On Thursday I was at the Arts Council of Wales in Cardiff to interview ACW Chief Executive Nick Capaldi in our first Running Your Group LIVE online event. The Arts Council of Wales is supporting the development of our Running Your Group online services in Wales and part of our agreement with ACW is a commitment to a number of online events with a Wales focus. This first interview also gave us an opportunity to test the technology and practice how these online events will work. Daniel and I arrived an hour before we were due to go live – but only managed to get a working internet connection with about five minutes to spare! Nonetheless we started webcasting on schedule at 2 pm and a small number of people from all corners of the UK joined us to watch the live video stream and contribute to the text chat. We had some problems with the sound – most people could see the video quite clearly but had great difficulty hearing us: we may need to invest in a better microphone. But apart from that the system worked and we were able to receive questions and comments from subscribers while we were webcasting. Nick Capaldi was a very easy person to interview – extremely eloquent, thoughtful and interesting – and very kind with some of my less than perfectly framed questions. Our discussion covered the issue of quality in relation to the amateur arts, the role of umbrella bodies, the Arts Council of Wales Investment Review and the National Assembly for Wales Communities, Equality and Local Government Committee inquiry into Participation in the Arts. Nick said some very supportive things about the amateur arts and Voluntary Arts Wales but I think I managed to push him on a few key points rather than giving him too easy a ride. You will be able to judge for yourselves as the full, unedited interview will shortly be available to watch again on the Running Your Group online events page (with enhanced audio!). We also plan to make the interview available as an audio mp3 file so you can listen to it on your ipod or mp3 player and we will be issuing a short video with some highlights from the interview on YouTube. Watch out for more Running Your Group LIVE online events soon.
Robin Simpson.
Filed under: meetings | Tags: ace, England, excellence, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, Scotland, UK, volarts, Wales
On Monday evening I was at the Royal Overseas League in London for the Epic Awards Winners’ Reception. Representatives of the four winners of the Epic Awards 2011 – Phizzfest from Dublin, Buddy Beat from Paisley, Third Floor Gallery from Cardiff and Peterborough Male Voice Choir plus the Ireland runners-up, Ballymena Arts Partnership – were presented with their awards by Voluntary Arts President, Lord Luce. We were joined by an audience including representatives of Arts Council England, the National Council for Voluntary Organisations, Audiences UK, the Theatrical Management Association, the Paul Hamlyn Foundation and People’s Voice Media as well as Voluntary Arts staff and Board members. It was a lovely evening: all the winning groups had compelling stories to tell and gave passionate and inspirational speeches. The aim of the Epic Awards is to showcase excellence and innovation in the amateur arts and the 2011 winners are a credit to our sector and proved to be wonderful advocates for Voluntary Arts.
Accepting the England award, Peterborough Male Voice Choir Musical Director Will Prideaux said:
“Voluntary arts organisations transform lives and build stronger communities. I love the stories of friendships created and enthusiasm rediscovered or of depression beaten, horizons broadened or prejudices cast aside; of hope, of trust, of a sense of belonging or simply giving people something to look forward to – the list is endless and endlessly amazing.”
Tina Robinson accepted the Ireland award on behalf of Phizzfest, the Phibsborough Community Arts Festival, and said:
“Our experience to date has shown us the importance of the arts as a community development tool forging links and creating channels of communication within the many diverse groups in our area. Phizzfest is run entirely by volunteers and this award is a huge validation of our efforts and has given us great encouragement to continue with this project.”
Tom Chalmers from Scottish drumming group The Buddy Beat said:
“With the film we want to inspire people to get out there and get involved and if anybody’s got a mental health condition they should never let that hold them back because there’s so much out there that they can participate in – it helps you improve your mental health and your self-worth.”
Wales winners Third Floor Gallery gave a very entertaining speech about their humble beginnings and thanked all the photographers who entrusted their images to the gallery and endorsed their unique way of presenting exhibitions.
Watch Epic Winners 2011: The Movie at http://blog.epicawards.co.uk/2012/02/epic-winners-2011-the-movie/
The Government Culture Ministers in England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland all sent messages of congratulation to the Epic Award winners:
Jimmy Deenihan, Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Republic of Ireland Government said:
“Phizzfest is a wonderful example of local volunteers and business interests working in tandem for the benefit of the wider community. The festival was a resounding success with something for people of all ages and backgrounds to enjoy. Through art and arts related events new experiences were shared by all the participants.”
