Yesterday, the National Endowment for the Arts released this year's Survey of Public Participation in the Arts. From 2009 to 2012, musicals faced a 9% participation drop, and straight plays did even worse with a 12% drop. Researchers are unclear about the cause for these results, but the story isn't as grim as it might appear at first.

Our CEO, Robert Lynch, explained to the New York Times that there are many art forms today that are included in the definition of "the arts," and participation in these previously-ignored art forms could account for the shift in rates. This is consistent with the good news the report had to deliver - that a larger proportion of African Americans and Hispanics attending arts performances than ever before. Classical music followers have remained steady in their attendance and jazz performances have even picked up some followers. Our Vice President of Research and Policy, Randy Cohen, summarizes the findings best: "People are not walking away from the arts so much as they are walking away from traditional delivery mechanisms. People are engaging with the arts differently."