In Friday’s (1/30) Philadelphia Inquirer, Stephen Salisbury reports, “Arts groups in the Philadelphia area are beginning to feel the bite of the fiscal crisis, but a new survey demonstrates surprising resilience in ticket sales, subscriptions, and seasonal memberships at regional venues. There has, however, been a significant decline in governmental and corporate arts support over the last six months, the survey shows. Income from investments has also taken a dive … Conducted by the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance, the survey, to be released today, is the first to take a broad look at how the region’s cultural organizations are faring in the worsening financial climate. … Overall, the survey of 92 area organizations of varying sizes and from a broad range of disciplines reported that earned income had increased or remained relatively flat at most responding institutions. Just-released national figures show similar stability in earned revenues in recent months. About 67 percent of the groups in the cultural alliance survey reported stable or increasing ticket sales, and 79 percent reported stable or increasing memberships or subscriptions. Investment income has proven more difficult, with 59 percent of the groups reporting a significant drop in such funds.”
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