ENTERTAINMENT
It may seem like they get mad money from rich donors, but many of New York’s nonprofit cultural institutions have built business strategies around earned income—namely cash flow from ticket sales, gift shops and in-house cafés, says a spokesperson for the New York Department of Cultural Affairs. As such, their profits often hinge on whether consumers are…consuming. While that sounds worrisome given the fact that the public is less likely to be shelling out bucks in a recession, the weak dollar and consequently healthy tourism industry (which is the one piece of the economy that has gained momentum in the last quarter) mean that foreign visitors might be mitigating the effects of a local economic bust. Of course, this depends on visibility: Lesser-known destinations are more likely to depend on local patronage than that of tourists.

But even if New Yorkers are watching their spending carefully, most organizations remain optimistic that the recession won’t affect their leisure-time activities. “In times of economic struggle, people still need to be entertained,” says Metropolitan Opera general manager Peter Gelb. “People continue to spend their money on entertainment because they need relief.” Indeed, Gelb says that during previous recessions, ticket sales at the Met remained steady. And so far this year, the opera giant reports that sales, subscriptions and donations are all up from 2007.

Gelb isn’t alone in his optimism. “Ticket sales are up 4 to 5 percent from last year,” says Ken Tabachnick, general manager of the New York City Ballet. “Even if the market were to drop 1,000 points and there were no donations for a month, we’re lucky to be financially structured in such a way as to remain stable.”

Jane Moss, vice president of programming at Lincoln Center, says that the only time in the last two decades that the organization has seen a significant dip in ticket sales was in the three or four months following September 11. As for these days, she says, “We’re not seeing a shortfall in ticket sales or any other obvious signs of recession. It’s renovation land here—we’ll be reopening various parts of Lincoln Center in the next several years, and I don’t anticipate any problems with that.” What’s more, Lincoln Center plans its programming three to five years in advance, which eliminates the possibility of anticipatory frugality. And would the arts haven readjust its presentations to accommodate lean times? “Absolutely not,” Moss says. “If a recession were to happen, the programs would have been planned far ahead of time. And we never cancel anything.”

“During tough economic times in the past, we’ve seen cultural groups step up community outreach so that they were able to sustain neighborhood attendance—and in some cases even build new audiences,” says Kate D. Levin, commissioner of the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs. At this rate, it seems like optimism alone will get us back to wearing miniskirts in no time.

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