Theatr Clwyd artistic director Terry hands has delivered a blistering attack on the Arts Council of Wales, accusing it of "duplicity, sloth, ignorance and self-interest", according to a report in The Stage.
ACW has decided to reorganise its structure totally, which has meant that companies such as Theatr Clwyd have not received any sort of indication about grants for the next year. "We sill do not know what our funding for 1998-9 will be," Hands says. "We start rehearsing something in August - but what?"
Chancellor Gordon Brown's spending review will give an extra £290m to the DCMS for the arts over the next three years, it has been announced.
The first chairman of the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts will be film producer David Puttnam. Amongst the eight trustees will be Genista MacIntosh, exectuive director of the National Theatre (formerly of the Royal Opera House) and TV personality Carol Vorderman.
English National Opera has had its best year for ten years, with an average cash business of 77%, a rise of 8.5% over the previous year. More than 335,000 people attended performances at the Coliseum during the season which finished earlier this month.
The Watermill Theatre in Newbury will be forced to close in March 1999 unless Southern Arst gives it an extra £50,000 next financial year, according to the theatre's artistic director Jill Fraser.
Theatre magazine, launched two and a half years ago, has gone into liquidation. Regional theatres did support the magazine but the West End was lukewarm.
New ensemble company at the Playhouse
Northern Stage, based at Newcastle-upon-Tyne's Playhouse, have launched a new ensemble company which aims to forge closer links with the community and education. Associated with the new venture is an occasional publication, Interact, sponsored by Proctor and Gamble.