The Theatre of Entrepreneurship: Learning to Perform the Speculative Self in University Entrepreneurship Programs

Abstract

AbstractHow do colleges teach students to be entrepreneurial? For three years, we observed young entrepreneurs, most of them students at Virginia Commonwealth University. Drawing from interviews with 57 students and recent graduates and observations of entrepreneurship-related events, we argue that entrepreneurial training encourages students to embrace a future-oriented and relational form of human capital. This speculative self (1) requires a performed authenticity that conveys the individual’s passion and relatability; (2) emphasizes potential for scalability and growth; and (3) is oriented toward the expectations of investors. Much of this work happens through the performance of the startup pitch, a well-crafted narrative of personal and commercial awakening. This study highlights three aspects of entrepreneurship training. First, students are encouraged to pitch continuously, the pitch serving as a means of affirming one’s entrepreneurial identity. Second, students are trained to convey their devotion to their venture through a relatable narrative. Third, students learn to pitch for investors interested in their potential to become an investment with rapid market growth. This performance is not limited to university entrepreneurship programs, but speaks to a broader transformation of the ways that workers are asked to demonstrate their value to a world unsure about whether they are a worthwhile investment.