A younger crowd with more people in the 25-34 year bracket 17. Demand is defined as a human desire backed by the ability to pay for the particular goods or service. A consumer will buy goods or service to receive satisfaction from their purchase. The utility theory is useful in understanding the motivation of the consumer and the law of diminishing marginal utility holds true in the performing arts. As taste for the performing arts is acquired, consumers with the acquired taste and the ability to pay will buy tickets.
Consumers attend performing arts events because they perceive it as a culturally enriching event.
This contributes to their sense of self esteem and their quality of life. In the 1980s when thea ter s revenues were down, the theaters responded by raising ticket prices understanding that consumers with a taste for the performing arts would pay the higher prices. See figures 4.3, 4.4, and 4.5 The two forces that interact in the market place are supply and demand. While demand is adjusts instantaneously to changes in the market, supplying the good or service involves production time lags. In demand, price and quantity are inversely related.