Are your cultural events interactive? In 2023, that's not enough.

Are your cultural events interactive? In 2023, that's not enough.

Today’s consumers are demanding more.

If consumers are going to spend money on your cultural event, it has to be bigger and better than watching a Youtube video, which they can do at home for free. It has to be participatory.

"Cultural institutions argue that their programs provide unique cultural and civic value, but increasingly people have turned to other sources of entertainment, learning, and dialogue,” writes Nina Simon in The Participatory Museum. “They share their artwork, music, and stories with each other on the web. They participate in politics and volunteer in record numbers. They even read more. But they don't attend museum exhibits and performances like they used to.”

An interactive experience doesn’t provide the meaning and the value that today’s consumers are seeking.

Thanks to technology, consumers have become accustomed to participatory experiences. In 2023, they want to do more than just "attend" cultural events and institutions, says Nina. Being invited to interact by listening or watching isn’t enough. Just like on TikTok, “they expect the ability to discuss, share, and remix what they consume.”

Rather than inviting attendees to merely watch or listen, a participatory event invites the consumer to be part of something. This means being invited to have an impact on the outcome or on the experience itself.

“In a good participatory experience there's a lot of meaning,” says Nina, “because you're being invited to help create something or to share your story in a way that's additive, and cumulatively makes a better result."

Here’s what that looks like in the real world:

Example #1

In a production of A Midsummer Night's Dream, a National Theatre London cast performed in the round, with audiences right at their feet. During one scene, they appropriated the cell phone of an audience member.

They utilized the phone seamlessly throughout the scene, which culminated in a cast "selfie" and drew joyous laughter from ticketbuyers.

Example #2

An experiential concert created by Salon Séance summoned the spirit of composer Olivier Messiaen. Music, storytelling, sound design, and participatory ritual channeled his story, illuminating how he transcended his captivity in a Nazi camp.

After an origami workshop, audience members were invited to place their origami cranes on the stage when inspired to do so during the performance. Threaded together, they became a symbol of hope and peace.

Example #3

The Denver Art Museum's exhibition of psychedelic rock music posters included an invitation for visitors to make their own. Providing graphics for visitors to rearrange and remix into their own poster designs created a structure that gave visitors the confidence to participate.

When their poster was complete, the visitor was given a printout, and was also invited to display a copy of their poster in the gallery.

Creating truly participatory events, Nina Simon writes, requires a “genuine respect for and interest in the experiences, stories, and abilities of visitors." How can you tap into the stories of your ticket buyers? Here’s one idea to get you started:

Example #4

At the beginning of an orchestra concert, concert goers are invited to share, open-mic style, stories about a deceased loved one's life.

They were prompted in advance to bring photos that illustrate their loved one's life; these photos are then displayed in slide show format on a screen during the orchestra's performance, so that concert goers can commemorate their loved ones—and process emotion— together.

The changes demanded of cultural organizations by today’s rapidly changing world can feel overwhelming and exhausting. Here’s the key: Start small, and don’t be afraid to experiment. Embrace failure as a learning opportunity.

The best thing about shifting from an interactive to a participatory approach is this: It doesn’t need to cost much to execute—and it will add tremendous value for your target audiences and your community.

In other words, it will make them want to come back again.

“When people can actively participate with cultural institutions,” writes Nina Simon, “those places become central to cultural and community life [again].”

What participatory activities have you implemented at your cultural organization? I’d love to hear about it.