White paper on creativity - ebla center

Chapter 13These experiments, seen alongside thesuccess of films of opera of excellentquality, lxxiii demonstrate an awareness ofevolving audiences and the opportunitiesoffered by technologies and links withother production sectors. The growingpublic interest can also be detected bythe presence for the first time of anopera album in the Nielsen Top 100 –Mozart’s Magic Flute conducted byClaudio Abbado – and the fact that 12%of music downloads from iTunes areclassical and opera music. On the supplyside, in some cases the audiences’ needsand expectations have been catered to byinstalling displays with subtitles on thebacks of seats or the use of subtitlesprojected on a screen above the stage.This may mark the beginning of radicallydifferent approach compared to previousseasons, provided that the publicstrategy of protecting, consolidating anddiffusing opera is not only supported byeffective rules, but also by greaterefficiency in managing opera houses andtheir activities.13.3 The productionstructure: lavish sets andunion restraintsHeir to the flexible, agile and resourcefulimpresarios of the past, operaorganisation today suffers from unwieldysuperfluous structures. The need –certainly indispensable – for publicfunding has over the decades graduallycreated a “gilded cage” in which operaproducers enjoy privileged institutionalconditions but at the price of awidespread aversion to risk.Entrepreneurial stagnancy has ended upbeing reflected in a widespreadconformity in terms of style,accentuating the mummification ofopera houses which, on the contrary, onthe grounds of their cultural reputationand financial resources could follow thepath of creative production andinnovative management.In principle, opera is an art formcharacterised by great immediacy. In thissense it seems capable of attracting widerand more heterogeneous audiences. Itssemantic power is confirmed by theplundering of the opera repertoire fortelevision theme tunes, film soundtracksand advertising jingles. Opera is thus atthe centre of a host of markets withvarious technological media, fromrecords to internet platforms, lxxiv whichcombine a variety of traditional modes,styles and content with advancedtechnology. These features requireflexible multidimensional structures.But the current situation is characterisedby very rigid and compartmentalisedorganisations. This is not the outcome ofa deliberate policy, but rather astratification created in parallel byoperators in the sector and legislators ina gradual consolidation which currentlyprevents painless change. Moulded bythe outlook and structure of their natureas public bodies (and until the 1990sthey had this formal legal status), Italianopera houses have complex andambiguous decision-making processes,inflexible labour relations, and static,limited activities.WHITE PAPER ON CREATIVITY 301