Bridging social network analysis and field theory through multidimensional data analysis: The case of the theatrical field

- The field is formalized as a network of companies involved in stage co-productions.
- Multidimensional data analysis is used to analyse both network ties and attributes.
- Different partnerships in co-productions determine unequal positioning in the field.
- Blockmodeling reveals hierarchy and segmentation of the network structure.
- Prominent network positions are associated with high economic and symbolic capital.

In this study, the theatre industry is conceived of as a field of cultural production, and analysed in the framework of Bourdieu's field theory and social network analysis (SNA). The theatrical field is formalized as an affiliation network of companies participating in stage co-productions in Italy's Campania region, over four theatre seasons. Differently from Bourdieu, but similarly to other works in the sociology of culture and the arts, the study focuses on relational and attribute-based dimensions of theatre production, presenting a novel way to combine field theory and SNA. By adopting the positional approach of SNA through Multiple Correspondence Analysis (MCA), Multiple Factor Analysis (MFA) and blockmodeling for affiliation networks, the study reveals oppositions among companies by reason of their differential partnerships in co-productions, and a combination of hierarchy and segmentation characterizing the network structure of the field. These oppositions also appear in the 'objective' social space defined by the attributes of companies and co-productions (positions and position-takings), showing the unequal distribution of symbolic cultural capital among theatre producers and the latter's inclinations towards different theatrical styles and genres.