Two weeks ago, I facilitated a panel on "A Changing America" at the Arts Presenters conference in NYC. I haven't mastered taking notes whieel facilitating, but I did jot down four practical "best practices" from the concert presenters on the panel and in the audience:
1. The Ring Effect. Frequently, traditional ticket subscribers and regular theater-goers will buy up the best front row and center seats. Audience members from some cultural groups are more likely to buy tickets at the door as "walk ups." In some settings, this creates a ring effect, with frequent (and often white) audience members in the middle and front, and audience members from a world music artist's home country in a ring around them. To create a more integrated experience for all, consider holding a certain number of those middle and front row tickets for the last minute walk ups.
2. Multi-lingual Introductions. A simple practice that welcomes a more diverse audience is to present the concert opening and introductions in multiple languages, taking into consideration the language of the artist performing as well as other languages spoken by members of your community.
3. Partners on Stage. If you are working with different community and cultural groups, you can bring them on stage for the introductions and acknowledgments giving a more diverse face to the presenting organization and community.
4. Cultural Dynamics of Security and Ushers. If you expect an audience to respond differently than a typical performance (such as dancing in aisles, spraying performers with money, etc.), meet with security and ushers in advance to let them know what to expect, and make a plan for how to respond. That way conflicts that could take on a culturally insensitive feeling can be avoided altogether.
