Arts Council confirms £43m funding – NT & Chichester benefit
Arts Council England (ACE) has confirmed £43million of capital investment funding, to be awarded to five national arts organisations, including the National Theatre and South Bank Centre.
The National Theatre has won £17.5million of funding, the largest single award so far. The award accounts for a quarter of the theatre’s £70million Future project, intended to “open up” and regenerate the 1970s listed building to a new generation. A further £40million of funding has been met from various external donors, and revenues from War Horse.
The Royal Opera House, which also plays host to the Royal Ballet, has been awarded £10million to renovate its buildings, which the venue’s chief executive has reassuringly confirmed “will not be spent on chandeliers and red carpets”.
The Soutbank Centre arts complex also made an application for £20million, earmarked to renovate the Haward Gallery and Queen Elizabeth Hall, but only £3.3million has been confirmed so far. The money which has been confirmed is a development grant to “further develop the application” from the South Bank centre in the hope that more of the proposed £20million can be confirmed at a later date. The next stage of the South Bank’s application is due in September 2013.
The Chichester Festival Theatre was also successful in its application for £12million. The grant has allowed the original home of West End hits Sweeney Todd and Singin’ In The Rain to come within sight of its proposed £22million fundraising target for the RENEW project to repair, maintain and upgrade the Grade II listed building.
Applications, which were announced in March, have been filed by dozens of arts organisations nationwide, all vying for a slice of the £114million of funding up for grabs – ACE’s first capital investment programme in nine years. More awards are expected to be announced in the months to come.
