From the Field

Most Vibrant Cities in 2022

SMU DataArts recently released updated data from the Arts Vibrancy Index comparing the level of demand and supply of arts as well as government support across 900 communities in the United States. The index is accompanied by an Arts Vibrancy Map that allows explorers to visualize the data across the nation. The index lists the most vibrant cities by size: large, medium and small. Since last reported in 2020, four cities are new on the list and five return after an absence of five years.

This is the seventh iteration of this project. To create the index, arts supply is measured as total arts providers, demand is total nonprofit arts dollars, and public support is state and federal arts funding. The previous 2020 report can be found here.

Theatre Facts 2021

The Theatre Communications Group, in collaboration with SMU DataArts, has produced the 42nd annual Theatre Facts 2021 report. This article examines changes in the nonprofit theatre sector’s finances, attendance and operations during fiscal year 2021, offering information on the sector’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Sharp cuts in total expenses and substantial increases in government contributions kept the field afloat in 2020 and 2021; however, these favorable financial trends only conceal the unavoidable reality of reduced programming and audience size during the period, as evidenced by an 88% decline in total ticket income from 2020 to 2021.

The Art of Economic Justice

Springboard for the Arts has just released The Art of Economic Justice, an impact report on Springboard for the Arts’s guaranteed income pilot in St. Paul, Minnesota. The program provided 25 artists, selected from two ethnically diverse and economically underserved neighborhoods, with a monthly payment of $500 for 18 months. Working with the University of Pennsylvania Center for Guaranteed Income Research, Springboard for the Arts found that the supplemental income positively impacted financial stability, long-term planning and increased resiliency, as well as challenging exclusionary art practices.

Impact of South Carolina’s Arts Related Economic Cluster

The South Carolina Commission on the Arts, in collaboration with Joseph C. Von Nessen, Ph.D., at the Darla Moore School of Business, has published a new economic impact study on the arts in South Carolina. The study of direct, indirect and induced economic impacts finds that total economic impact of the arts related cluster of industries is over $14 billion and supports nearly 124,000 jobs in the state. This is an increase of 45% for economic impact and 7.5% for jobs and since the last economic impact study was conducted in 2018.