Center Says Patrons Happy With Fare

Top officials of the Orange County Performing Arts Center say one reason they have not booked contemporary pop and rock acts is that the center is doing fine, and its audiences are satisfied.

“There’s been no clamoring from the public for pop and rock concerts at this facility,” said center President Thomas R. Kendrick.

Board member and vice chairman for development Roger W. Johnson agrees that center audiences don’t want anything more than they are already getting: classical music, dance and Broadway musicals. Johnson cited a recent center-sponsored survey that, he said, shows a high level of audience satisfaction with center programs.

But Irvine pollster Mark Baldassare, who conducted the survey, said the question cited by Johnson was not intended to elicit responses on the center’s overall programming mix.

“We asked people, ‘How satisfied are you with performances you have attended?’ “ Baldassare said. “I would interpret that as a reflection of their satisfaction level with specific performances.”

In 1990, attendance for center-sponsored events averaged 77.3% of capacity, down from 88% in 1989, according to center figures.

Still, Johnson said, “The center is sold-out--the audience is not the issue.”

“There’s not any time to do other types of programming. Would we if there were? Probably not. I think we would prefer to bring in more of the kinds of things we do,” he said.