Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation Awards Theatrical Outfit $100,000 Grant for MARTA Partnership

Atlanta, Georgia. Theatrical Outfit, Atlanta's second oldest, continuously-operating professional theatre company nestled in the heart of downtown, is pleased to announce that The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation has awarded $100,000 to Theatrical Outfit to research the intersections between MARTA users and performing arts patrons by identifying barriers between patrons taking MARTA to performances and, alternatively, MARTA users attending arts and culture performances.

Theatrical Outfit's partners for this grant include MARTA's Office of Research and Analysis, TRG Arts, a data-driven consulting firm dedicated exclusively to the arts and culture field, and J. Walter Thompson, who will assist with the analysis and interpretation of findings to help The Outfit and other arts organizations in proximity to MARTA identify opportunities for behavioral change through marketing, message development and creative concepts.

The grant is made through the Audience Building Roundtable, an initiative of The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation, whose goal is to provide support to eligible arts and culture nonprofits to deepen relationships with existing audiences and attract new audiences. The project will focus on the patron journey and will identify audience building solutions that can be implemented by multiple arts/culture organizations; test those audience building strategies; implement methods to reach and deepen loyalty with audiences; and document measurable results.

Lee Foster, Managing Director of Theatrical Outfit, thanked her collaborators in the effort: "We are so grateful to The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation, its Audience Building Roundtable, which has taught us so much already, and to our other partners for their support. We are thankful for the opportunity to study and potentially innovate the role transportation has in performing arts audience participation in greater Atlanta."

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