Innovation for change in Italian Theatres. Marketing and sustainability accounting in the post-pandemic

During the pandemic (2020) public grants were allocated to Italian theatres according to an accounting, which included both the issue of employment and the IT (Information Technology) exploitation via websites and social media marketing. After the pandemic (2022) theatres retained the legacy of digitization, while public grants were delivered for the return to live performances with all reinstated personnels. Considering a significant sample of theatres, a two-stage least squares regression will be implemented to comment how much public grants depended on 2022’s accounting data, which included the marketing and IT expense. Results provide evidence of the highest and positive correlation between public grants and both marketing and IT expense and the personnel expense. The aim of this paper is to give evidence to the change of cultural policies, which include sustainability values in measurement practices, to deliver grants during and after such an external and disruptive event.