Artists, theatre owners confront dire cost-of-living spending slump leaving industry on the brink

Aussie artists are in a struggle for survival.

The first punch was Covid and now the country’s rolling cost-of-living crisis has pushed consumers to pull back their entertainment spend on everything from music festivals and comedy gigs to live theatre and cinemas.

Brisbane Arts Theatre executive director Blake Young feels the sting of retreating audiences every month.

“The business side of the arts has always been incredibly difficult and it’s just making that harder,” he told NewsWire.

“When we opened up again from Covid, things bounced back a bit but they have never returned to pre-Covid levels.

“With our theatre company we’ve got certain programs we do each year that have a consistently good attendance base.

“But those certain things that were reliable are now less reliable.

“We are absolutely re-evaluating our business.”

New research from comparison website Finder, exclusively shared with NewsWire, shows a dramatic spending slump on artistic experiences in 2024.

Some 24 per cent of Australians have avoided live theatre, the data shows, while 36 per cent have passed up a concert, 27 per cent have skipped a music festival and 22 per cent have missed a comedy show.

“Declining disposable incomes is to blame, with Aussie households having to prioritise food and electricity over arts and entertainment,” Finder money expert Rebecca Pike said.

“The cost of music and comedy shows can be quite cost prohibitive when you’re struggling to pay your mortgage.”

The carnage of the slowdown is everywhere.

Last week, the family-friendly Harvest Rock festival in South Australia announced its closure for 2024, following a sweep of music festivals closing down on cost burdens, including the iconic Splendour in the Grass, one of Australia’s premier outdoor festival events.

In April, a report from the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance, a union representing creatives, revealed nearly half of working musicians are making less than $6000 a year.

Some 64 per cent earned $14,999 or less, the survey of 550 musicians found, A majority need to take on multiple jobs to survive.

Folk musician Kimberley Wheeler said she was now more dependent than ever on streams of income outside of music.

“Once I would have derived half my earnings from music, but rising living costs and a drop in performance fees has forced me to pivot to other work outside of music,” she said after the release of the report.

“It’s a trade-off I wish I didn’t have to make, but it’s now harder than ever to make a decent living as a working musician.”

“It is not properly acknowledged that what we do is an occupation.”

Mr Blake said his theatre, which has operated since 1936, was forced to sell the Petrie Terrace venue it had owned since the 1960s just to “stay alive”.

“That kept us alive because we had that asset to sell,” he said.

“We are no longer a theatre company that owns a venue.

“We are a theatre company that has to hire venues.”

Martha Lott, the artistic director and founder of Adelaide’s Holden Street Theatres, said pre-Covid she would put on 40-50 shows a year.

Now, it’s about 30.

She’s also had to lower ticket prices to get people through the door.

Pre-Covid, ticket prices had edged up to about $38.

Now they’re between $25 and $28.

“We have reduced the cost of the tickets for our next show to below the concession rate for a normal show so people can afford to come,” she told NewsWire.

“It is a better thing for us to sell out at $25 than have 20 per cent of the house at $38.

“And to have an audience for the artists to play to.

“You don’t want to play to five people.”

She said it was an “incredibly difficult” time for artists and performers.

“Art hasn’t really been seen as a valid industry and career,” she said.

“It seems there’s an expectation for artists to do things for nothing. And it’s incredibly hard to live on that.”

Federal and state governments have developed a patchwork of policies to prop up the ailing sector.

As part of the 2024-25 budget, the federal government established a $7.7m grant program called Revive Live, which funds activities that support established live music venues or established music festivals.

South Australian Arts Minister Andrea Michaels, meanwhile, spruiked the more than $70m in additional funding her government has allocated to the arts since winning power in 2022.

“We’ve also invested an additional $2.3m in the Adelaide Festival, which this year had a record number of free events to ensure everyone could experience the magic of the festival,” she said.

“Arts and cultural experiences are incredibly important for people’s wellbeing and for the livelihoods of our state’s artists, musicians and creatives and so as a government, we are committed to ensuring that everyone has access to arts and culture and to supporting the arts industry.

Ms Lott said she understood “completely” why cost-conscious Australians had tightened up their spending, but warned young creatives needed public support to develop and grow.

“Some people prefer to stay home but at the end of the day, TV, radio, internet, all of that content is driven by artists, creatives,” she said.

“If you support a young artist in Adelaide, putting on a show in a small venue, on the fringe of the city, that artist could be the next movie star you see on Netflix.

“It’s bigger and broader than people might think it is.”

Mr Young also warned the pandemic had entrenched an attachment to home entertainment, which was disastrous for the long-term health of the arts.

“Covid changed people’s behaviour, they don’t want to make plans too far ahead,” he said.

“But that can be very difficult for an arts organisation because you can’t forward-plan.

“You’re getting to opening night and the ticket sales are looking bleak.

“What has happened is people have been stuck at home and they’ve realised how much entertainment is available online.

“They’ve changed their habits and they’ve realised they can manage it.”

Mr Young said the richness of human interaction, and the essence of what is “real” in the world, was at risk.

“We’re trying to remind people the world is changing,” he said.

“The digital world is changing, AI is growing.

“Anything you look at on television, on social media, there’s a doubt that what you’re looking at is real.

“We’re trying to remind people that live theatre is the only place you can go where everything is real.”

“There’s nothing fake.

“Everything you are watching is live and it’s human.”