Chapel Hill and Carrboro arts venues see steady numbers

Sophomore Em Wilson went by herself to to see her favorite band, Stars, at Cat’s Cradle during her freshman year. At the show, another concert attendee stepped on her backpack, cracking the case of her laptop.

But the night took a turn for the better when Wilson was dancing and singing along to the last song and the lead singer decided to throw a drum stick into the crowd — which landed right on top of Wilson’s backpack.

“I can listen to them all day in bed, while ordering take-out, but going to that show was magical,” Wilson said.

“Staying at home is great but there’s more to life than that.”

But many Americans don’t seem to agree with Wilson. In September, the National Endowment for the Arts released its 2012 Survey of Public Participation in the Arts, which found that most people would rather watch live theater performances in the comfort of their own homes and look at photos of art on the internet instead of in person. But the arts venues in Chapel Hill and Carrboro might be an exception to this nationwide trend.

A community experience

According to the NEA’s survey, festivals have become promising entry points into the arts. One in four respondents aged 18 to 24 said that they have attended a festival in 2012, an increase from 22 percent in 2008.

The Carrboro Film Festival, which expanded from a one-day to a two-day event for its 2013 festival Nov. 23 and 24, sold about 350 tickets in 2012 compared to the 500 tickets it sold in 2013.

Tim Scales — founder of Triangle-based arts marketing company Wagon Wheel Arts, which worked with the festival — also said people come to the festival to engage with others in the community who care a lot about film.

“With something like film, there’s no reason why you can’t watch that on your computer at home by yourself,” Scales said.

“What makes the festival special is this feeling of participating in this large group watching these films, together and with the community, is drastically different than watching it by yourself at home. People come for the experience.”

Go to the theater

The NEA’s survey also saw a 9 percent rate of decline from 2008 to 2012 in musical play attendance. Non-musical play attendance also dropped to 12 percent rate over the same period.

The ArtsCenter in Carrboro has not seen the same drop.

From August 2012 to August 2013, the ArtsCenter has seen almost 56,890 people visit for both theatrical performances and for classes. Numbers from earlier years are not on file, but Executive Director Art Menius said he believes this is an increase.

“For concerts and performances, I believe a lot of the attraction is the intimacy of the Earl and Rhoda Wynn Theater — it sounds great, it’s easy to see the stage,” Menius said.

Experience the art

The NEA’s survey also reported that 21 percent of adults visited an art museum or gallery in 2012, which is a decrease from 23 percent in 2008.

Torey Mishoe, manager of FRANK Gallery, said she and the gallery members have been working to revamp their marketing techniques by using social media to draw in more visitors.

The gallery also keeps its student demographic in mind when it is selecting the next year’s gallery shows at an annual board meeting.

In the past year, the gallery has seen an uptick in the number of people visiting the gallery. As of September 2013, the gallery has seen almost 9,100 visitors this year. Mishoe said at that time last year, the gallery had only seen about 8,000 visitors.

“It’s a struggle I think, and I think a lot of people are struggling with (getting people into the gallery),” she said.

But Emily Bowles, the Ackland Art Museum’s spokeswoman, said the museum has seen a slow increase in attendance over the years.

Bowles said in 2012 the museum saw about 55,400 visitors, up from about 54,000 in 2011. She said the attendance has been gradually increasing since the 1990s.

Bowles said a lot can be learned and gained from visiting an art museum.

“You don’t have to come in knowing anything about art,” Bowles said.

“Because the Ackland has everything from ancient Egyptian to contemporary art, the chances of you finding something that you like or at least resonates with you are pretty high.”

arts@dailytarheel.com