Tim Brinkman explains why he sees audience development as a way of looking at all artistic work in the light of where it may take the audience. 
A fourth way
Here are three typical attitudes to the important subject of audience development work:
1. The Commercial Theatre Manager ? ?It?s a bit of a luxury, but it helps put bums on seats.?
Not the thing to say at your annual review with the Arts Council, but a position that you could defend in a financial crisis. There have been a few such crises in recent years, and usually education and community work are early casualties in cuts. That?s easy to understand, as audience development work isn?t usually the motive of artists involved. For this hard-nosed beast audience development is measured through the box office. There is a purity of the view about this ? ?our audiences are growing, so it is working?, but the Commercial Manager is intent on selling, not developing.
2. The Socially Conscious Theatre Manager ? ?It?s the lifeblood of the subsidised theatre which is all about social inclusion ? it?s our job to involve those who wouldn?t otherwise get into the arts, and this is the way to do it.?
Sounds great, doesn?t it? Do say it at your annual review with the Arts Council! No one wants the arts to be an elite pursuit enjoyed by the wealthy few, but I wonder if audience development is the right starting point. Putting aside the fact that there?s a patronising flavour to this (?you poor folks can be saved by the power of art as long as you learn about it first?), how about attracting diverse audiences through the power of artistic choice? Some of the most striking and famous successes in this field have involved Shakespeare productions at the Old Vic, or new plays at Stratford East.
3. The Serious Theatre Manager ? ?It?s about enhancing our audience - education work can add quality to the lives of those involved.?
Anyone who has taken part in a successful workshop project knows in their bones that arts education can be an end in itself. Great projects are life-affirming, uplifting and creative. You can change lives through participatory arts activities, and there are artists for whom this is the point of their creative activity. This is an approach to be undertaken with great care, because it can lead to audience development activity far removed from the work on stage, in which case the organisation can split.
Often arguments boil down to these three points of view. But I would like to suggest a fourth way of looking at it.
My problem with these three models is that they place audience development work alongside the performance programme as an associated but separate set of activities. Often a theatre?s participatory work is undertaken by a dedicated department ? that?s the case here at Hall for Cornwall ? sometimes by a dedicated company of artists. We set objectives for these groups and create work plans. The risk is that they generate a momentum of their own and head off in a direction different from the performance programme.
So - how about another way of looking at it? Audience Development isn?t a set of activities but a methodology. It is a way of looking at all artistic work in the light of where it may take our audience.
This may seem facile, but taking such a view has far reaching consequences. Artistic policy and mission statements must incorporate the concept of audience development; as a result business plans must reflect such thinking. Directors become open to query about artistic choice in a new light. It also means that the work of education and community workers at our venues needs to be much more closely managed ? a position neither side may find comfortable. This position also challenges the funding authorities who all too often have funds available for laudable social purposes, but are starved of ways to increase support of art.
So what are the advantages? You can do anything, as long as you link development of the audience to the performance programme. This could involve talks, workshops, productions in other spaces, commissions, creating regular groups, master classes, or programme developments. It could involve visual art or literature work.
Most people I know haven?t gained their love of theatre through a workshop; most can remember a show that changed their lives and the feeling it gave them. By thinking about it all in the round we are able to argue for approaches and funds to support audience development and performance together.
Please say this at your annual review!
Tim Brinkman is Director of Hall for Cornwall w: http://www.hallforcornwall.co.uk