Innovative Practices and Opera Houses' Performance: Evidence from Italy

Nowadays opera houses are conservative institutions, sometimes described as museums of the 19th century. In particular, the analysis of the Italian scenario shows that these institutions have to face cultural and managerial issues that compromise their stability. On one side they have difficulties to promote a contemporary culture of opera. On the other, they face managerial complexities that influence their economic sustainability. This paper aims at analyzing how the concept of innovation can be introduced in their cultural strategies with the intent to rebalance their asset. Specifically, this article explores how opera houses can renew their standardized opera repertory, shedding light on the impact of a variety of innovation practices on two performance measures: their occupancy rate and ability to attract private funds. An empirical research is conducted on 30 Italian opera houses, using data collected from 2006 to 2011.