Decline in Gate Receipts For 2012

Details

Carnival

Wednesday, 22 August 2012 02:30

By Everton Barnes

Antigua St. John’s - The Carnival Development Committee (CDC) recorded an overall decline in paid patrons attending the 2012 Carnival activities…although some shows recorded increases in attendance.

Head of the CDC’s Finance Committee and Business Development Manager at the National Festivals Office, Richard Apparicio, said there was an overall 4.8 per cent decline in paid patrons compared with last year.

He said the figures for 2011 show that 20,115 people paid to attend carnival events, compared with 19,144 for 2012. The gate receipts totaled $482,775 for 2012. In 2011, that figure amounted to $527,000 (Please note these figures are unaudited).

The government subsidises the festival to the tune of $2.5 million each year.

Apparicio said most carnival events recorded declines with the pageants - the Queen of Carnival Show and the Teen Splash recording the biggest decline of 26.8 percent overall. Overall attendance for these shows was 4,082 for 2011 compared with 3,135 for 2012. A closer look at the figures shows that for the Queen of Carnival Show 1,117 people paid to enter in 2011. This declined to 894 for 2012. For the Teen Splash, last year, 3,165 people bought tickets compared with 2,241 this year.

The Wadadli Calypso Monarch also recorded a decline. According to Apparicio, for the quarter-finals, semi-finals and the finals there was a decline of 6.3 per cent. The figures are 1,929 paid last year with a fall-off to 1,808 this year.

But the committee would be pleased to note that the LIME Party Monarch increased its attendance by 19.1 per cent. In 2011, 6,047 paid patrons attended compared with 7,200 this year>

Apparicio noted that there was also good news for pan enthusiasts as attendance at the Panorama was up this year when compared with last year. The overall attendance was up by 8 per cent with 981 paid patrons in 2011 jumping to 1,062 in 2012.

The CDC Finance official said the biggest increase in attendance was recorded for Carnival Monday and Tuesday with attendance over both days increasing from 1,939 in 2011 to 2,948 this year, an increase of 52 per cent.

Apparicio noted that the Queen of Carnival Pageant may have been affected by the threat of inclement weather this year. He also believes that rain affected the gate receipts for Carnival Monday and Tuesday for last year.

He said the CDC as well as the ministry responsible for culture must look closely at the figures and determine the way forward for Carnival.

“We must ask the questions, do we need to have four parades during our Carnival and are we getting value for money?” he queried.

He said a closer look is also necessary for the number and relevance of the pageants in carnival.

“Our pageants have turned the men in society to mere taxi-drivers where they drop off their women folk at Carnival City and find something to do elsewhere for the duration of the show. We have to find out why men are not attending the shows and find a way to bring them back,” he noted.



The carnival official expressed much concern at the popularity of the pre-carnival fetes and the negative impact they may be having on carnival gate receipts.

“We have seen an explosion of the pre-carnival fetes and they have been very successful. However, when the official carnival programme starts, we see a decline in gate receipts. Is this a case where available income is spent on these fetes and then there’s nothing left for the festival? After all, carnival is coming at the end of the food-chain,” he explained.

Apparicio said it is clear that there is need for a holistic rethink of Carnival to make it more relevant and to provide value for money.
 

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