Clwyd Theatr Cymru on the move again

A one-off grant of £100,000 by the Welsh Assembly Government has been made to enable Clwyd Theatr Cymru to resurrect its mobile touring theatre and present 20 performances in smaller, non-traditional venues such as community centres and village halls, particularly in disadvantaged areas. The mobile theatre aims to engage whole communities in all aspects of a production, including rigging the structure, hosting the theatre company, attending workshops, rehearsals and performances and taking part in the education programmes.

It was first established with Arts Council of Wales (ACW) Lottery money but, in the absence of further funding or commercial sponsorship, has been unable to tour since 2002. Then, 3,850 people attended the mobile tour of To Kill a Mockingbird and 1,639 young people participated in the tour’s education programme.

News of the grant, which will be drawn from the first phase of the Arts Outside Cardiff scheme announced by Culture Minister Alan Pugh last year. As the Assembly Member for Clwyd West, his interventions in the arts in Wales have caused some controversy. These have included a special grant of £560,000 awarded to Flintshire Council by the National Assembly for Wales to enable Clwyd Theatr Cymru to write off its outstanding debts (ArtsProfessional issue 37, November 4, 2002), and more recently his dictum that smoke free policies must be introduced at ACW-funded arts venues (ArtsProfessional issue 69, March 8, 2004). Such levels of direct involvement by the Government are thought by some to undermine ACW, whose £1.4m annual revenue grant to Clwyd Theatr Cymru is not intended to cover the costs of the mobile theatre. Furthermore, the proximity of some of the potential community touring venues to mainstream theatres in Wales with greater seating capacities has raised questions in the arts community about the levels of subsidy per head required to sustain the initiative.