Carál Ní Chuilín, Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure, Northern Ireland Executive:
“In many cases arts begins at grass-roots level and wouldn’t be successful without the support of the many voluntary and amateur arts organisations across the island. Many congratulations to Phizzfest from Dublin, this year’s winners of the Ireland Award, and also to Ballymena Arts Partnership who were runners up and the People’s Champion for Ireland for receiving over 3,500 votes online. These are great examples of arts in the community and are truly deserving of this recognition.”
Fiona Hyslop, Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs, Scottish Government:
“Congratulations to Buddy Beat on winning the first Epic Award for groups in Scotland. This is a truly amazing group which demonstrates the power of the arts to change people’s lives for the better. Scotland is a creative nation with a thriving cultural community and our voluntary groups play an important part in that. This project is a worthy winner of an Epic Award in the Year of Creative Scotland 2012.”
Huw Lewis, Minister for Housing, Regeneration and Heritage, Welsh Government:
“The work of Voluntary Arts and here in Wales, Voluntary Arts Wales, in supporting and encouraging the voluntary arts sector is fully acknowledged. They are to be commended in bringing forward the Epic Awards to recognise the work and commitment of this sector. Third Floor Gallery is an excellent example of the ingenuity and creativity of the amateur arts in Wales, harnessing the enthusiasm and energy of local volunteers to create excellent opportunities and facilities for the local community. Their innovative way of working in attracting exhibitions of contemporary photography by world renowned photographers, is to be applauded. Here in Wales we have a long tradition of amateur arts and are very proud of their accomplishments. I am therefore delighted to congratulate Third Floor Gallery as the winners of the first Wales Epic Award.”
Ed Vaizey, Minister for Culture, Communications and Creative Industries, UK Government:
“It was an honour to attend the first ever Epic Awards last year, and I’m delighted to see the ceremony return, and announce a new raft of winners in 2012. The story of Peterborough Male Voice Choir shows just what a group of committed and dedicated local volunteers can achieve, not only in terms of raising tremendous amounts of money for good causes but also – from what I’ve heard – putting on excellent concerts in the process. I’d like to wish them hearty congratulations on receiving their award. They are another excellent example of the wonderful amateur arts activity that goes on in communities across England all year round, and forms the bedrock of the arts in this country.”
Robin Simpson.
Filed under: meetings | Tags: arts, drama, excellence, olympics, training, UK, volarts
I was in Stratford-upon-Avon on Thursday to meet Geraldine Collinge and Ian Wainwright at the Royal Shakespeare Company. Our RSC Open Stages project is progressing well: the first of the 263 amateur productions within the project took place in February 2011 on the Isle of Skye and there will be Open Stages productions across the UK through to the end of 2012.
RSC Open Stages map
We have now completed the programme of skills sharing sessions across the country. The RSC Open Stages Skills Exchange team has travelled 5,047 miles this year, running sessions from Glasgow to Southampton, working with 2,320 amateurs. The learning from these sessions has been immense and, as well as the ways in which amateur theatre groups have benefited from the knowledge and experience of the professionals, it was fascinating to hear how much the RSC has learned about the nature and state of amateur theatre in the UK. On Thursday we discussed how we might use this learning to help to plan further work together after the Open Stages project finishes at the end of 2012. We also discussed details of the regional (and national) Open Stages showcase events being organised by our 10 partner theatres in Spring 2012 and the World Shakespeare Festival/Open Stages performances in July 2012. On 14, 15, 21 and 22 July 2012 at least 10 amateur productions, selected from the Open Stages programme across the UK, will perform in Stratford-upon-Avon as guests of the Royal Shakespeare Company as part of the official World Shakespeare Festival (which is part of London 2012 Festival, the culmination of the Cultural Olympiad). It’s going to be a fantastic opportunity for the chosen groups and a great chance for us to demonstrate the excellent standards achieved by UK amateur theatre groups.
Robin Simpson.
On Tuesday morning I was at the British Museum in London for the official launch of the 2012 World Shakespeare Festival. The World Shakespeare Festival is a celebration of Shakespeare as the world’s playwright, produced by the Royal Shakespeare Company, in an unprecedented collaboration with leading UK and international arts organisations. There are over 50 formal partners in the World Shakespeare Festival, including Voluntary Arts. The festival runs from 23 April to November 2012 and forms part of London 2012 Festival, which is the culmination of the Cultural Olympiad, bringing leading artists from all over the world together in a UK-wide festival in the summer of 2012.
