The table illustrates how adults in the UK responded to a 20-year study about the reasons why they attended arts events, including seeing a specific performer or artist, accompanying children, attending special occasions, or going for work/business.
Overall, the main reason attending arts events throughout the period was a desire to see a specific performer/ artist, whereas accompanying children and going for work/business purposes showed a steady increase. Although attending a special occasion or celebration was one of the most popular reasons in earlier years, it declined noticeably in recent years and became the least important reason for UK adults.
The percentage of people attending to see a performer or artist has remained relatively stable over the period, starting at around 58% and slightly decreasing to 56% today, remaining the major reason for attending art events. The proportion of people accompanying children has followed an upward trend, rising from about 9% twenty years ago to 24% today. Meanwhile, attendance for work or business purposes has shown a slight increase, from 6% 20 years ago to just over 10% today. In contrast, people attending for a particular occasion or celebration gradually fell from 27% 20 years ago to 20% 10 years ago, before dropping dramatically to 9% in recent years.