Cultural audience is usually analysed as a homogeneous block of cultivated people. Their prevailing socio-demographic features—old age, high income, solid education—are often interpreted as motivations, within a view of the cultural system that considers culture unattractive for the young, who are viewed as hasty and superficial; unaffordable for the poor, ignoring the generally low level of admission prices; unintelligible for the less educated, who are judged barbarians. Such a view of cultural demand is clearly biased, since it considers cultural enjoyment a static action where consumers assess their belonging to a club of initiated members. The economic theory suggests a more realistic interpretation of the phenomenology of cultural consumption, highlighting the evolutionary nature of tastes and the complex process aimed at extracting cultural value from experiences in the various fields and genres. Rather than directly enjoying iconic objects, cultural consumers combine different commodities, services and actions within the ‘household production function’, whereby utility is generated by the reticular dialogue among the various components of consumer experience. The demand develops along a three-stages trail, starting with simple emotional reactions, passing through cognitive explorations, evolving into cultural ‘addiction’ and never ending. This emphasises the crucial role of cultural activation, focuses upon the growing willingness-to-pay, dismantles the shared belief on competition among cultural organisations.