Speaking at the launch, Ruth McKenzie, Director of the Cultural Olympiad and London 2012 Festival said “the World Shakespeare Festival will be one of the most remarkable celebrations of Shakespeare the world has ever seen”. Royal Shakespeare Company Artistic Director, Michael Boyd, called it “this most outrageously collaborative and ambitious festival”. Deborah Shaw, World Shakespeare Festival Director, said “we are trying to redefine what’s possible in creating a festival for a globalised age”.
Michael Boyd stressed the importance of the involvement of amateur groups in the World Shakespeare Festival. He talked of “Britain’s wonderful amateur theatrical tradition” and said he wanted to “redefine the relationship between professional theatre and the amateur theatre movement in the UK”. More than 260 amateur groups involving 7200 people (aged from 6 to 90) are taking part in the RSC Open Stages project, sharing skills and working with the RSC and 9 partner theatres to perform their own interpretations of Shakespeare everywhere from castles, parks and village halls to pubs, churches and a coffin works. Michael specifically mentioned the Royal Navy theatre group’s amateur staging of Much Ado About Nothing – an outdoor production in the naval dockyard at Portsmouth which will take place in July 2012 and will involve officers recently returned from active duty in Afghanistan and Iraq. Deborah Shaw singled out the pro-am production of West Side Story at the Sage, Gateshead, as one of the highlights of the Open Stages project. This will be a huge production, taking place from 4 – 7 July 2012, directed by Will Tuckett and featuring Northern Sinfonia and a cast including young performers, amateurs and semi-professionals. The amateur productions showcased by Open Stages include 19 Macbeths, 18 A Midsummer Night’s Dreams, 13 Tempests, 12 Romeo and Juliets as well as 30 new plays, 6 new musicals and 26 devised plays. Some of the most exciting amateur companies will perform at the RSC’s Stratford-upon-Avon home as part of the World Shakespeare Festival on 13, 14, 15, 21 and 22 July 2012.
Dominic Drumgoole, Artistic Director of Shakespeare’s Globe, described ‘Globe to Globe’ which will take place from 23 April to early June 2012 and will involve productions of all of 37 Shakespeare plays at the Globe, each in a different language. Dominic’s flawless recitation, from memory, of all the relevant countries and languages was a tour-de-force which demonstrated both his skill as an actor and his direct involvement in developing the programme.
Peter Mather from World Shakespeare Festival sponsors BP said that “BP has always believed that arts and culture are vital to the health and wellbeing if the fabric of society”. He spoke about ‘My Shakespeare’ – a digital project supported by BP connecting people to Shakespeare’s places.
Neil MacGregor, Director of the British Museum, described ‘Shakespeare: Staging the World’, an exhibition on the world of Shakespeare at the British Museum from 19 July to 25 November 2012. The exhibition will bring Shakepeare’s London to life through objects from the Museum’s collection and from across Europe, marking the moment at which London became a world city.
The World Shakespeare Festival is a massive undertaking and has so many strands it is difficult to remember them all, let alone describe them coherently. But it was great to hear so much prominence given, at the launch, to Open Stages and the involvement of amateurs. The World Shakespeare Festival is going to provide a fantastic international platform to showcase the best of UK amateur theatre. More details at http://worldshakespearefestival.org.uk.
Filed under: meetings | Tags: ace, arts, DCMS, England, excellence, funding, volarts
On Tuesday afternoon I met Fiona Dodd, the author of the 2008 DCMS/Arts Council England research report ‘Our Creative Talent: the voluntary and amateur arts in England’. Fiona, a consultant with the firm TBR, based in Newcastle, was keen to hear what effect ‘Our Creative Talent’ had had with DCMS and ACE since its launch at our conference at The Barbican in July 2008. I updated her on the progress of the Amateur Arts Partnership Development Programme – a steering group involving Voluntary Arts, DCMS and ACE which met regularly from 2008-10 to follow-up the recommendations and conclusions of ‘Our Creative Talent’. I talked about the tangible achievements of this programme such as the regular Amateur Arts Forum meetings at which senior ACE staff now meet representatives of voluntary arts umbrella bodies several times a year. I also explained how the Amateur Arts Partnership Development Programme had led to the references to the amateur arts sector in ACE’s 10-year strategy ‘Achieving Great Art for Everyone’, published in 2010, which included the commitment : “we will champion the value of the commercial, amateur and voluntary arts sectors in encouraging people to take part in the arts”. This commitment, in turn, has now led to ACE deciding that the funding agreements for its new National Portfolio Organisations will include a requirement relating to each organisation’s relationship with the amateur arts sector. Looking back to 2008, it is clear that ‘Our Creative Talent’ marked a turning point in Arts Council England’s commitment to working with the amateur arts sector. It was good to be reminded of what we have achieved on the back of ‘Our Creative Talent’.
