A new cross-disciplinary cultural centre dedicated to raising awareness of climate change is to open in Liverpool on 21 January with two photography exhibitions. The venue, EDGEspace (Experimental Dialogues for Generating Eco-culture), is the brainchild of artist-led organisation High Tide. It will offer 900 sq ft of public space and aims to be the hub of creative activity around ethical, environmental and ecological issues. EDGEspace will also provide local creative groups with an accessible venue to hire for workshops, rehearsals and meetings, with the aim of supporting and promoting a more sustainable creative community within the city.
Leeds-based dance companies Northern Ballet and Phoenix Dance Theatre are celebrating their move into a brand new home, the UK’s newest dance space. Phoenix has been without a proper home for 30 years. The building comprises seven dance studios, including a 230-seat studio theatre, and is the largest dance rehearsal space outside London. It also includes a health suite, space for public exhibitions, and houses the Northern Ballet Academy and Phoenix Youth Academy. Phoenix Dance Theatre’s Artistic Director Sharon Watson says that the new building is “the perfect place for our two companies to grow”.
Gwent Theatre is fighting the Arts Council of Wales’ decision to cut its funding. It is battling on several fronts, demanding how the arts body made its decision through a Freedom of Information request as well as raising its case with two Welsh Assembly committees. Gwent Theatre says it has a lot of support from the local community. Chairman Gregg Taylor says he is “heartened by the concern being expressed by some Cabinet Members who are themselves now asking questions of the Minister”.
People are three times more likely to engage in a creative activity as an adult if they played a musical instrument as a child, research from the Scottish Government has found. Detailed analysis of the data from the Culture Module in the 2007/8 Scottish Household Survey also shows that those who were encouraged to read for pleasure as a child are more than twice as likely to read for pleasure as an adult. This is “consistent evidence”, irrespective of other factors such as education, gender, age, income, says the report. Scottish Culture Minister Fiona Hyslop says it provides useful information for policy makers to encourage childhood participation in culture.
A set of free business planning tools for not-for-profit organisations has been produced by Cultivate, the East Midland’s organisational development agency, in association with Pro Active Resolutions, a business service organisation that specialises in accounting, business, training and consulting services. The toolkit outlines the main stages in the business planning cycle, including missions and objectives, business planning, budgeting and risk analysis.
http://www.cultivate-em.com; http://www.proactivesolutions.com