CONTEMPORARY THEATRE(S) IN ITALY

#1 CULTURAL POLICIES

Compared to the European average, Italian investments in culture are fairly high. Given the great abundance of historical monuments and artistic tradition, most of the support is offered to museums and projects of conservation and the promotion of cultural heritage. The Ministry of Culture grants a special fund to fiction films and documentaries with proven cultural interest. Taking no notice of the criteria that discipline such fund – very often not clear and very gratuitous—it’s very important to notice that no such reward is granted to a work of theatre of the same quality. At least not at a national level. The only support that a theatrical project can receive on the basis of the cultural value of its content comes from local administrations, whose economical situation deeply varies from region to region. This is just one example of the degree of relevance attributed to theatre development by the national cultural policy. As things are, most of the time the fate of a theatrical project is in the local politicians’ hands.

 

Published on 30 April 2015