Perth Festival 2022 boosts Western Australian community

The 2022 Perth Festival contributed $20 million in economic benefits to Western Australiaand paid $10.9 million directly to local artists, workers, suppliers and contractors according to participant surveys by Culture Counts.

Based on participant surveys and financial data analysis, the 2022 Impact Report confirms the not-for-profit Perth Festival’s significant public value as an investment in community wellbeing.

In a financial lift for the arts sector, the Festival paid $10.9 million into the pockets of local artists, workers, suppliers, and contractors. And a range of social, cultural and community impact scores were the highest in five years of Culture Counts measuring the Festival’s impact.

As expected after Covid-enforced cancellations and venue restrictions, audiences and economic impact results were down. Attendances were 143,665 and direct economic impact was $20 million, with a multiplied flow-on impact of $55 million.

The Festival still managed to exceed its box-office target, with overall ticket sales of $3.22 million, and its 125 events featured 630 artists.

With closed borders, there was a reduced tourism impact from past years and almost all the artists were from Western Australia.

The behind-the-scenes community engagement program Festival Connect received strong public support (96%) and the inaugural Touring WA program also rated highly for bringing new arts experiences to people around Western Australia.

The survey of sponsors said that 82% felt partnering the Festival helped achieve their objectives and 94% agreed that the outcomes met expectations.

Despite closed borders reducing tourism impact and events limited mostly to local artists, the festival achieved a flow-on impact of $55 million, according to the report.

Artistic Director Iain Grandage’s third Festival - programmed under the Noongar theme of Wardan (ocean) - scored highly for relevance, authenticity and for showcasing Perth’s cultural depth. Survey respondents also said the Festival improved social cohesion, making them feel proud of Perth and better connected to their community.

Perth Festival is Australia’s longest-running cultural festival, founded by The University of Western Australia and supported through the State Government through Principal Partner Lotterywest.

The Culture Counts report analysed ticketing data, expenditure analysis and a survey of 4,966 people.