ArtScape: Are people working in the arts starting to come together in a more organised way, and will the current crisis over the effects of funding cuts mobilise something? There may be stirrings, but it's early days for a "sector" that includes a hugely diverse collection of organisations and people, writes Deirdre Falvey.
But for a start, most of the "group of eight" who were signatories to a letter published in The Irish Times on January 29th - Monica Spencer (Daghdha), Garry Hynes (Druid), Fergus Linehan (DTF), Michael Colgan (Gate), Gerry Godley (IMC), Martin Murphy (TEAM), Jerome Hynes (Wexford Opera) and John Kelly (Irish Chamber Orchestra) - plus a couple of others, met on Tuesday in Dublin. While a formal lobbying group has yet to emerge, Hynes said there was "deep frustration on the ground", among organisations and people in the arts about the serious impact of the cuts, with production plans being changed, and the long-term scenario is worrying. There is concern, too, about smaller organisations which effectively have no voice, and which have been hit by the cuts. Some briefing contact needs to be established with the Minister, John O'Donoghue, and he, the Government and the Arts Council need to be aware of what's happening on the ground.
Godley said, "There is definitely a sense that the inertia that has gripped the sector about mobilising is dissipating and that it is becoming organised". Mark Mulqueen of the Irish Film Institute, who also attended Tuesday's meeting, is in favour of formulating a federation, and a number of people from theatre companies, individual artists and people working in film, have approached him. "The Arts Council was in a tight corner with the budget, and how they communicated the decisions may be where they made life difficult for themselves."
He is looking forward to opportunities for a review of arts policy, including the Arts Council's shift to a development agency, and he sees the relatively new Minister introducing a new Arts Act as an opportunity for this. He points out that the new Arts Council, which will be appointed before the summer, is critical.
Meanwhile, an informal meeting of venue managers - from 18 theatres and arts centres around the country - also met recently to discuss the effect of the cutbacks, particularly what they see as the prescriptive nature of venue funding, where they cannot use Arts Council money to fund their own productions; and they would like to see a representative voice emerge to raise the concerns of the venue sector.
Watch this space.
Doran in the headlines
Irishman Seán Doran, director of the Perth International Arts Festival in Australia (this year's festival finishes tomorrow), has been appointed artistic director of English National Opera, writes Michael Dervan.
The appointment has stirred controversy among conservative commentators in Britain. "Discord over ENO's 'wacky' new director," ran a headline in the Daily Telegraph, and John Allison, editor of Opera magazine, is quoted as saying that Doran is "not really suitable for the job".
Derry-born Doran (42) was artistic director of the Belfast Festival in 1997 and 1998, and his two years there saw a radical re-shaping of the festival. His innovations in Perth created upheaval within and without the festival organisation and led to a major deficit from his first year's programming. But in just four years he has increased the festival budget by A$4 million (€2.2 million) and masterminded the creation of nine new festivals within the main festival. This year's festival is expected to break even.
Among the headline-grabbing events he has mounted in Perth are the 18-hour Chinese epic, The Peony Pavilion, 50 Antony Gormley sculptures spread around a desert (it requires a 1,000-mile trip to view them all), a rap opera, and Wagner's Götterdämmerung re-set in the Australian goldrush.
A golden touch is what he'll need at ENO, which received an Arts Council of England "stabilisation" bailout of £9.2 million (€13.9 million) in 1997, and is currently projecting a deficit of £4.2 million (€6.3 million) by March, 2004. The ENO chorus is poised to take strike action in the face of a proposal to cut its strength by a third, and there is unrest in the orchestra about a similar, but proportionally less severe, loss of around 20 jobs. To add to the woes, the company's home, The Coliseum, is shortly to close its doors for major refurbishment. Even ENO's chairman, Martin Smith, has called the company "chronically sick".
Doran issued a statement from Perth, saying "The ENO values of quality, innovation and accessibility I admire and share. Opera has been a lifelong passion of mine, so I acknowledge a great sense of privilege in being invited to take part in the shaping of a new and positive future for this company." He will need all of his passion and commitment to deal with the brave new world he faces into from next April.
