Statistics released by Deutsche Bühnenverein, the German association of theatres and orchestras, show a significant increase in the number of publicly funded events held across the country. The number of such shows increased from 13,229 in 2014-15 to 14,519 in the 2015-16 season – a rise of 10%.
The total number of visitors to publicly owned theatres and orchestras remained steady at 21 million, while 11 million attended events at private theatres. Meanwhile, the number of people attending children’s performances rose from 2,842,130 to 2,981,236 across 14,400 performances nationwide.
“Children and youth theatre performances are really great in the context of urban society,” said Deutsche Bühnenverein managing director Marc Grandmontagne. “Theatres and orchestras are beginning to notice the failure of music and art education in schools and fill that gap.”
As for employment, the sector now has 44,237 permanent workers. It is subsidised by €2.5bn of public money – an increase of 3% on the previous season.
