A new annual award worth £10,000 will be made to ?an arts organisation or programme of international or potentially international significance? by the North West Business Leadership Team, a group comprising the leaders of 27 of the region?s largest businesses. The Lever Prize has been inspired by the example of arts patron Lord Leverhulme, and will be awarded for the first time in January 2006, and then each year until 2010.
Plans for a major season of events and activities celebrating Chinese arts and culture and the historic links between London and China have been announced by Mayor Ken Livingstone. China in London 2006 will be organised through a partnership between Visit London, the London Chinatown Chinese Association and the Royal Academy of Arts, whose exhibition ?China: The Three Emperors, 1662?1795? will be a cornerstone of the season.
The Isle of Wight Council, Swale Borough Council and Maidstone District Council will each be receiving £135,000 over the next three years through the ?Art at the Centre? scheme run by Arts Council England, South East. The scheme encourages local authorities to involve local communities in embedding the arts into regeneration plans. w: http://www.aatc.org.uk
Architecture Week 2005 runs with a range of events from 17?26 June. These include ?Theatre and Architecture: The National Theatre Architecture Platform?, a discussion about the specific challenges and contemporary thinking behind theatre architecture. t: 020 7452 3000; w: http://www.architectureweek.org.uk
Interplay Theatre is bringing its production of Daughter of the Wind to Leeds. The multi-sensory show, which uses touch, sight, smell and hearing, is aimed at children with profound and multiple learning disabilities and is performed in a specially constructed dome which holds around 15 people. The company is also touring special needs schools nationwide. For details, contact Sally Brown. e: sally-brown@btconnect.com
A Directory of Brokerage Organisations that facilitate relationships between formal and informal education and arts organisations has been published by The National Campaign for the Arts Research and Education. The Directory, listed by geographic region, provides information about the work that the organisations do, the ages of the young people they work with, and the security clearance required of staff. New entries can be made by contacting NCARE. t: 020 7333 0375; e: nca@artscampaign.org.uk