As news of Alec Baldwin hosting the Pittsburgh Symphony reaches the public, the symphony is curious to see if attendance will finally increase. Baldwin will host the symphony series Saturday, April 16 at 8 p.m. at Heinz Hall.
The fact that the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra (PSO) does not have the attendance rate of a Pittsburgh Steelers game is nothing new, but considering Heinz Hall has over 2,000 seats to fill, PSO is required to provide innovative program series to even partially fill the hall. Most symphony goers are attracted to the programs with recognizable names.
That’s one of the reasons PSO Vice President of Public Affairs Louise Sciannameo sounds confident in the program with Alec Baldwin. Alec Baldwin, actor and winner of Golden Globe and Emmy awards, is a name most of the public can identify. Baldwin may be more associated with controversial and aggressive phone calls made to his daughter, but still, there is buzz surrounding Baldwin which can potentially benefit the attendance rate for PSO.
“It is tremendously exciting to have Alec Baldwin appear with [PSO]…and for him to share his talent and creativity onstage with our amazing orchestra” Sciannameo said. “We have received a great outpouring of interest from our patrons and from press across the country.”
Publicity across the country and an exciting host leads the symphony goer to presume attendance rates will grow.
Sciannameo said the program will consist of, “Alec Baldwin sharing some of his classical favorites with the audience—his playlist of musical selections that are particularly important to him and that have transformed moments in his life. The program is evolving, but is scheduled to include works by Beethoven, Berlioz, Stravinsky and Mahler, among others.”
Even though attendance has been thin, support for the symphony is not, with or without Baldwin. Anaya Bobst, an international student at Point Park University, loves the music PSO conducts.
“When I saw [PSO], I was overwhelmed with satisfaction, the talent and ability of the musicians to listen to what they are playing in correlation to the other musicians is more than impressive,” Bobst said.
While many agree with this statement others would agree with the counterpoint made by Colleen Loverde, a local dance artist.
“So many people fall into that pool of questioning why they should attend the Symphony when so much music is available via Internet,” Loverde said.
While PSO has struggled with attendance rates they have provided a diverse set of programs that fuse the classics with modern marvels.
Alexandria Ball, an accompanist supervisor for the Point Park Conservatory of Performing Arts, recognizes the innovations of PSO.
Ball said, “Given this economic climate, I think PSO has done a good job of keeping the doors open by balancing the season with inventive programming and creating a pricing structure to give everyone a chance to attend.”
