Funding theatre in Italy: critical scenarios across the pandemic

The paper addresses the controversial impact of the pandemic on the Italian performing arts system from the economic and institutional perspective, relying on extensive quantitative research. The study is mainly based on the MIDAS database , developed by the author and his team, which includes over 40,000 funding records of about 9,000 theatre enterprises in the period 2013-2023: drawing upon over 350 acts for granting by the State, 1.700 by the local authorities, and over 1.300 by 86 banking foundations, the relational analysis outlines the funding trends of public and private stakeholders in live entertainment in Italy, connecting them to financial reports, labour, and audience behaviour. The pandemic highlighted some of the historical weaknesses of the Italian performing arts system , leading in the mid-term to some positive effects in labour legislation, and worsening the landscape when funding and territorial inequalities are at stake. As an example, in the case of Class A opera houses, emergency legislation and extraordinary funding became a lifesaver, offsetting balance sheets that had been drowning in red ink for years.