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A ‘horrible Christmas’ for Pop-Up’s dedicated team: from left, artistic director Michael Dalton, executive director Frederica Notley, project manager James Robinson and marketing manager Jennifer Taylor |
Theatre shocked by loss of £195,000 grant
AN Islington children’s theatre faces a Christmas crisis with the news that it is to lose its £195,000 Arts Council grant.
Staff at Pop-Up – whose patron is poet John Hegley – have been told they have just three weeks to mount an appeal.
Seven full-time staff are threatened with redundancy and shows planned for the new year face cancellation following the shock announcement. Mr Hegley, who has been a patron for 15 years, said he hoped the theatre, based at Robert Blair Primary School, in Brewery Road, Holloway, would appeal because there was tremendous support for the work it has been doing for almost 30 years.
He added: “The Pop-Up theatre should be nurtured for its dedication and significant expertise in this field in the same way as the company has nurtured and encouraged their young audiences.”
Other supporters include Freema Agyenam, who plays Dr Who’s assistant in the BBC show, Raquel Cassidy, seen as Jack Dee’s wife in his new comedy Lead Balloon, and child development author Penelope Leach. Pop-Up’s artistic director Michael Dalton said staff were angry and upset by the news. “This is a horrible Christmas and we got no warning,” he said. “We do excellent work throughout the country and our team are some of the most dedicated and hardworking in the industry.
“I don’t know why they decided to cut our funding. It’s all very Kafkaesque. We don’t know what we’ve done.”
The theatre specialises in productions that help young people deal with issues such as poor self-esteem and bullying. Its plays have been performed in every school in the borough and a current production is on tour in the north of England.
The grant helps the theatre keep its prices low. For each pound of Arts Council funding received, Pop-Up independently raises a further 85p for additional work with young people.
Mr Dalton added that he has heard the Arts Council is more interested in promoting new blood than supporting established companies.
“If that’s true it’s quite incredible,” he added. “We’re not against new theatre. But why destroy a style of entertainment that appeals to children and helps them overcome their difficulties in life.
“It’s very shortsighted and I can guarantee many schools who have enjoyed our work in Islington and beyond will miss us when we’ve gone.”
Fifty-three bodies – nearly a fifth of arts organisations in London – are to lose £1.25 million in funding, including Drill Hall Theatre in Bloomsbury and the Bubble Theatre Company in south London.
A spokeswoman for the Arts Council said it had used the spending round to look at which organisations were under-performing and to reflect that in grants awarded.
“In the majority of cases this has been decided on the basis of fairly long-held and well-documented issues with poor performance. In a handful of cases the Arts Council decided individual organisations were not a priority or had alternative funding options.”
If you would like to support the Pop-Up appeal, contact Jennifer Taylor on 0207 609 3339 or Pop-Up theatre, 27a Brewery Road, London N7 9PU. |
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