The Blockbuster Phenomenon A New Museum Trend Reading Answers

Jul 4, 2025

The Blockbuster Phenomenon: A New Museum Trend Reading Answers is an IELTS Reading Answer that contains 13 questions and needs to be completed within 20 minutes. This reading answer also helps you to prepare for your IELTS exam. The Blockbuster Phenomenon: A New Museum Trend Reading Answers consists of questions like: Which paragraph contains the following information? Write the correct letter A—H. Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS. Choose TWO letters, A-E. Choose THREE letters, A-G. Which THREE of the following are mentioned by the writer as disadvantages of blockbusters?

You should go through the IELTS Reading passage to recognise synonyms, identify keywords, and answer the questions. It's critical to comprehend the guidelines for every question type and create effective ways to manage time if you wish to receive excellent band scores. Candidates can use IELTS reading practice questions and answers to enhance their performance in the reading section.

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Topic:

THE BLOCKBUSTER PHENOMENON: A NEW MUSEUM TREND

Museums in Australia, like other pleasure-giving public organizations, are adapting their activities so that they more closely reflect the marketplace.

[A] Since the 1980s, the term "blockbuster" has become the fashionable word for spectacular, high-profile museum exhibitions that have the ability to attract large crowds. A blockbuster is a "large-scale loan exhibition that people who normally don't go to museums will stand in line for hours to see" (Elsen 1984). Once the museum that created the exhibition has shown it to their local market, it can be offered to other organizations for a fee. This means that you can boost your own door takings and make money from boosting someone else's door takings.

[B] While partaking of the excitement of the blockbuster, visitors thus lured are likely to stay longer at the museum. Betty Churcher, when Director of the Australian National Gallery, summed up the new blockbuster creed as follows: "The bonus of the blockbuster exhibitions is that people come to see the blockbuster and they stay to look at the permanent collection, so you are getting broader exposure for your collection."

[C] Museums across the UK, USA, Canada, and Australia currently operate under a system of plural funding: revenue raised through contributions by federal, state, and/or local governments, combined with revenue raised through admission charges and other activities. Maintaining and increasing visitor levels is thus paramount and involves not only creating or hiring blockbuster exhibitions but providing regular exhibition changes and innovations. In addition, the visiting public have become known as customers rather than visitors, and the skills that are valued in museums to keep the new customers coming through the door have changed. Curators are now administrators, and being a museum director no longer requires an Arts degree—but public relations skills are essential if the museum is going to compete with other museums to stage traveling exhibitions that draw huge crowds.

[D] The convergence of museums, the heritage industry, tourism, profit-making, and pleasure-giving has resulted in the new "museology." This has given rise to much debate about whether it is appropriate to see museums primarily as tourist attractions. In literature from both the UK and USA, the words that are starting to appear in some descriptions of blockbusters are "less scholarly," "non-elitist," and "populist," while others extol the virtues of encouraging scholars to cooperate on projects and to provide exhibitions that cater for a broad selection of the community rather than an elite sector. Whatever commentators may think, managers of museums worldwide are looking for artful ways to blend culture and commerce, and

blockbuster exhibitions are at the top of the list.

[E] But do blockbusters held in public institutions really create a surplus to fund other activities? If the bottom line is profit, then according to the records of many major museums, blockbusters do make money. For museums in some countries, it may be the money that they require to replace parts of their collections or to fix buildings that are in need of attention. For some museums in Australia, it may be the opportunity to illustrate that they are attempting to pay their way by recovering part of their operating costs. Also, creating or hiring a blockbuster has many positive spin-offs: blockbusters mean crowds, and crowds are good for the local economy, providing increased trade for shops, hotels, restaurants, the transport industry, and retailers. The argument that the arts provide sustained economic benefits has been well illustrated in impact studies in the USA and the UK.

[F] However, blockbusters require large capital expenditure and draw on resources across all branches of an organization, and the costs don't end there. There is a Human Resource Management cost in addition to a measurable "real dollar cost." Receiving a touring exhibition draws resources from across functional management structures in project management style. Everyone, from general laborers to building services, front of house, technical, promotional, educational, and administrative staff is required to perform additional tasks. Furthermore, as an increasing number of institutions try their hand at increasing visitor numbers and memberships (and therefore revenue) by staging blockbuster exhibitions, it may be less likely that blockbusters will continue to provide a surplus to subsidize other activities due to the competitive nature of the market.

[G] It has been illustrated in both the UK and the USA that the blockbuster ideology has resulted in the false expectation that the momentum required to stage blockbusters can be maintained continually. Creating, mounting, or hiring blockbusters is exhausting, with the real costs throughout an institution difficult to calculate. Secondly, as some analysts have argued, the "shopkeeping" mentality and cost-benefit analysis and a pure concentration on the bottom line can squeeze substance out of an exhibition. Taking out substance can be a recipe for blockbuster failure and, therefore, financial failure.

[H] Perhaps the best pathway to take is one that balances both blockbusters and regular exhibitions. However, this easy middle ground may only work if you have enough space and have alternate sources of funding to continue to support the regular, less exciting fare. Perhaps the advice should be to make sure that you find out what your local community wants from you and make sure that your regular activities and exhibitions are more enticing.

Questions 1-4

Reading Passage 1 has eight paragraphs A-H. Which paragraph contains the following

information? Write the correct letter A—H.

NB: You may use any letter more than once.

1. The reason why museum directors need to constantly alter and update their exhibits.

Answer: C

Supporting statement: Maintaining and increasing visitor levels is thus paramount and involves not only creating or hiring blockbuster exhibitions but providing regular exhibition changes and innovations.