Robin Simpson.
Filed under: meetings | Tags: ace, arts, DCMS, England, excellence, funding, Northern Ireland, politics, Scotland, UK, volarts
On Thursday I was at the Park Plaza Riverside Hotel on the Albert Embankment in London for the Arts Council England/RSA conference ‘State of the Arts 2011’. ‘State of the Arts’ is a big conference, attracting around 400 delegates, and it was a great networking opportunity. It was lovely to see people I hadn’t seen for years and to make plenty of new acquaintances. It’s a fairly expensive, corporate event and though it was good to see the alternative parallel ‘flash conference’ going on elsewhere in the hotel and online, the main conference sessions were disappointingly lacking in creativity in terms of their format. That said, there was an impressive array of speakers which included Deborah Bull, Sandy Nairne, Ekow Eshun, Phil Redmond, Ruth McKenzie, Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, Jonathan Mills, John Knell and Mark Wallinger.
The Culture Minister Ed Vaizey MP started his speech by talking about “the importance of the creative ecology – an alliance between the subsidised and commercial arts; the professional and the voluntary arts; and the arts and the creative industries”. He said “great strength of the arts is its ecology – subsidised arts feeding the commercial arts, the voluntary arts and the amateur arts ensuring the creative spirit is present in every corner of the nation”. The Minister said he wants Arts Council England “to be an organisation that is a source of advice and expertise for everyone who works or participates in the arts – not just for the organisations it funds, but right the way across the creative ecology”. He explained “Our strategy for the arts is very simple. We want to help all the arts – those that receive subsidy, those that are purely commercial, those that are voluntary and amateur”.
The conference also provided my first opportunity to hear from the new Labour Party culture team with the Shadow Secretary of State, Ivan Lewis MP, speaking in the final plenary session and the Shadow Culture Minister, Gloria de Piero MP, taking part in an earlier ‘Cultural Question Time’ session alongside Don Foster MP, co-chair of the Liberal Democrat back bench committee for Culture, Media and Sport. In the afternoon I attended a breakout session on ‘The Big Society’ which included Caoimhin Corrigan from ILEX talking about the ‘edge to centre’ approach being used by Derry City of Culture 2013 and Andrew Dixon, Chief Executive of Creative Scotland, praising the Feisan movement for bringing together so many people in communities and creating a sense of place. I particularly liked what Gavin Stride from Farnham Maltings said: “professional and amateur are not opposites – they are both constituents of great art”. Gavin spoke about the value of “the things people are prepared to do for free that they wouldn’t do if you paid them”. He said “participation and excellence belong hand in hand”.
It was an interesting day and it was very encouraging to see a number of references to the amateur arts – from the Minister’s speech onwards.
Robin Simpson.
Filed under: meetings | Tags: ace, arts, DCMS, DIUS, England, excellence, politics, volarts
On Monday evening I was in the Attlee Room at the House of Lords for the Voluntary Arts England Epic Awards winners’ reception where the awards were presented by two Government Ministers, John Hayes MP, the Minister of State for Further Education, Skills and Lifelong Learning, and Ed Vaizey MP, the Minister for Culture, Communications and Creative Industries. The Epic Awards were devised by Mary Lowe in response to the challenge issued to Voluntary Arts by Arts Council England Chief Executive, Alan Davey, at the Our Creative Talent conference at The Barbican in July 2008. Alan challenged us to develop a scheme to showcase and encourage excellence and innovation in the amateur arts. I was particularly pleased, therefore, that Alan Davey was able to join us on Monday to meet the four award-winning groups. The reception, hosted by the President of Voluntary Arts, Lord Luce, was attended by representatives of each of the winning groups, MPs from the winners’ constituencies and representatives of the Epic Awards sponsors. In welcoming everyone to the reception, Lord Luce talked about the origins of Voluntary Arts:
“Almost my last act as a Minister, in 1990, was to say that I think the amateur arts ought to have something that will give them inspiration and encouragement in the work that they do and that needed some kind of a parent body who could provide them with advocacy, support, information and advice. My budget was very small but I managed to find a very small sum of money as a kind of seedcorn fund which I said should be used for the creation of support for amateur arts. When I left the Government of my own volition in 1990 after 5 years as a Minister … I then joined a small group that helped to set up what has now emerged as a highly successful organisation. I am very proud of it and very proud to be the President of Voluntary Arts.”
