Kurt Linn's View on the Arts
Attendance at American Stage Spikes
Since moving into a new building downtown, the theater company has posted its highest attendance in three decades.
When the American Stage Theater moved from its retro-chic digs on 3rd Avenue South to the Raymond James Theater on 1st Avenue North, plenty of romantics complained about the loss of a St. Pete landmark. True, the old theater caught the eye. But the new theater has captured more theater goers and revitalized the company. As soon as the American Stage moved next to St Pete College and Williams Park downtown, attendance spiked and records shattered. In 2009-10, its first full season in the Raymond James Theater, the American Stage had its highest attendance in its 31 year history. The season seemed to mark the beginning of a new era, despite the slow economy. Average attendance per-show rose from 3,5000 to 4,800. The new theater retains the…
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