It’s hard to find current data – 2012 research released in 2015 seems to be about as close as we can get. The 2012 NEA States of Engagement report includes this bit of information – Baltimore is part of this, but the Washington, D.C. region probably biases the results a bit (still looking for more granular or current data, if you have any tips).
The percent of adults who attended a dance performance in 2012 in the Washington-Baltimore-Northern Virginia, DC-MD-VA-WV MSA (Metropolitan Statistical Area) was about 9.2% (range 7.0-12.0%).
If we use the lower-bound (7%), and apply that to the Baltimore region, dance attendance could be…
| Region | Total pop | Adult pop | Dance attendance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anne Arundel | 573,235 | 444,830 | 31,138 |
| Baltimore City | 611,648 | 483,202 | 33,825 |
| Baltimore County | 832,468 | 652,655 | 45,656 |
| Carroll | 167,781 | 131,037 | 9173 |
| Harford | 252,160 | 195,424 | 13,680 |
| Howard | 321,113 | 242,119 | 16,948 |
| Total | 2,758,405 | 2,149,267 | 150,449 |
Add this all up and it suggests a dance attendance population of about 150,000 people in and immediately around Baltimore.