Be Spectactive!: Towards the future of audience development in performing arts Preface

Nevertheless, audience development and audience engagement strategies have increasingly been integrated in a spontaneous way into the programming of theatres and festivals, even though with different results and interpretations. At the same time, individuals and communities have started demanding a more active role within the cultural sector, especially since technological and societal changes led to the rise of a new figure: the prosumer.

This is the context in which Be SpectACTive! has been framed, with a view to carry forward a vision of inclusive participation and active citizenship in the field of the performing arts.

ACTivating cultural audiences across Europe
Be SpectACTive! is a European project co-funded by Creative Europe 2014-2020 programme that places active spectatorship in performing arts at its heart. The 4-year initiative took root in 2015, drawing together 9 countries and 12 partners with the aim to develop new models and ideas of participation, accessibility, interaction and social cohesion between artists, audiences and cultural organisations.
The two types of partners involved in the project are respectively:

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  8 performing arts institutions – mainly theatres and festivals - committed to expanding and enhancing audience development activities. Participant organisations are: LIFT Festival (UK), Kulturno Drustvo B-51 (Slovenia), CapoTrave/Kilowatt Festival (Italy), Tanec Praha (Czech Republic), Bakelit Multi Art Center (Hungary), York Theatre Royal (UK), Radu Stanca (Romania) and Domino Udruge (Croatia).
  
• 
  3 research centres in charge of overall project monitoring and reporting. The three research centres are two universities – Universitat de Barcelona (Spain) and Université de Montpellier (France) – and one independent centre (Fondazione Fitzcarraldo, Italy).
  

In addition to these, the project involves the participation of Comune di San Sepolcro (Italy), a local government agency, which is lead partner of Be SpectACTive!.

1. 
   Participatory Programming. Throughout the whole duration of the programme, 30 participatory workshops with local audiences will be set up, involving more than 1.000 European citizens in artistic decision-making processes. Participants will thus select and programme 108 shows that will be finally performed in 8 different European cities.
   

2. 
   Creative residencies. This phase intends to connect audiences to artists' creative process through active participation in open rehearsals and other participatory activities. 12 companies will be working together with local audiences in 54 creative residencies, involving more than 150 artists during 500 days, in order to co-produce 3 live performances per year.
   

3. 
   Web platform. Artists will have the opportunity to upload performances specifically designed for web use on an online platform, thus facilitating cross-media communication and stimulating a debate with web users. Each video performance is produced after three 15-days creative residencies at three different partners' venues, involving audiences in co-production processes both online and offline. Moreover, through development of an online forum, professionals and communities will be able to meet in a virtual agora, where to discuss about artistic contents and to share viewpoints.
   

Furthermore, 4 international conferences - one per year - will be held with aims to share project progress; to connect practitioners, performers, cultural organisations and general public with an interest in the subject of active spectatorship; and to reflect on the present and future of audience development and audience engagement in performing arts.

The methodology chosen to carry on the overall evaluation and monitoring process is action research, which involves active participation in a change situation, whilst simultaneously conducting research. This approach is particularly suitable for Be SpectACTive! specific themes and purposes, inasmuch as it implies bringing about change in some community/organisation/program, along with increasing understanding on the part of both the researchers and the participants (in this case artists, cultural audiences, local communities...). However, limitations may come from the subjective viewpoint of the participative observer, thus requiring possible integration with other methodologies.

Besides evaluation, research partners are also responsible for supporting performing arts organisations involved in Be SpectACTive! throughout the learning process, by better addressing their activities and enabling inter-group dialogue.
Specific research goals for each line of action are the following:
1. Participatory Programming:

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  To analyze profile and performance of active spectators involved at different levels in the activities;
  
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  To shed light on the set of expectations (at the beginning of the process), personal perceptions and self-assessment (at the end of the process) of local spectators involved in the project;
  
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  To assess enhancement of audiences' capacity to understand/follow the artistic process;
  
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  To assess exchanges and levels of interaction/satisfaction from the artistic perspective;
  
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  To raise feedbacks about the effectiveness of the program from the organizational viewpoint.
  

2. Creative residencies:

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  To evaluate how artistic creation is modified through diverse interaction with audiences;
  
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  To assess to what extent participatory approaches affect and modify the modus operandi of professionals during artistic creation process;
  
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  To determine effects and changes on professionals' competencies and skills throughout the process;
  
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  To analyze audience attending the international debut shows (profile, diversification...);
  
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  To raise feedbacks about the effectiveness of the program from the organizational viewpoint.
  

3. Web platform:

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  To determine the effectiveness of the web platform;
  
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  To profile Internet audiences and comparing web users with off-line audiences' profiles;
  
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  To evaluate the quality of interaction and engagement within the platform;
  
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  To assess artistic impacts stemming from digital experiences.
  

Firstly, it has been noticed that different actions of the program present different rates of advancement, depending on a variety of factors:

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  Heterogeneity of the performing arts system (coexistence of well-structured organisations with others undergoing change or restructuring);
  
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  Difference in nature and attitude of the stakeholders, also in terms of dimension (different budget, staff and role within their environment);
  
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  Level of involvement by project partners with regard to Be SpectACTive! goals and objectives;
  
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  Degree of personalization of audience engagement actions and strategies;
  
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  Commitment to involving staff in decision making (delegated versus shared responsibilities);
  
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  Familiarity with tools for audience profiling.