Finnish regional theatres face looming audience decline

Regional theatres in Finland could face a serious audience shortage within the next decade as the population shrinks and ages, Pori Theatre chief executive Anttivesa Knuuttila told Yle.

Knuuttila said the theatre network was built for a population that differs from the one Finland is moving towards. He also described an unexpected drop in sales at Pori Theatre this year: after something changed in the second or third week of January, ticket and restaurant sales remained weak throughout the spring. The theatre fell hundreds of thousands of euros short of its budget target.

In the longer term, Knuuttila said regional theatres could reach a turning point as early as the next decade. Finland has dozens of professional theatres, including in almost every large and medium-sized city. At Pori Theatre, 65 to 70 per cent of income comes from state and city support, with the rest from ticket sales.

The government is seeking major savings and has also turned its attention to the cultural sector. “More support from society is not on the horizon,” Knuuttila said.

Population decline in the regions and migration towards large cities are adding to the challenge. As the baby-boom generation ages, fewer people will enter the 50-to-65 age group that makes up the core theatre audience. By the 2040s, the generations reaching what Knuuttila called “theatre age” will be only a third the size of the baby-boom generation. Streaming services are also competing for audiences.

Large theatres in Helsinki and Tampere attract people from the regions with major productions, Knuuttila said. He added that immigration would not solve the audience problem for regional theatres, saying many immigrants come from cultures without a theatre tradition. He said immigration could offer some help in the Helsinki metropolitan area, but not in the regions.

Finnish Theatres, an association representing the country’s performing arts sector, shares concerns about the demographic outlook. Its chief executive, Kaisa Paavolainen, said population trends in eastern and northern Finland were especially worrying. She stopped short of saying theatres faced a shakeout, but urged the government to safeguard their operating conditions and avoid funding cuts.

A recent report by the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities said arts institutions should seek new audiences and use their premises more efficiently in the coming years.