There are 157 live entertainment projects financed by the Region in the three-year period 2022-2024 within the scope of the purposes of Regional Law 13/99 “Regulations regarding entertainment”. Projects which saw an investment of approximately 12 million 400 thousand euros for each year of the three-year period. Of the funded projects, 76 are for production and distribution activities, 73 concern the organization of shows and festivals, one the Residency Center and 7 are coordination projects for specific sectors of live entertainment.
Also for the three-year period 2025-2027, with the new program regarding live shows, the Region is preparing to confirm its political and financial commitment. The program was voted favorably today by Culture Commission.
And give
2022, in particular, proved to be the year of relaunch: overall investments, considering law 13 and other sources of funding, reached 26 million euros. Music was the genre to which the most resources were allocated (50.3%), followed by theater with (24.3%), multidisciplinary (17.8%), dance and circus (7% and 0.6%).
In terms of support for the renovation and technological modernization of theater venues, again in 2022, nine projects were financed in as many theater venues, eight of which in historic theaters owned by the municipality, for a total investment of over 5 million euros, of which 3 million covered by regional contribution.
In 2022 the Emilia-Romagna Region increased the number of shows by 97.2% compared to 2021 (also thanks to the overcoming of the pandemic phase), offering on average 42.5 performances for every 10,000 inhabitants, ranking first at a national level. Viewers were also growing, with an increase in absolute value of over 3 million 300 thousand units. On the employment front, a total of 12,214 entertainment workers worked in Emilia-Romagna, with artistic figures accounting for 63%, an increase of 30% compared to 2021. The number of technicians and production workers also grew services (+17%), as well as administrative (+17%). Even the workers under 29 recorded a positive variation of +40%.
As part of the 2024-2026 budget, a new call for contributions aimed at improving and qualifying publicly owned entertainment venues is being approved. The resources available amount to 4 million euros for interventions that will be carried out in the years 2025 and 2026.
The new program
Among the priorities outlined by the new regional program 2025-2027 are the promotion of entertainment, innovation in programming and generational turnover, with attention to new authors and young artists. We will also focus on stable employment and the qualification of staff, on expanding the audience, on support for production and distribution and on advanced training opportunities.
The aim is to promote the organization of reviews and festivals that are characterized by a real level of quality, but also projects in more specific sectors, such as theater experiences in the region’s penitentiary institutions.
Of note is the very recent regulatory change that introduces, in article 4 of regional law 13/99, among the types of intervention, also the contribution to the current expenses of public and private entities for the restart of historic theaters closed for more than eight years, with a focus on projects characterized by multidisciplinarity and the presence of training and audience research activities differentiated by age groups.
Contributions are also foreseen for interventions on public entertainment venues (renovation, restoration and adaptation) and for the reduction of energy consumption of theatres.
