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Research 'Dumbing Down' Opera?
In the UK, The Royal Opera House's CEO Tony Hall has been charged with dumbing down the Covent Garden programme, by using research firm dunnhumby to help bring in younger audiences.
 John Allison, the Editor of Opera Magazine, said that the decision to design the new ROH programme on the back of research conducted by dunnhumby - best known for its analysis of Tesco Clubcard customers - was misguided.
According to Allison, who is also an opera critic for The Sunday Telegraph, dunnhumby reached the conclusion that although the opera house appealed to its core audience of opera and ballet lovers, it was failing to attract professionals in their 20s and 30s.
In response to this research, the ROH is hosting 'Deloitte Ignite', a three-day festival sponsored by the accounting group and featuring 'the coolest names in town'. These include Julian Opie, who illustrated a Blur album cover; conceptual artist and musician Scanner, who will be staging a club night at the venue; and the performance group, Blast Theory, who will be organising digital games.
Hall says dunnhumby's research, which segmented the ROH's audience, made it possible for the ROH to 'fine-tune' its artistic policy accordingly. 'We want to get that buzzy, cool crowd to come in. It is all about the Royal Opera House reaching outwards and bringing new people in,' he said.
The ROH already has a YouTube channel and Facebook site in an attempt to attract the young.
dunnhumby, whose association with the ROH led to the firm sponsoring a production of Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker at the end of 2007, is online at www.dunnhumby.com .
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