Title: Sing it out loud! The entrepreneurship of SME opera enterprises in Scandinavia

Authors: Staffan Albinsson

Addresses: Department of Economy and Society, School of Business, Economics and Law, Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, University of Gothenburg, Box 625, SE 40530 Gothenburg, Sweden

Abstract: The purpose of this study is to contribute new knowledge on the entrepreneurial facets of opera production based on an in-depth study of a dozen SME enterprises. Interviews have been conducted with a semi-structured set of questions. As the studied companies are SMEs, the majority of the respondents are their initiators, their artistic directors and their general managers - in short their entrepreneurs. The analysis shows that opera entrepreneurs do, fundamentally, follow normal entrepreneurial processes in their endeavours. However, along the path of that process there is a wide variety of choices made which influence the outcome, mainly regarding the choice of repertoire and its subsequent staging. For a few, there was some entrepreneurship or project management tuition in prior education. For most, the necessary skills have been acquired through trial-and-error experiences. The study includes an attempt at an 'observed quality' score and a value-for-money assessment.

Keywords: cultural entrepreneurship; opera; entrepreneurship in Scandinavia; entrepreneurship in SMEs; performing arts administration; cultural economics; Scandinavia.

DOI: 10.1504/IJESB.2019.101698

International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business, 2019 Vol.37 No.4, pp.449 - 471

Received: 11 Oct 2017
Accepted: 11 Oct 2017
Published online: 22 Aug 2019 *

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