$5 TEEN TICKET INITIATIVE DESCRIPTION

Urban Gateways proposes to significantly increase youth access to Chicago’s wealth of performing arts venues by building the city’s future audiences through the creation of an initiative to offer highly discounted tickets to teenagers. Based on the TeenTix model in Seattle, Chicago youth ages 13-19 will be able to access the city’s wide array of music, dance, theater, visual arts, movies, and more for just $5 a ticket.

Youth are empowered as new arts consumers while arts partners cultivate a new and important audience segment, filling houses with future audience members and arts advocates. This mutually-beneficial program for both arts partners and teens has the vast potential to play a critical role in the future sustainability for Chicago’s arts and culture sector.

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT? Youth participants will gain significantly more access to our city’s vast artistic and cultural resources, and help foster an appreciation for and expanded interests in new art forms. More importantly, it closes the opportunity gap that so many Chicago teens face, while adding the intrinsic value of making their own choices through the individual purchasing power of a $5 bill. For the arts and culture sector, this service is a cost-effective and simple strategy to further audience expansion goals, while leveling the playing field across small, mid-size, and large institutions through direct and affordable youth outreach and access. It will also help venues build stronger and sustainable relationships with teen audiences, while maximizing the reach of each performance.

WHO BENEFITS? As Chicago teens (ages 13-19) make up nearly 10% of Chicago’s population, this initiative has the potential to serve about 270,000 young Chicago residents.

HOW WILL IT WORK? > tPresenting Partner venues agree to provide any remaining tickets on the day of a show to eligible teens for $5 cash through their box office. The initiative does not require partners to donate tickets, but only to offer seats that would otherwise go unfilled. There is no fee for the Presenting Partner to participate in this program.

Transactions will predominantly occur in cash at the box office, so no new systems are required for venues. Partners will submit periodic sales reports to measure progress and impact and provide feedback to continue improving quality of service for both venues and teen audiences.

Teens sign up for a free pass through a simple and quick process, and show this pass at the box office of a Presenting Partner venue to purchase any available day-of-show tickets for $5 cash. Urban Gateways will create and host a new website where teens can find information about the program-eligible events across the city, all in one place.

WHEN WILL IT HAPPEN? The initiative will begin with an informational kick-off meeting open to all supporters in March 2017 to establish the inaugural presenting partners and gather feedback from stakeholders (RSVP here). Through the spring, the Advisory Committees will be formed and Urban Gateways will work with TeenTix to prepare for a soft launch in October 2017.

WHERE WILL IT TAKE PLACE? This initiative will be housed within the Urban Gateways organization. All program activity occurs at participating venues across the city. Teen registration, information, and venue promotion occur online through a new, project-specific website created and hosted by Urban Gateways.

HOW TO GET INVOLVED? Urban Gateways will solicit feedback from cross-sector supporters including arts organizations, venues, civic leaders, teens, and other stakeholders to inform strategies for the program framework and implementation. Once the project is underway, two Advisory Committees will be formed: one of teens and the other of professional leaders. In addition, TeenTix in Seattle will act as a consultant to support Urban Gateways in creating a unique model for Chicago.

If you are interested in participating in this program in any way, please visit this form to express your support.

For more information, please contact Tarah Durnbaugh (tortiz@urbangateways.org | 312-445-2750)