Too big to fail
Rethinking the foundations of Australia’s performing arts policies
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 12340403 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Karen Hands (0000-0003-0541-7270, University of the Sunshine Coast, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2020 |
| Volume | 27 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 437-448 |
| Publication date | 2020-07-16 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | International Journal of Cultural Policy (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1028-6632 • E-ISSN: 1477-2833 |
| Publisher | Routledge (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/10286632.2020.1786079 |
| OpenAlex | W3043756014 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 17 |
This research examines three political moments in the Australian theatre sector as turning points in contemporary understanding of the sector’s financial foundations. Socio-cultural and economic conditions leading to the establishment of The Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust in 1954, the instigation of the Industries Assistance Commission Inquiry in 1976, and the commissioning of the Major Performing Arts Inquiry in 1999, and their impact on the theatre sector, are reviewed in this paper. These political moments took place against changing economic policies in Australia. By reviewing the economic transition from Keynesian 'welfare' to economic rationalism, the interventionalist nature of these policy moments and their effect on the artistic vibrancy of the sector is understood. This paper reveals a tension between the sector’s Keynesian foundations, which underpinned the Trust's intentions to establish a financially sustainable sector, and the now dominant economic rationalist model which restricts the performing arts’ capacity to flourish. Through analysing secondary documents and scholarly discussion, this research reconsiders the legacy of the Trust as a key policy landmark. It proposes that The Trust succeeded in delivering artistic outcomes, but failed in its financial objective to establish a sustainable sector. The role of the Trust is often misconstrued in scholarly and professional discussions about the necessity of arts funding, and by reconceptualising these political moments as interventions of policy, a new perspective of the foundation of Australian arts funding can be appreciated
Commission · Economics · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Public relations · Sociology · The arts · Welfare · Cultural Industries and Urban Development · Law · Public Administration · Social and Cultural Dynamics · Finance
Theatre Australia (Un)limited
On the Performing Arts
Economic Rationalism in Canberra
Putting the “art” back into arts policy making
Cultural wars in an Australian context
A Critique of Definitions of the Cultural and Creative Industries in Public Policy
From Cultural to Creative Industries
Re-Visioning Arts and Cultural Policy
Arts and Business
Economic rationalism in Canberra 25 years on
| Unique citing works | 3 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1 |
| Citation span | 2023 - 2026 (4) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 3 |