THE STATE OF PLAYS
ROSIE MURRAY-WEST ASKS ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY STAKEHOLDERS HOW THEY PLAN TO BOUNCE BACK...
ACCORDING to the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR), culture and the arts contribute an estimated £11billion to Britain’s economy every year. Most theatres and other cultural institutions shut their doors on or before lockdown was announced on March 23, and most reopened only briefly in the autumn, when they were able to put on socially distanced events, dramatically reducing the number of people in the audience.
As well as the furlough scheme, which has helped some of these organisations keep on employees, the Government brought in a £1.57billion Culture Recovery Fund with grants for smaller organisations and loans for bigger ones.
Many are now waiting for the outcome of the third round of grants from the CRF, with Peter Heath, the MD of the Professional Lighting and Sound Association (PLASA) concerned that the remaining money will be spread thinly due to huge demand.
He says: ‘There are a lot of people applying for it at this point – including those who didn’t think they’d be eligible before.’
One of the main issues, though, is that most of the people who make Britain’s performances are not direct employees, but freelancers, and many have fallen between the cracks of the Government’s support scheme. Some of these actors, musicians and stage hands did not receive funding from furlough or from the self-employed income support scheme (SEISS), and have had to survive for almost a year with no income.
Charlotte Geeves, who runs the Bristol Old Vic theatre, says she is particularly concerned for their plight and that it will have an impact on the diversity and quality of British theatre.
Ally Wolf, who runs the Clapham Grand, agrees. ‘The grants prioritise buildings, not people,’ he says.
‘What’s happened with freelancers is appalling really,’ says John Gilhooly, director of concert venue The Wigmore Hall. The hall has put on a large number of socially distanced concerts, some with audiences and some without, which has allowed it to pay artists. These people have paid their taxes and have fallen between the cracks,’ he says.
The Bristol Old Vic used its Culture Recovery Grant (CRG) to employ these freelancers when restrictions loosened a little last year, but with many shows having to adapt or close when restrictions tightened it has been tough. The theatre has brought out online content, but it is hard to break even.
‘No one is making any money, if I’m honest,’ Charlotte says. She’s had to cut expenditure on the fabric of her theatre to the bare minimum and make a third of her staff redundant, and yet she feels she is one of the lucky ones – thanks to the grant and the fact that the Old Vic is not in need of huge amounts of maintenance. Colin
Savage, who runs the Phoenix Arts Club in London’s Soho, says that the requirement to socially distance when his venue reopened in the autumn with a non-binary cabaret, meant that there was no chance of making any money, although he did benefit from a CRG.
‘The theatre doesn’t work with social distancing, and that’s still something the Government doesn’t really understand,’ he says.
While few theatres have announced permanent closure yet, experts fear that there is more pain to come. Sonia Friedman, producer of Harry Potter And The Cursed Child, says that 70 per cent of theatres could close by Christmas.
Jon Morgan, head of the Theatres Trust, says that some of the effects of the prolonged shutdown of British theatre won’t be felt until 2022, and that he is as worried about large venues as he is about smaller ones.
‘Smaller theatres have been able to be a bit more flexible – they have a smaller staff body and are often local authority run,’ he explains.
Larger organisations, such as the National Theatre, were handed loans. ‘It’s the bedrock that stabilises the organisation, but it’s important to note that it’s a loan that we will have to pay back,’ says a spokesman.
Like many other theatres, the National had to close two of its productions due to changed guidelines in December.
‘This was obviously very hard for everyone who had worked incredibly hard to get the theatre back open safely and the work back on the stage,’ the spokesman adds. ‘We won’t be able to survive if we’re not able to reopen properly and begin to perform to larger audiences in 2021.’