An analysis of technical efficiency and efficiency factors for Austrian and Swiss non-profit theatres

Abstract

Summary This article explores the measurement of the production technology and efficiency of the performing arts sector. The stochastic frontier analysis has been used to estimate the technical efficiency scores for 20 Austrian and 30 Swiss non-profit theatres over 36 and 26 years, respectively. The number of visitors and tickets on offer are considered as two alternative measures of artistic output. The results indicate that individual efficiency estimates are very sensitive to the econometric specification of the unobserved heterogeneity of theatres. In particular, econometric techniques which do not account for this heterogeneity produce much lower efficiency levels. The indefinable dimension of artistic output such as theatre-specific quality may also have an important influence on efficiency estimates. The empirical analysis also delivers the first insights into the impact of exogenous factors on technical efficiency such as the number of theatres in the local area, regional differences and the level of public subsidies.

Audience success or art for art's sake? Efficiency evaluation of dance companies in the United States

“…Most methods have tended to focus on constructing efficient frontier behaviors, determining each institution's level of performance by calculating the distance from said frontier. There are two basic analytical approaches for estimating efficient frontier behaviors (Coupet & Berrett, 2019): parametric methods (Stochastic Frontier Analysis) which require a specification of the production function and where we find applications for theaters in Poland (Fernández‐Blanco, Rodríguez‐Álvarez, & Wisniewska, 2019), Germany (Last & Wetzel, 2010), Switzerland, and Austria (Zieba, 2011); and non‐parametric methods (DEA, and Free Disposal Hull) which require no such specification and therefore afford greater flexibility. Works include theaters (Marco Serrano, 2006) and dance (Del Barrio‐Tellado & Herrero‐Prieto, 2018) in Spain.…”

“…6 6 We thus consider the number of performances and the possible repetitions thereof during different sessions as well as the size of the venue where the show is performed. See similar applications for estimating cultural supply in Zieba (2011) and Last and Wetzel (2010). …”

Quality attributes in the non-market stated-preference based valuation of cultural goods

“…One of the ways to express quality in the economics of performing arts is to use supply-side features: expanses on different elements of a performance and labour involvement, as well as a compilation of repertoire of one's own and guest performances. Zieba (2009Zieba ( , 2011 and O'Hagan and Zieba (2010) tested variables created with the use of production data for theatres in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. "Cast size" achieves the most stable results and was also used by Werck and Heyndels (2007), resulting in similarly significant and positive effects on demand.…”

An economic valuation of access to cultural institutions: museums, theatres, and cinemas

“…The domination of public ownership of cultural institutions and public support within the budgets of cultural venues is not just the case for Poland; however, the European field provides diverse solutions for the financing culture. For instance, legal state ownership is predominant in German and Austrian theatres too (Zieba 2011). Poland's neighbouring countries share its communistic heritage in the form of public supervision for cultural institutions, raising anxiety about the possibility of unjustified interventions from politicians into their cultural management (Vojtíšková and Lorencová 2015).…”