Setting the Stage: Unlocking Future Skills in the Performing Arts Sector

The paper explores the training needs within the performing arts sector (theatre, music, opera and dance) in the context of cultural and creative industries, focusing particularly on the Italian Friuli Venezia Giulia region. Theatre is particularly recognized as a key sector with significant artistic, cultural, social, and economic impacts. Stakeholders identified specific skill shortages in technical production, stage management, creative and digital competencies, entrepreneurial skills, and intercultural communication. The sector notably lacks professionals equipped with both practical technical skills and essential soft skills, including adaptability, teamwork, entrepreneurial spirit, and stress management. Digital transformation, accelerated by the pandemic, has highlighted the urgent need for training in digital literacy and hybrid performance methods. Structural challenges such as precarious employment, low pay, and generational turnover further exacerbate recruitment difficulties. Stakeholders emphasized the importance of experiential, hands-on training, longer and better-structured internships, and greater collaboration between educational institutions and industry professionals. The paper calls for multidisciplinary education strategies integrating creative, entrepreneurial, and managerial skills, advocating for policies that make cultural employment more attractive and sustainable, ultimately fostering a resilient, inclusive, and innovative workforce for the future of performing arts.