Some thoughts on Arts Funding

Ahead of tonight's Exeter Civic Society meeting on a new city centre, I am reviewing all I have written and said about #Theatre4Exeter over the past few months. In particular I remember that much of the conversation with LonWon - compiled in a Storify thread - was carried out whilst I was in the Tyneside Cinemea in Newcastle.

The cinema is a Grade II listed art deco building dating from 1937, when it opened as the News Theatre showing newsreels. At that time there were around 47 separate cinemas in Newcastle with a total of more than 40,000 cinema seats available every day.

During my time at the Newcastle Playhouse [1980-81] I saw many films there, and not only blockbusters. On one ocassion I attended a screening in one of the smaller cinemas - I can't remember what I was hoping to see, but what I stumbled across was the screening of a Gaelic language [without subtitles] film for an Irish Society based in Newcastle.

Looking closely at the bottom of the cinema's webpage, I note with concern that it is funded in part from Newcastle City Council.

Just last month, Newcastle City Council announced that it needed to cut services and shed 1300 jobs in order to save £90 million. One of the proposals put forward is a plan to cut all funding to arts organisations in the city, including the Tyneside Cinema, to be phased in over the next 3years.

You can see all of the proposed Council budgets and, importantly, feedback on the proposals here: http://www.newcastle.gov.uk/news-story/fair-choices-tough-times.

On the 15 November, Northern Stage Chief Executive Erica Whyman spoke at a press conference at the National Theatre alongside their CEO, Nick Hytner, and Danny Boyle in which they campaigned not to cut the arts funding in regional theatres.
In her subsequent statement to the press on 20th November, Erica Whyman said, on the threatened cuts to culture in Newcastle: “No-one is suggesting culture should be exempt but we must remember that our theatres, galleries and museums are very significant contributors to the local economy, and to the vibrancy and confidence of a place . These so-called non-essential services are essential to people’s quality of life and we can't afford to lose them. The savings available in cash terms if the arts are cut are genuinely tiny compared with the good we do.”
Below are links to some of the major press articles covering the story.
* An article by Lee Hall (written for but unpublished in The Guardian) in which he analyses NCC’s proposed cuts: Read here
* Guardian article on the ‘war of words’ between Lee Hall and the leader of the council (includes a quote from Erica): Read here
So these are the real threats that are facing present, well-established arts organisations.

I acknowledge that arts, leisure and culture [in it's widest sense] can bring significant benefits to the local community and economy here in Exeter - its just that the present time I don't feel that a 1200 capacity theatre is the correct way to deliver those benefits.

BREAKING:
As I write this, BBC News is reporting  the worrying news Cineworld has bought rival cinema chain Picturehouse for £47.3m. The all-cash deal sees Cineworld add Picturehouse's 21 cinemas to its current 80 sites [76 of which are multiplexs with 5 screens or more] across the UK.