The main demographic at Kirkland Performance Center is probably what you’d expect: 45-65 years old, the majority of which are female.
KPC is hoping to change that.
“We’re trying to chance to a more young-professional audience,” said Skye Stoury, KPC’s Marketing and Communications Manager. “And even younger: we want more teens coming to shows.”
Enter Pickwick, the Seattle-based indie rock band that will be the centerpiece of KPC’s new program aimed at bringing teens into the premiere performance venue on the Eastside. Pickwick, slated to perform at 8 p.m. on Nov. 12, is one of those bands you’d hear on vinyl in a house-roasted coffee shop — including the scruffy beards, the unkempt hair and ironic glasses.
It’s popular with teenagers, which is why KPC chose Pickwick as the kickoff for a deeper partnership with TeenTix. Started in 2004 by the Seattle Center, TeenTix opens the doors of performance venues for teens around the Seattle metro area.
For the Nov. 12 Pickwick show, TeenTix has bought up 75 tickets with a grant from the Kirkland Arts Commission and is offering the tickets for free to TeenTix members and prospective members age 13-19.
TeenTix allows teens to sign up for free, and have access to shows, galleries and other exhibitions — for five bucks.
While Kirkland Performance Center is a new partner — KPC joined for a half-season in 2015-16 — the list of partners includes some of the biggest and best venues in the area: Seattle Opera, the symphony, ACT Theatre, and the Experience Music Project.
Many of the partners are in the heart of Seattle, and though TeenTix has the Bellevue Arts Museum in the fold, KPC is among the first performance venues outside of Seattle itself.
“It’s attractive because Kirkland is not Seattle,” Ashraf Hasham, TeenTix’s Director of Programs and Partnerships. “Kirkland is its own hyper-local community, and they already want to be engaged. We had members in Kirkland and we’re growing by 250-300 members each week with limited outreach.”
Hasham said there can be between 25,000-30,000 TeenTix members depending on the week, as members “age out” when they turn 20.
The Pickwick show will be about more than just the music, though. TeenTix staff will be on hand helping teens to sign up for the program — again, it’s free — along with providing free drinks, snacks and entertainment. The event is phase-one of what TeenTix hopes will be an extensive outreach to young patrons on the Eastside.
“The goal of [this partnership with KPC] is to bring in teens from the area,” TeenTix Executive Director Monique Courcy said. “It’s just part of what we’re doing on the ground reaching out to schools and other community centers to promote KPC for events, and in general, to get those teens in Kirkland more aware of this performance venue they have local access too.”
TeenTix can anywhere between 40 and 70 events each day, especially in the weekends. Stoury said KPC hopes to implement more educational programs to bring in a younger audience, things like matinee performances for kids during school hours, but those programs are still on the horizon.
