Finance

Shakespeare Birthplace Trust has been gifted £1m from American playwright Ken Ludwig, the largest private donation in the trust’s 177-year history.

The trust has described the donation as “transformative”, adding it will go towards conservation works at Grade-I listed building Hall’s Croft, once home to Shakespeare’s daughter.

An audit of the conservation requirements of the 17th Century property is currently ongoing, with University of Staffordshire archaeologists mapping the building’s exterior to create a 3D model of the building.

“Our conservation work is a central part of our work as a charity and it enables our visitors and audiences to place Shakespeare in time and space as they explore his life story and his work, which continues to speak with profound meaning and relevance today,” said Tim Cooke, CEO of the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.

“Shakespeare is the great foundation for all of us who work in the theatre, and it's an honour to support the preservation of Shakespeare's legacy in Stratford-upon-Avon,” Ludwig added. “As a playwright, restoring Hall's Croft is a way of giving back for the lifetime of joy and inspiration I've derived from the British theatre.”

A campaign group has written an open letter to the Charity Commission expressing “deep anxiety” over the financial management of Seven Dials Playhouse after the charity failed to submit its annual return and financial statements, which are 89 days overdue.

In their letter, the campaign group Actor at the Centre (AATC) calls on the Charity Commission to “urgently engage” with the trustees at Seven Dials Playhouse to ensure they are “giving due consideration to the representations of the performing arts community in London" and "properly accounting to the public for their management of the charity”.

Formally known as The Actors Centre, the Covent Garden-based charity was founded in 1978 by patron Sir Lawrence Olivier to “create a space where working actors can network and support each other as well as continue their professional training”.

During the pandemic, the organisation was forced to close its premises, losing over half its membership. It received over £450,000 in financial support, including £360,000 from the Cultural Recovery Fund and in 2021, rebranded to become Seven Dials Playhouse, ditching its former membership model.

AATC claims the building was “repurposed” during Covid and has become a West End receiving house with regular ongoing acting training “effectively eliminated”. 

A statement from Seven Dials Theatre read out at an AATC meeting on 22 April did not directly address concerns over its financial management but did note that as a charity that is not publicly subsidised, its income is earned through ticket sales, industry and corporate hires and bar sales.

The organisation said the cost-of-living crisis and changes in audience behaviour made “forecasting income extremely challenging”.
It added that "as soon as it is viable", it plans to continue “a programme of professional and artist development".

The Charity Commission said it would be reminding the charity of its reporting responsibilities.