Why Wales needs to catch up
The arts sector has a duty to challenge social injustice and promote equality and diversity, but Wales is getting left behind, war…
Posts
Is government preparing to privatise the arts?
How much longer will the UK government support the arts? Andrew Pinnock fears all signs point to it adopting a much more commercia…
Let’s take on panto
Has panto become culturally inappropriate, racist even? Oh yes it has, calls out Daniel York.
Letter: A matter of deepest regret
Following revelations of elitism in music education, Principal of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Professor Jeffrey Sharkey,…
Why the EBacc will divide society
Over 100,000 children a year will lose the chance to study the arts when the EBacc becomes compulsory in schools, and the least pr…
A more creative role for producers
Once a curator, now a producer, Mary Paterson calls for the artist-producer relationship to be re-imagined as something more creat…
Progress is lovely
Researcher Stephen Pritchard raises concerns that the latest evaluation of ACE’s Creative People and Places programme was ba…
No more ssshhing or custard creams
Adults – parents, teachers and theatre-makers included – need to stop trying to control children’s experien…
Proper scrutiny in the arts requires a strengthened ombudsman
National museums and the Arts Council are protected from scrutiny by barriers to accessing Parliament’s investigative arm. I…
£2m in Arts Council funding for Emma Rice’s new company is everything that’s wrong with the arts
If the national funder really cared about equality, it wouldn’t endorse a £2m application from a nine-day-old organisa…
What are we counting?
Roger Tomlinson has more questions than answers about the quality metrics system that Arts Council England’s larger NPOs wil…
Creating real connections
As technology becomes an increasingly distracting force, it’s down to live entertainment to tempt people to set aside their…
The value of live theatre
As drama is downgraded in our schools, Fiona Banks explains why it is essential for young people to see theatre live on stage.
In times of conflict
Art can ask difficult questions and help people engage with complex topics. With conflict and political divisions spreading across…
An inconvenient truth
Joe Hallgarten proposes a new solution to the uncomfortable fact that attendance at taxpayer-subsidised arts events remains stubbo…
Why Quality Metrics is a really bad idea
Liz Hill tells NPOs, ‘just say no’ to a fundamentally flawed scheme that will reveal more about the nature of the audi…
Reflecting the world
No wonder there is so much talk about the death of opera when people are excluded from it all the time, says Bill Bankes-Jones. Bu…
Unlocking cultural potential
UK cities must be granted freedoms to attract inward investment and build the country’s reputation as a creative powerhouse,…
Calm consideration
As the debate over whether London needs a new concert hall becomes more divisive, Jodi Myers says it’s time for some careful…
Still dismal times for disability
Angry at the continuing discrimination against disabled people as well as the inadequate access in many venues, Andrew Miller refl…
A mental makeover for classical music
Tired of seeing classical music magazines filled with middle-aged white faces, James Fleury proposes four ‘mental makeovers&…
What does a Trump presidency mean for the arts?
Will Donald Trump, a liberal arts graduate, be enamoured by an industry with an envious return on investment? Or will his governme…
Bursting some bubbles
At Spektrix’s annual conference Vikki Heywood explored the mindsets and mythologies that influence the performing arts today…
The subtle art of community engagement
Working in local authority arts development was where Martin Cox learned to listen, understand and value people as much as he valu…
