The Young Vic Theatre saw a record breaking 8% increase in audience numbers in 2012, with 136,000 people seeing their productions last year. The theatre sold over half of its tickets for under £20 and more than 10,000 at £10. Ten thousand tickets were also given away to residents in the local areas of Lambeth and Southwark with the aim of making the theatre accessible for everyone. The theatre recently picked up three prizes at the Critics’ Circle Awards, including Best Designer for ‘Wild Swans’. Artistic Director David Lan said that every play was a gamble to put on and it was encouraging to see their programme endorsed by both ticket buyers and critics at a time when confidence in public subsidy of the arts is low: “To grow you have to take risks, and risk needs investment – of imagination, of courage, of skill and also of money.”