CenterThe Hult, as it is known around Eugene, houses two seating-only theaters: the larger Silva Concert Hall (capacity 2455) and the smaller Soreng Theater (capacity 498).  The Hult opened in 1982 and today hosts more than 700 events and activities per year. The Soreng and Silva are home to performances by the Hult’s six resident companies: Eugene Ballet Company, Eugene Concert Choir, Eugene Opera, Eugene Symphony, Oregon Bach Festival, and The Shedd Institute. Indeed, during the month of December 2012, 23 of the 27 total performances were courtesy of one of the resident companies. Eugene’s dance and classical music groups’ performances are the Hult’s bread and butter, but upcoming performances at the Silva and Soreng also include acts like comedian Robin Williams, Broadway musical Rock of Ages, and the Monterey Jazz Festival Tour. Artists such as Ray Charles and Clay Aiken have performed at the Hult, but the venue seems to have moved away from booking large musical acts such as these in recent years.

Hult Center

best show everHome Eugene

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ReferencesCozmic

Hult Center

Kesey Enterprises

Luckey’s

WOW Hall

Kesey Enterprises: Cuthbert Amphitheatre and McDonald TheatreIn discussing differences between the Cuthbert Amphitheatre and McDonald Theatre, Cami White of Kesey Enterprises explained that McDonald Theatre books bands with a growing following, bands she considers more “up and coming.” The McDonald holds 1300 people as opposed to Cuthbert’s 5000. Citing the band Pretty Lights, she noted that in a few cases, bands that played at the McDonald ended up gaining a larger fan base locally, and were able to be booked on a subsequent tour at the Cuthbert. White said going to a show at the McDonald is a stop for people who are perhaps also going out for dinner or drinks, as opposed to concerts at the Cuthbert, which are more of a destination event.

Kesey Enterprises

best show everHome Eugene

VenuesBest Shows Ever

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ReferencesCozmic

Hult Center

Kesey Enterprises

Luckey’s

WOW Hall

Luckey’sI attended a concert at Luckey’s on November 10th, 2012. Luckey’s has pool and darts, and on this night, there were continual pool games going. In addition, TVs and tables (as opposed to a dance floor) arguably took the focus away from the music; the audience seemed split between those engaged in their pool games and conversations and those who gave the music their full attention. However, that Luckey’s has options for activities, a low-key, comfortable environment, and a small cover charge makes it an attractive evening destination and a great place for a patron to discover a new (local or otherwise) band. I felt welcomed and included at Luckey’s, regardless of my taste in each band playing (I did enjoy the band Eighteen Individual Eyes greatly). Both the long history of the bar and the pride the staff clearly takes in it likely contributed to this feeling.

Luckey’s

best show everHome Eugene

VenuesBest Shows Ever

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ReferencesCozmic

Hult Center

Kesey Enterprises

Luckey’s

WOW Hall

WOW HallI attended an hour-long volunteer orientation at the venue on November 14th, and put my new skills to use at as Box Office Assistant (aka wrist stamper) at a concert on November 20th.  Lost Lander, Laura Gibson, and Typhoon played. The capacity of WOW is 299 occupants (plus another 60 in the basement bar), and on the night that I attended, I would estimate approximately 200 attendees. I observed that the guest list was enormous as I stamped wrists. There were the requisite guests of the evening’s performing acts as well as press guests, but most of the comps were volunteer or staff. At WOW Hall, volunteers get into the whole night for free if they complete a three-hour “show shift” that evening. I would surmise that volunteer attendees feel more engaged or invested in the shows they attend than the average attendee, because they have a deeper commitment to, and understanding of, what it takes to put on a show at the venue.

WOW Hall

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Best Shows EverI solicited feedback from friends and family on facebook and via email about their favorite concert experiences. I asked them to consider what factors influenced the experience, paying special attention what effect, if any, the venue had.

Survey Roundup:

•15 self-selected respondents•venues ranged widely in capacity from 30 people (backyard) to 23,000 (coliseum)•wide variety in musical genres represented: psychedelic rock, r and b, opera, classical, bluegrass, indie rock, pop, folk, and electronic.

The common thread that I extracted from the fifteen respondents’ accounts of their favorite concert was connection. A sense of intimacy was crucial whether the venue was large or small, and could have been fostered by the artist, venue, audience members, or most often, a combination of all three.

Best Shows Ever

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TransmediationsIn addition to examples of the more interactive or participatory live concert experiences I have explored in the Venues portion of this site, I have compiled a list of some models outside of Eugene below.

Transmediations

best show everHome Eugene

VenuesBest Shows Ever

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AnalysisIt seems that it is now up to venues to create opportunities for audience members to participate more deeply in the shows. A venue can do this by creating a warm, inviting atmosphere that facilitates a more meaningful experience for a concertgoer, allowing them to connect more deeply to the music, or invites the concertgoer’s participation through the use of some of the tools (many Internet-assisted) I’ve looked at in this guide.  A venue’s collaborations with other (especially nonprofit) organizations, as well as interdisciplinary shows that involve multiple art forms, can also increase an audience member’s level of engagement at a concert. A venue should consider how it can increase an audience member’s personal investment in the venue itself.  There are many possibilities to consider. As Pitts (2005) notes, “Individual experience is at the heart of a meaningful concert experience” (p. 269). Ultimately, the responsibility does not just fall on the venue, but on what the patron brings to the event as well as, of course, the attitude, audience interaction level, and performing ability of the artist(s). When all factors converge in an ideal way for an audience member, the concert might become their best show ever.

Analysis

best show everHome Eugene

VenuesBest Shows Ever

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ReferencesArticles Referenced:

Kourlas, G. (2011, April 11). Song-and-dance man shows his two sides. New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/02/arts/dance/steven-rekers-people-get-ready-review.html?_r=4&

Jenkins, H. (2007, March 22).Transmedia storytelling 101 . Retrieved from http://henryjenkins.org/2007/03/transmedia_storytelling_101.htmlhttp://ml.oxfordjournals.org/content/86/2/257.short

Pitts, S. (2005). What makes an audience? Investigating the roles and experiences of listeners at a chamber music festival. Arts and letters, 86(2), 257-269. doi: 10.1093/ml/gci035

References