Theatre and concert audiences increasing

The number of visits to performances by the performing arts was 7 percent higher in 2001 than in 2000, at 15.5 million. The increase was larger than that in the previous year.

The number of performances rose by nearly 4 percent in 2001 to 41 thousand, pushing up the average audience per performance from 367 in 2000 to 378 in 2001.

Performing arts: audiences and performances

Music attracts most visitors

Of all the disciplines, music concerts attract the largest total audience (5.8 million), followed by music theatre. These two disciplines also have the largest audience per performance on average. The average audience for a music concert is 476, for music theatre it is 641. The average audience for a theatre performance is lower, at 174.

Audiences and performances per discipline, 2001

Most performances in the west and south of the country

The provinces of North and South Holland account for more than half of the total attendance of performing arts. Another 20 percent of the total audience attend performances in North Brabant or Limburg. Attendance rose most strongly in South Holland, North Brabant and Friesland in 2001.

Performing arts audiences per province, 2001

Vincent van Polanen Petel