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Festival of the Arts Boca reports 7,900 attendees and more than $1.2 million local impact
Summary
Festival of the Arts Boca told the City Council it drew more than 7,900 attendees in 2024, with ticket sales rising 17% to about $250,000 and an estimated $300,800 spent locally by visitors; organizers said total festival impact exceeded $1.2 million.
Joanna Kaye, executive director of Festival of the Arts Boca, told the Boca Raton City Council that the 2024 festival welcomed "over 7,900 attendees who spent over $300,800 locally," citing an Americans for the Arts AEP study as the basis for the spending estimate.
Kaye said ticket sales topped $250,000 — up about 17% from 2023 — and that the festival itself purchased roughly $163,000 in local goods and services. "Our total impact is over $1,200,000," she said, and described strong outreach through advertising and digital channels, including more than 1,000,000 email sends and over 1,000,000 page views.
The festival’s 2024 program included headline events such as a recital by Renee Fleming, a live-orchestra presentation of Jaws in collaboration with FAU’s SharkLab, a centennial tribute to Henry Mancini with the Mancini Institute Orchestra and Frost School of Music performers, and a closing Rhapsody in Blue concert by a newly formed Festival Boca Jazz Orchestra.
Kaye highlighted community engagement initiatives: free tickets distributed to four local high schools, author and arts workshops in schools and libraries, and the Rotary Club’s Future Stars competition. She said the festival awarded $9,500 in cash prizes through its music competition and received an award from the Florida Festivals and Events Association for best hybrid event in the state.
Council members asked several follow-up questions. Council member Wigder praised the organizers and offered anecdotal evidence that many attendees listened outside venues, a phenomenon he said the statistics do not capture. Council member Nicholas asked whether festival attendees used Brightline service; Kaye said the festival does not have specific Brightline ridership data and could only report about 150 room nights booked by the festival itself.
The presentation noted programming plans for Festival of the Arts Boca 2025 (Feb. 29–March 9, 2025), including return appearances by Doris Kearns Goodwin and an expanded instrument "petting zoo"; organizers also said a music-education partnership with Opera Naples will allow winners to perform in Boca and Naples next season.
The council thanked the presenters; no formal action was taken on the presentation.
