An audit of Wales? performing arts venues carried out on behalf of the National Assembly for Wales has revealed that a capital injection of over £60m is required if Wales is to support an infrastructure of performance spaces capable of presenting productions of all types and sizes.
At least £5m is urgently required to meet Health and Safety requirements, and to enable venues to comply with disability discrimination legislation; but in addition to this, a significant investment in facilities for performers and public is seen as a priority if venues are to enhance their ability to maintain and develop audiences. Many venues wish to improve their technical facilities to allow the promotion of high quality performances and to be able to respond to the growing technical requirements of touring companies.
Whilst large-scale venues generally felt they were adequately staffed for the programmes they are promoting, at the middle-scale, some venues felt that their programme is restricted by the number of technical staff they can afford, and others are unable to sustain the specialist marketing expertise needed to develop long-term strategies for developing and sustaining audiences. There is widespread concern by venues that good staff leave Wales due to low levels of remuneration, and it is often difficult to recruit staff with the necessary expertise when salaries are low and benefits are unaffordable.
In Cardiff, there is unease among venues about the potential impact of the long-awaited Wales Millennium Centre (WMC).Although it is seen as having the potential to raise the profile of the arts in Wales, many are worried that it could become a drain on both the total capital and revenue resources to the art in Wales, and result in a reduction in funding for the rest of the country. Venues within the catchment of WMC are particularly concerned that the WMC programme will increase the number of seats for performance available in an area of limited audience disposable income, which could have a depressing effect on other venues? audience growth and income. It is also feared that high levels of investment in WMC will lead to any further finance that becomes available being spent in the rest of Wales, rather than Cardiff, to redress the balance.
Whilst it is as yet unclear how the National Assembly for Wales will respond to the findings in the report, Culture Minister Jenny Randerson has indicated that she is keen for the National Assembly to ?take a lead in bringing about a cultural transformation in Wales?. Addressing ?A Kick Up The Arts?, a conference on the future of performing arts in Wales, she set out her vision for ?stable and high-quality theatre life throughout Wales?. She acknowledged that funding was the key to establishing a more secure future for the arts in Wales. ?Funding for the Arts Council of Wales this financial year has increased by nearly 8% and further increases are predicted?.