‘95 Was a Record Year for Segerstrom Hall

A record 711,684 tickets were sold to programs in the Orange County Performing Arts Center’s Segerstrom Hall in 1995, center officials announced this week at their annual meeting.

The increase in sales--74,793 more than 1994--was attributed to a rise in the number of events in the hall, from 245 to 288. Total attendance was split evenly between the center’s own programs and those presented by other groups.

However, average paid attendance for the 163 events sponsored by the center was 74.3% of capacity, down from 86% in 1994. For the first time since the 1986 season, the Philharmonic Society of Orange County, the Pacific Symphony and other groups that use the hall posted higher combined average attendance than the center: 78.6% of capacity, up from 73.2% in 1994.

The center’s expenses in 1995 totaled $23.7 million; revenue, primarily from box-office receipts, reached $19.3 million. The difference was offset by $4.45 million in donations, $341,000 more than last year. The center also added $4.3 million to its endowment, bringing it to $12.3 million in cash and cash pledges.

At the meeting, center president Tom Tomlinson also announced that the Nederlans Dans Theatre, in a return engagement, will open the center’s 1996-1997 dance series in July.