Could THIS mean more kids getting into theater?

Ok, bear with me.  I’m getting my Freakonomics on.

Freakonomics was a book published by “rogue economists” Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner who discovered the hidden reasons why things were the way they are.  And their hypotheses are shocking . . . like the relationship between the drop in crime and the legalization of abortion or how Real Estate Agents are like the KKK . . . and so on.

Their finds are out there, but they make you think.

I’m going to do my best PRE impersonation of The Stephens by giving you an idea of something happening right now . . . that could have an effect on our biz way down the timeline.

What is it?

Football.

Or actually, the lack of football.

According to this article, high school football participation rates “have declined nationwide in six of the last seven years and are down 2.5% overall since 2008-2009.”

I’m sure you’re not surprised. We live in the “health and safety” era.  We worry about what we eat.  We worry about how pure our bottled water is.  So of course we worry about putting our kids in some pads and a plastic helmet when a coach tells them, “Run into that other guy . . . really fast.”

And the tipping point for a dramatic drop in that participation may be last year’s movie, Concussion.

So all those dudes . . . with no place to go.

Surely some will go to other sports like soccer and golf (whose participation levels were up last year), but there’s also a chance that we can pull a High School Musical on some of these males, and get them into the theater . . . or anywhere in the arts.

If I were a high school drama teacher or an arts educator, or heck the dang NEA, I’d be looking for ways to promote what we do to all those kids and parents who may be looking for a safer extra curricular. A spotlight beats friday night lights any day.

(And I actually bet the chances of having a successful career as an actor are better than the chances of having a successful career as a football player!)

Check back in with this blog in 10 years to see if I was right. 🙂

 

(Got a comment? I love ‘em, so comment below! Email Subscribers, click here then scroll down to say what’s on your mind!)

– – – – –

FUN STUFF:

– Only 14 performances left of Daddy Long Legs.  Get your tickets today!  Click here.

– Only 14 days left to enter The Producer’s Perspective Tony Pool for a chance to win up to $1,000 in Broadway tickets!  Click here.

– Help Deaf West Theatre’s Spring Awakening perform on the Tonys!  15 days left to donate and $135,957 to go!  Click here to watch our cast and company tell you why it’s important for you to support our efforts.

 

Related Posts

Podcasting

Ken created one of the first Broadway podcasts, recording over 250 episodes over 7 years. It features interviews with A-listers in the theater about how they “made it”, including 2 Pulitzer Prize Winners, 7 Academy Award Winners and 76 Tony Award winners. Notable guests include Pasek & Paul, Kenny Leon, Lynn Ahrens and more.

LEARN MORE