Abbey options
At first glance the Abbey's 2003 programme, launched this week, may not look too exciting, with classics and revivals dominating, despite Ben Barnes's staunch defence for staging the "central repertoire". But the 12 new commissions which he mentioned, do give some hope for late this year, or most likely next.
The Abbey has just received confirmation from the Arts Council of its budget, roughly 15 per cent less than last year's €4.8m, and it has scaled back on productions - replacing some planned productions "at the back end of the year" with plays which have smaller casts, and reducing the number of shows at the Peacock.
All the same, Barnes is keeping his options open, and they hope to stage at least one other new play in 2003. The commissions, which don't figure in this year's published programme, (and some of which will feature in their centenary plans for next year), include new work by Aaron Sorkin (of West Wing fame), Vincent Woods, Nicola McCarthy, a project on Swift from Conall Morrison, work by Colm Tóibín about various (historical) Abbey controversies, and an "installation" from Anglo Irish Bank writer-in-residence Paul Mercier. Barnes's attitude is to make the most of the circumstances and he believes it's crucial that the recent funding level isn't a new baseline from which organisations would have to creep up to decent levels of funding.
Spring stars
The fourth Vogler Spring Festival takes place at Drumcliffe, Co Sligo from May 2nd to 5th, writes Michael Dervan. Pianist Barry Douglas is the major star joining the festival's resident ensemble, the Vogler String Quartet. He'll be heard in solo and chamber music roles, as well as accompanying the British mezzo soprano Alice Coote in song-cycles by Mahler and Schumann.
Other visitors include violinist Priya Mitchell, clarinettist Ronald van Spaendonck, viola player Lars Anders Tomter, cellist Daniel Müller-Schott (a protégé of Anne-Sophie Mutter), pianist Robert Kulek, and Irish musicians Patricia Moynihan (flute), Clíona Doris (harp), and Dermot Dunne (accordion). Booking and information from Artscope on 01-505 9582.
The Vogler Spring Festival was created out of an innovative partnership between Sligo County Council, Sligo Borough Council, the Arts Council and Music Network. One of Music Network's newer schemes, Young Musicwide, has just announced the results of its latest auditions, seeking talent among young wind players. New York-based clarinettist Carol McGonnell has been taken on for Music Network grooming through "a specially designed professional support package and publicity campaign, a newly commissioned work, a Dublin Castle Coach House showcase concert, a promotional CD and advice on a range of subjects including self-management, self-promotion, and repertoire building". Details from Music Network on 01-671 9429.
And furthermore . . .
Scott Watson, executive producer of the Dublin Fringe Festival, is moving on - and his job was advertised yesterday in this paper. Watson is heading home to the US to work on other projects after what he describes as a great two years at the Fringe. The Fringe is looking for someone with a commitment and passion for contemporary arts, as well as a track record in
planning, administration, and fundraising. Fringe director Vallejo Gantner praised "Scott's imagination, exacting eye for detail and boundless support for the artists" and said "it's been a pleasure to work with and learn from him. He will be a hard act to follow." CVs, with letter by 5 p.m. on Feb 28th to fringe@eircom.net or Chairperson, Dublin Fringe Festival, 12 East Essex Street, Dublin 2 . . . Pianist John O'Conor, one of the greatest exponents of Beethoven's piano music, opens the RIAM Trios @ 3 series tomorrow (with Israeli violinist Eyal Kless and British cellist William Butt), with a programme featuring Beethoven trios. The concert series features members of the academy's distinguished teaching staff perform at 3 p.m. on Sunday afternoons in the Katherine Brennan Hall . . . The closing date for entries in the Irish Schools Video Competition is February 21st. The competition is part of the Fresh Film Festival, Ireland's children's film festival in Limerick (March 26th-28th) but entries - drama, horror, animation, comedy, action, romance, documentaries - come from all over Ireland. For more information see www.freshfilmfestival.net or e-mail info@freshfilmfestival.net or phone: 061-319555.