Ticket Subscription Service Stokes Arts Attendance in Amsterdam

An experimental ticket subscription service is creating low-cost access to cultural events and funneling new audience members to cash-strapped arts organizations in Amsterdam, The New York Times reports.

Nearly 3,000 people have signed up for We Are Public, paying about $19 a month for access to 30 performances and other events. Fifty percent of the fees go directly to partner cultural groups.

It’s growth comes in the same year the Dutch government cut the nation’s arts budget by a quarter, a move that forced at least two dozen groups to close. Traditionally, arts organizations in the Netherlands have relied almost entirely on public subsidies. But as governments have reduced their support, attitudes about private fundraising and other streams of revenue are slowly changing.