Empathize
For the first week the focus was to research deeper into why people usually visit the theatre, what their motivation is in general. As a person who rarely goes to watch plays and does not know a lot of people who frequently visit the theatre I consider this an important part of the research we have to start with.
Notes: The first part of the research is based on the information I found in an academic article, published by University of Leeds: https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/29031133.pdfhttps://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/29031133.pdf
1. Despite the study these finding are not concrete and motivations of audience remains unclear
2. Based on a study from 1995. – people connect not only on the play itself but mostly on shared cultural values regarding common for “high” / “legitimate culture”
3. Explored different types of theatre – goers:
Respective motivations: Underlying values:
Escapism and entertainment Hedonism
Edutainment Social conformism
Personal enrichment Personal development
Social hedonism Communal pleasure
4. 2003 research shows shared experience and social engagement as core motivations
5. Borgmann’s notion of “focal practices – those pursuits which bring an engagement of mind and body and a centering power – and the way in which such practices create shared meaning and communities of celebration” (Arai and Pedlar 2003)
6. Leisure experience criteria:
- anatomy (nature, location, and duration of the event); moods, emotions, and feelings.
involvement; cognitive engagement (ideas, beliefs, and meanings); sense of freedom and control (Getz 2007).
Findings, based on Table 1: Morris Hargreaves identified four main drivers for the visitors' drivers of attendance - starting with social and progressing to intellectual, emotional and lastly - spiritual. As for the spiritual type of engagement it is found that for galleries and museums, visitors seek a feeling of disconnection from the world outside, type of escapism from the routine by engaging in an activity with one of the drivers shown in the table above.
Notes, from a conducted study:
- many leisure seekers want to be challenged and reflected the presence of cognitive and aesthetic growth in the various benefits models
- many interviewees declared a desire to be challenged artistically, emotionally, intellectually
and ethically, using adjectives such as “uncomfortable”, “dangerous” and “risky”;
Figure 2. can be especially useful when thinking how to conceptualize a memorable and impactful experience. ''The overriding message that echoed consistently throughout the interviews was the assertion that theatre is live, dynamic and about people. In the words of one respondent: “It’s done live, in front of you, every night, and you’re part of it, you’re part of the experience with the actors, dancers, orchestras, whoever it is.”
Despite the recent technological developments - modern 3D cinema, Virtual reality experiences, there are still people that intentionally choose theatre as a leisure activity, so maybe combining it with something innovative can lead to a great experience for both new people being introduced to the theatre and provide something new and exciting for regular visitors. And that would also partly put the team, developing the product, in search of how younger audience can be introduced to the theatre experience. Starting research with factors that affect the experience served as a good general knowledge. Based on a Table 3 from survey conveyed in July 2023 by Cultural Participation Monitor:
The table above shows that in those theaters that attract younger audience, a combination of contemporary topics and aesthetics is being used to achieve a pleasant experience for the youngers participants. Actions like socializing are preferred, compared to organized joined experiences such as group singing and dancing.
Another discovery is that people up until 24 prefer to share live cultural experience with similar- aged people, since they would like to be active in interactions.
In general, with age interests change and also in a world like todays, where culture changes constantly a task to keep all theater - goers interest can be a challenging but not an impossible task. Considering all motivators, reading more studies and conducting research will definitely be next steps for the team.
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