The title of
the article is “Why My Theatre Matters! matters…”, it was published on
"Stage.co.uk" on 14 March 2013."
It is something of a timely coincidence that the launch of the My Theatre Matters! campaign comes little more than a week after two rather contrasting arts funding announcements from councils in Belfast and Westminster.
Westminster, which has completely cut its arts spending, is part of a substantial and growing company of councils that have opted either to cease to support cultural provision or downgrade it to the point that it will be rendered a shadow of what it once was.
One could namecheck Sheffield, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Taunton and Staffordshire among recent offenders, but the certainty is that before the year’s end there will be plenty of others. Denying the value of arts spending, or at least reducing it, is an easy option for councillors. One can always point to another service that addresses more obviously a fundamental need among residents.
In Belfast, we have an example of a council prepared not only to defend its present investment but also to enhance it to a considerable degree.
Is it coincidence that a city with more experience than any other in the UK of fractured communities, violence and economic depression should be doing this? Apparently not, given that a spokesman cites the benefits to be gained in terms of “quality of life and wealth creation”.
My Theatre Matters! is a slogan that speaks for many thousands of us. Together with Equity and the TMA, The Stage invites you to come out from the shadows and be counted by signing up to this campaign.
It is something of a timely coincidence that the launch of the My Theatre Matters! campaign comes little more than a week after two rather contrasting arts funding announcements from councils in Belfast and Westminster.
Westminster, which has completely cut its arts spending, is part of a substantial and growing company of councils that have opted either to cease to support cultural provision or downgrade it to the point that it will be rendered a shadow of what it once was.
One could namecheck Sheffield, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Taunton and Staffordshire among recent offenders, but the certainty is that before the year’s end there will be plenty of others. Denying the value of arts spending, or at least reducing it, is an easy option for councillors. One can always point to another service that addresses more obviously a fundamental need among residents.
In Belfast, we have an example of a council prepared not only to defend its present investment but also to enhance it to a considerable degree.
Is it coincidence that a city with more experience than any other in the UK of fractured communities, violence and economic depression should be doing this? Apparently not, given that a spokesman cites the benefits to be gained in terms of “quality of life and wealth creation”.
My Theatre Matters! is a slogan that speaks for many thousands of us. Together with Equity and the TMA, The Stage invites you to come out from the shadows and be counted by signing up to this campaign.
All in all, it is evident that the problem of theatre funding is a burning issue. We can not but say about it, because we can't stay indifferent to the problem, because theatres are our heritage.
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