I came across a fun project today called The Bicycle Opera Project.
The Bicycle Opera Project brings Canadian contemporary opera to communities across Ontario by bicycle!
They also have a specific mission:
We bring Canadian music to people who might otherwise have little opportunity to hear it, and work to close the distance between audiences and opera singers through performance in intimate spaces. The project focuses on operatic repertoire that deals with contemporary issues relevant to all audiences. Our scenes are sung in English (with one in French) so that audiences can more readily relate to the material.
This is a fantastic example of creating a niche arts company. In order for this group to even consider an adventure of this nature, they all had to change their ideas about how opera is supposed to be performed.
Please do use this example and some of the other wacky ideas that are starting to be presented, as a chance for you to change your mind too. In order to reach new audiences, and viewing that the same old is not working to do this, it would be best to consider getting a little crazy and becoming something incredibly amazing.
As I mentioned before, stop and consider what is being shared. What is going viral these days? What types of events have a huge buzz? What kinds of performances are reaching the biggest audiences?
I think you will find that it is the extraordinary that reaches out to people and reaches into people as well. You may not want to change your traditions, but if you can spare some change, it could make a world of difference for the arts.
Have you seen any amazingly different arts programs and presentations lately? Please share with us in the comments section!
Cheers to happy and loyal audiences,
Shoshana
Shoshana Fanizza
Audience Development Specialists
https://www.buildmyaudience.com
“Never treat your audience as customers, always as partners.”
~James Stewart
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[…] I came across a fun project today called The Bicycle Opera Project. The Bicycle Opera Project brings Canadian contemporary opera to communities across Ontario by bicycle! They also have a specific mission: "We bring Canadian music to people who might otherwise have little opportunity to hear it, and work to close the distance between audiences and opera singers through performance in intimate spaces. The project focuses on operatic repertoire that deals with contemporary issues relevant to all audiences. Our scenes are sung in English (with one in French) so that audiences can more readily relate to the material." This is a fantastic example of creating a niche arts company. In order for this group to even consider an adventure of this nature, they all had to change their ideas about how opera is supposed to be performed. […]