Hybrid third sector organizations in Finland – Arts and cultural institutions in focus

Abstract

This article examines hybrid organizations in the field of culture. The main two objectives of the article are 1) to examine the differences between public theatre organizations and third sector theatre organizations and 2) to study hybrid theatres in relation to public and third sector organizations. Hybrid theatres are private as to their legal status, but under municipal control. First the theories and definitions of hybridity and the overlapping between sectors are summarized. Empirical examination includes 31 big and medium-sized professional Finnish theatre institutions. In the examination, clear differences between public and third sector organizations were found in their financing, personnel and cost structures. Generally speaking, mixed-owned hybrid theatres were closer to public theatres than to third sector organizations. The study also shows that hybrid form organizations challenge legal status based definitions and distinctions in use. Further analysis is needed in the future to provide a deeper and more comprehensive picture of the phenomenon.