ACE reveals ‘opera analysis’ plan in response to backlash

Arts Council England (ACE) has announced plans to conduct an independent analysis of opera and musical theatre following criticism of its investment plans, Arts Professional can reveal.

Following significant backlash against decisions to cut funding to English National Opera (ENO), Glyndebourne, and Welsh National Opera, ACE has said it will conduct the work in order to "develop a shared understanding with the sector of the challenges and opportunities currently faced by it".

The move comes amid calls for ACE to develop a "strategy for opera provision based on industry consultation, audience insight and data".

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Opera was among the worst hit artforms of ACE's funding decisions, with English National Opera (ENO), based in London being removed from the National Portfolio altogether.

Meanwhile, Glyndebourne, based in East Sussex, received a 50% cut, and Welsh National Opera saw a 35% cut.

At the time of the announcement ACE suggested ENO could potentially move to Manchester and offered it £17m over three years to relocate.

But, following strong calls from MPs for government to have the decision reversed, ACE and ENO last week agreed a deal for it to continue receiving funding of £11.5m for a further year while discussions over its future continue.

Analysis of opera

However, criticism of the funding decisions has continued alongside calls for a clear strategy from ACE for the future of opera.

A statement issued to Arts Professional by ACE said the organisation has no intention of developing artform-specific strategies, but it will conduct analysis of opera and musical theatre.

"At the Arts Council we have a single 10-year strategy, Let’s Create, which shapes all our investment and development decisions," the statement said.

"We will not therefore develop separate artform or sub artform strategies.

"But as the national development agency for creativity and culture, for the past few months we have been planning to commission an independent piece of analysis, designed to focus on consideration of opera and music theatre in relation to Let’s Create.

"This analysis will help us shape our future investment in opera and music theatre and to develop a shared understanding with the sector of the challenges and opportunities currently faced by it."

ACE has said it will share further details of the work in the spring.

Most expensive form of music

Appearing on BBC's Front Row programme this week, on the same evening that ACE released details of the opera analysis work, the organisation's Chief Executive Darren Henley was asked why opera was "the biggest loser" in the funding decisions.

Henley pointed to the fact that ACE will still be spending £30m a year on the artform.

"Opera is the most expensive part of music," he said.

"It is importnat that we invest at scale in those expensive artforms. It has an orchestra, it has singers, it has technicians. To do large scale opera is expensive. The Royal Opera House is still gettiung £66m over the next three years. That's a reflection of how expensive it is."

He added that he is "very conscious" that there are a lot of changes happening for English National Opera as a result of ACE's funding announcement.

"But right the way from day one we said there was a pot of money to help them outside of our National Portfolio," he said.

"And that £11.44m that we announced last week is part of that funding.

"We want to be supportive of them. We had an instruction from government to move money out of our London portfolio. We had to do that. That meant some very difficult decisions that we had to make – this was one of them. But we are there to support English National Opera through this period of change."

Responding to criticism of the move by former Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries, Henley said he had a letter from her dated 18 February 2022 which instructed Arts Council England to move £24m out of London, spread investment more evenly across London boroughs and increase activity and engagement in areas where it had previously been low.

"We acted on those instruction. It is taxpayers and National Lottery players' money that we invest and we have invested that as wisely, and as carefully and as diligently as we can."

Henley was asked whether those instructions ran against the arms-length principle of ACE as a non-departmental government body,

Right the way through history there have been times when Secretaries of State have issued instructions and it is within their right to give broad indications of how they wish to see taxpayers' money spent.

"Government's of all parties have issued those instructions over the years to the Arts Council.

"The decisions that we then took were taken independently."