In most provinces, as in Canada as a whole, cultural and heritage activities attracted about the same percentage of the population in 2005 as in 1992. Given the strong population growth in most provinces between 1992 and 2005, all cultural and heritage activities saw an increase in the number of provincial residents attending, visiting, reading, watching or listening.
The culture and heritage activities reported in 2005 for those over 15 years of age were:
•Reading newspapers (88%)
•Listening to music on CDs, cassette tapes, DVD compact discs, records (83%)
•Watching a video (rented, purchased, VHS or DVD formats) (80%)
•Reading a magazine (80%)
•Reading a book (69%)
•Watching a movie at a theatre or drive-in (59%)
•Visiting a conservation area or nature park (52%)
Reading, music and movies are among the most popular cultural and heritage activities reported in all provinces. Ontario and British Columbia were the only provinces where heritage activity (visiting a conservation area or nature park) attracted over half of the population) in 2005. The number of golf courses and fitness and recreational centers increased in Canada, as they have in Niagara.
In Ontario, larger audiences were brought together for cultural and heritage performances in 2005 than in 1992 (i.e. Aboriginal dance, Chinese opera or Ukrainian dance). Other activities reported were visits to museums, public art galleries and historic sites. Source: The Hill Strategies Report – Profile of cultural and Heritage Activities in Ontario, 2007, from Statistics Canada General Social Surveys 1992 and 2005
In Niagara, the Ontario Arts Council received applications for a total of 2,353 arts and cultural activities in Niagara for 2006-2007 and 473,511 attendees were recorded at those events. The Shaw had the largest attendance figures in 2007 for theatre in Niagara and 265,648 tickets were sold (59.3% Canadian and local; 40.3% from the US; and 4% from overseas). Source: http://www.shawfest.com/web/content.asp?docid=7_1_0
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