John Hayes presents the Engagement and Partnership Awards to Apsara Arts and Milton Keynes Islamic Arts Heritage and Culture Organisation
The Further Education Minister, John Hayes, who presented the Engagement and Partnerships Awards, said:
“I believe in all of the virtues that art brings – the way that it can inspire, the way it can ignite, the passions that it can engender, the things it can communicate, the touch of the sublime brought to lives of people in all kinds of ways and all kinds of forms, through artistic endeavour … I celebrate what you’re doing in these Epic Awards. I celebrate the joy of all those people associated with amateur arts across the country and I am just pleased and proud to be a very small part of that joy.”
Ed Vaizey presents the Innovation and Creativity Awards to the Cobweb Orchestra and UC Crew
Ed Vaizey, the Culture Minister, who presented the Innovation and Creativity Awards, said:
“It’s delightful to be here for a number of reasons. First of all to be reminded again how important voluntary arts are to the arts world … I will work with Arts Council England to make sure we continue to remind the world that the world of the arts extends far beyond those organisations that simply receive funding from the Arts Council. I’m glad to see these awards are supported by Arts Council England and I will continue to work with the Arts Council to make sure that the message goes out that the Arts Council is there for everyone … Just as we talk about innovation coming from some of our leading arts organisations, those arts organisations that regard themselves, as it were, at the top of the pyramid could certainly learn from many of the voluntary arts organisations who are also pushing to innovate.”
The representatives of the award-winning groups were great – lovely people with inspiring stories to tell. Apsara Arts from Croydon won the Engagement Award for their Story of London project which explored the history of Asians in London. Milton Keynes Islamic Arts, Heritage and Culture Organisation received the Partnerships award for their Islamic Art Banner – a project that enabled local students to explore Islamic culture through contemporary and traditional art. The Innovation award was won by the Cobweb Orchestra for their Undercover Orchestra Bolero – a flash-mob rendition of Ravel’s Bolero at Newcastle’s Eldon Square bus station that became a YouTube sensation. Breakdance group UC Crew from St Helens took the Creativity Award for their anti-smoking project. In their brief acceptance speeches, several of the winners warned about the damage being inflicted on the arts by public funding cuts, making their case firmly but politely. Andy Jackson from the Cobweb Orchestra said:
“With all the cutbacks, everybody knows that the professional arts are in for a really tough time, but this is our moment people. This is when us voluntary artists are really going to make the big difference.”
It was a wonderful evening, at which the excellence and innovation of the amateur arts was recognised at the highest level. The presence of two Government Ministers was an indication of the way amateur arts activity contributes to a range of agendas and recognition of the current high profile our sector has achieved in England. Many congratulations to Mary Lowe and the Voluntary Arts England team and our considerable thanks to Lord Luce.
We plan to run the Epic Awards again in 2011 and to expand the scheme to be UK-wide. You can read case studies of the winning groups and other entrants at: http://www.epicawards.co.uk
Robin Simpson.
I was in Sheffield on Friday to chair a meeting of the steering group for the Community Media Association’s Arts Project. We reflected on the second of our regional roadshows to bring together arts organisations and community media groups which took place in Sunderland earlier this week and looked at the plans for the remaining seven events. We also heard about the four winners of the ‘Connect’ exemplar collaborations between community media organisations and arts organisations.
Robin Simpson.
Filed under: meetings | Tags: DCMS, DIUS, England, excellence, vcs, volarts
On Wednesday morning Mary and I were back in London to meet the Minister for Culture, Communications and Creative Industries, Ed Vaizey. We gave the Minister an overview of the voluntary arts sector and started to explore ways in which voluntary arts groups might support the development of the Big Society. Ed Vaizey spoke about the support he had given to a brass band in his constituency and was impressed and fascinated by the scale and diversity of the voluntary arts sector. It was a very cordial and positive first meeting and the Minister asked Voluntary Arts to work with DCMS on two specific initiatives he is developing. We also talked about Voluntary Arts England’s EPIC Awards and invited Ed Vaizey to attend our winners’ reception at the House of Lords in January.
Robin Simpson.