Keywords: exhibitions, changes and innovations

Keyword Location: Para C, Line 5

Explanation: According to the text, the director needs to constantly alter and update their exhibits to ensure that the number of visitors increases.

2. Mention of the length of time people will queue up to see a blockbuster

Answer: A

Supporting statement: will stand in line for hours to see" (Elsen 1984).

Keywords: stand, hours

Keyword Location: Para A, Lines 3-4

Explanation: According to the text, people might queue in line for hours just to see the blockbuster.

3. Terms that people have used when referring to blockbusters.

Answer: D

Supporting statement: the words that are starting to appear in some descriptions of blockbusters are "less scholarly," "non-elitist," and "populist,"

Keywords: descriptions, blockbusters

Keyword Location: Para D, Line 4

Explanation: Less scholarly, non-elitist, and populist are terms that people use when referring to a blockbuster.

4. The various ways that institutions like museums get financial support.

Answer: C

Supporting statement: revenue raised through contributions by federal, state, and/or local governments, combined with revenue raised through admission charges and other activities.

Keywords: revenue, through

Keyword Location: Para C, Lines 2-3

Explanation: Organizations such as museums receive funding from a combination of federal, state, and/or municipal government revenue as well as money collected from entrance fees and other sources.

Questions 5–8

Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS.

5. These days, museum visitors tend to be referred to as

Answer: CUSTOMERS

Supporting statement: In addition, the visiting public have become known as customers rather than visitors,

Keywords: visiting, customers

Keyword Location: Para C, Lines 5-6

Explanation: The text states that nowadays, the visitors are called customers in the museum

6. Museum curators now need rather than academic qualifications.

Answer: PUBLIC RELATIONS SKILLS

Supporting statement: museum director no longer requires an Arts degree—but public relations skills are essential

Keywords: director, relations

Keyword Location: Para C, Lines 8-9

Explanation: The museum directors require public relations skills and just an art degree.

7. The linking of a range of public institutions that entertain the public is known as

Answer: (THE NEW) MUSEOLOGY

Supporting statement: The convergence of museums, the heritage industry, tourism, profit-making, and pleasure-giving has resulted in the new "museology."

Keywords: museums, museology

Keyword Location: Para D, Lines 1-2

Explanation: Museums, the heritage sector, tourism, profit-making, and leisure have all come together to create the new museology, which is nowadays used to define the public institutions that provide all this.

8. There is discussion about whether museums can be regarded in the same way as other

Answer: TOURIST ATTRACTIONS

Supporting statement: This has given rise to much debate about whether it is appropriate to see museums primarily as tourist attractions.

Keywords: debate, tourist attractions

Keyword Location: Para D, Lines 2-3

Explanation: The text mentions that the emergence of the new museology has given rise to the debate over whether museums should be regarded in the same way as other tourist attractions.

Question 9-10

Choose TWO letters, A-E.

Which TWO of the following are mentioned by the writer as advantages of blockbusters?

A. Some of the money they raise can be used for structural repairs.

B. They can provide funds to help support amateur artists.

C. Local services benefit from the extra business they bring about.

D. They encourage overseas workers into the local area.

E. They raise employee performance levels.

Answer: A

Supporting statement: For museums in some countries, it may be the money that they require to replace parts of their collections or to fix buildings that are in need of attention.

Keywords: countries, fix buildings

Keyword Location: Para E, Lines 3-4

Explanation: According to the passage, the money earned by the museums might be required to fix structural damages

Answer: C

Supporting statement: Blockbuster has many positive spin-offs: blockbusters mean crowds, and crowds are good for the local economy,

Keywords: blockbusters, crowds

Keyword Location: Para E, Lines 6-7

Explanation: According to the passage, blockbusters attract people, and crowds boost the local economy by bringing in more business for stores, hotels, cafés and restaurants, transportation providers, and retailers.

Question 11-13

Choose THREE letters, A-G. Which THREE of the following are mentioned by the writer as disadvantages of blockbusters?

A. They do not suit museum management styles.

B. Specialist business advice has to be paid for.

C. They involve an increased workload for personnel.

D. They do not increase overall annual visitor numbers.

E. They are very tiring to put on.

F. What is popular in one country may not be popular in another.

G. The content can be weakened through financial pressure.

Answer: B

Supporting statement: blockbusters require large capital expenditure and draw on resources across all branches of an organization, and the costs don't end there.

Keywords: expenditure, resources

Keyword Location: Para F, Line 1

Explanation: According to the text, one of the disadvantages of a blockbuster is that the resources and expenses required to maintain popular museums are rather hefty. Every organisational branch participates, in addition to human resource management.

Answer: C

Supporting statement: Everyone, from general laborers to building services, front of house, technical, promotional, educational, and administrative staff is required to perform additional tasks.

Keywords: laborers, staff

Keyword Location: Para F, Lines 5-6

Explanation: One of the drawbacks of a blockbuster, according to the text, is that staff members' workloads grow as a result of the extra work. Additional tasks are needed from all employees, including general laborers, building services, front desk, technical, promotional, instructional, and administrative workers.

Answer: E

Supporting statement: Creating, mounting, or hiring blockbusters is exhausting, with the real costs throughout an institution difficult to calculate.

Keywords: Creating, mounting

Keyword Location: Para G, Line 3

Explanation: According to the text, one of the negative aspects of a blockbuster is that the work is exhausting.

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