In Denmark labour cost are one of the highest costs in any enterprise. As we have to pay very high taxes the basic wages are higher than in most other countries. Comparing the ballet company with peer companies, the Danish dancers are paid a higher basic wage and is paid 365 days a year. The theatre also covers some of their pension pays. As the budget cuts have gone on for years, most other area have already been hit. The credit crunch had made more difficult to sell tickets and the theathre is hard hit by the costs of running the new opera and drama house. When the opera was given by a big sponsor to the theathre management did not really wanted the gift as it came with no money to run it. The state tthen provided some money, but not enough to cover the cost and what money was given has since been cut. As it is the company has two larges stages but only one orchestra. If a ballet and opera should play the same night, they have to hire a second orchestra for one of the two performances. It makes it difficult and expensive to for instance do more performances of a popular programme and it makes it difficult to really use the artistic assets. As the theatre like any opera house loose money everytime they perform, the cure so far has been to cut number of performance, but that makes each performance more costly as most of the employes are contracted for almost life. A statistic was publish last week that showed that the ten most expensive productions was 7 operas, 1 musical and 2 ballets. The Opera beeing much more expensive than ballet. The two ballets were Romeo & Juliet and The Ballerina program. WHy were they so expensive. R+J was a rerun, but it include many extras, has a complicated decor and I suspect that the cost of hiring an extra orchestra hits hard. The Ballerina programme is a fairly cheap programme, but as it only had six performances the cost for each performance is high.
What can be done? Looking at Sweden and Norway, their national theatres are cheaper to run but has more performance. They have split into independent drama and Opera/ballet houses. I cannot see how that split can make it cheaper, but as it works in the other countries that could be a solution. Another solution could be to merge the orchestra and choir with the othe national orchestra and choir. That is the model in Austria where Wienna Philhamonics has more members than an ordinary orchestra but do the concert scheduke and cater for the operas needs. As long as the orchestra is not pplaying Mahler and the Opera Wagner on the same night that would work and save money.