This paper is the result of discussion and contributions from Welsh and Wales-based writers at a meeting organised by the Writers Guild of Great Britain on the 11th December 1999 at Chapter Arts Centre, Cardiff.
Writing the Future was an opportunity to air concerns regarding the current state of new writing, ACW's plans in this area and to outline what we believe the future of new writing could and should be in 21st century Wales.
1. The Present
It was made clear by all present that ACW's current drama strategy is unacceptable and will create a worse scenario for new writing than previously existed. The deal needs to be drastically improved if ACW wants its policy and indeed its role to be taken seriously. We would not necessarily disagree with the stated aims of the drama strategy, namely:
i. Increased employment opportunities for Welsh artists
ii. An aspiration to improve the quality of work being made in Wales
We do not believe however, that the plan ACW has cobbled together will deliver either of these objectives. A number of resolutions were passed at the meeting and are summarised below concerning:
Funding
The main problem lies in the amount of money ACW is prepared to invest. We were shocked and disappointed to learn that ACW proposed to fund the 'new' new writing company only to the tune of £170,000 (meaning a cut of £90,000 from current provision). It is quite simply not enough to fund the development, production and promotion of new plays and playwrights in Wales.
It is clear that the best we can hope for is maximum of four commissions and productions per annum from a company operating under this budget. At present the three companies - Sherman, Dalier Sylw and Made In Wales - manage 11 commissions a year between them. This problem is exacerbated when we include the lost commissions from the TIE companies which ACW plan to cease funding from April 2000. Such a decrease in work is completely unacceptable to our union and does not fulfil ACW's objective of maximising employment opportunites for Welsh artists.
We do not accept that work lost in the restructuring will be undertaken by other Welsh companies. There is no evidence to support this statement.
Bi-lingualism
The establishment of the 'new' new writing company was supposed to be an example of increasing quality by funding "fewer companies better." If the new company is only to receive £170,000 then this clearly cannot be the reality, particularly when we realise the company must work in two languages. We know that all three companies who have bid for the franchise plan to engage an extra member of artistic staff in order to run the company bi-lingually. A fair percentage of this money will therefore be used to employ more staff. It will not be channelled into new work and new writing.
Once again we must stress our objection to the principle of a new writing company which operates bilingually. We do not believe such an arrangement will serve the writers of Wales well. Welsh language and English language writers have diverse needs and agendas and we do not accept that these can be served by one artistic leadership, nor do we think it should.
Lack of opportunity and diversity
We believe under your plan there will be only one specialist new writing company and that the range of new writing in Wales in both languages will be narrowed. Writers who do not share the priorities and taste of a single artistic leadership will necessarily be excluded.
A motion was passed to deplore the cutting of Theatr Powys and Gwent Theatre: companies who have continued to encourage new writing outside Cardiff. Once again, the number of 'homes' for Welsh and Wales-based playwrights are diminishing.
Time
The meeting was appalled by the length of time this decision-making process is taking and the uncertainty created by the delay. The process is creating an unfavourable environment for new work to be made and while the debate rages on, Welsh writers are not working and cannot be commissioned. We call for immediate action or the total scrapping of the scheme.
2. The Future
The meeting was in agreement that we want an Arts Council which supports the arts within a social context, which is visionary, pro-active and works as our advocate. We do not want what we have now: one which is simply reactive to the current money situation. We are dismayed by the continual failure of the Arts Council of Wales to produce any kind of vision for drama in 21st century Wales and for New Writing in particular. With this in mind we propose the following list of components which any successful new writing policy could and should contain. It is our vision statement (in the absence of one from ACW) and we offer it to help construct the type of support for new writing that both ACW and WGGB surely believe in:
· A Cardiff base in a clearly identifiable and dedicated theatre space for new writing
Modelled on existing successful new writing venues such as The Gate, The
Traverse and The Royal Court. As such, the company should be structured
in a way that ensures range of directors are brought in, assuring a diversity of
styles and opportunites for many different writers, actors and designers.
There should be money for touring new writing productions to the rest of
Wales.
At least nine productions a year
Training and development for emerging playwrights
Representative of the Writer's Guild at board level
· Every theatre company in Wales in receipt of funding to commission at least one new play a year from a Welsh or Wales-based writer
· Writers' residencies throughout Wales and bursaries to support work with non-funded companies or community organisations
· An agency to promote the work of Welsh and Wales-based writers both in this country and abroad.
Modelled on the successful CEAD agency in Quebec. This would disseminate the work to a wider audience, enabling plays to be performed by other theatre companies, studied by educational organisations and would provide income to writers both from percentage of sales and from new commissions. The end result being to raise the profile of Wales and put Welsh culture on the world stage.
Providing a scriptreading and advisory service to nurture new writers and advance the careers of more established playwrights
· Publication of plays
· A publication raising critical debate in regard to theatre
We lack a national publication which provides constructive analysis to enable us to examine our work and become better writers
We lack a publication which prints intelligent and informed reviews which will attract the public to theatre performances and raise awareness of the high standard of work being produced in Wales
We lack a forum for information and debate. At present most writers in Wales know more about what is on at the Riverside or Almeida than what is happening at the Sherman or Torch
· A prestigious Annual Festival of New Writing to showcase writing talent from Wales and feature performances from non-Wales based companies.
· Placements for writers with theatre companies both in this country and abroad. Exchange schemes enabling writers from other cultures to work with Wales-based theatre companies fostering cross-cultural understanding and broader horizons
Links with other new writing venues with a view to an exchange touring scheme: The Traverse performs at the Welsh new writing theatre in exchange for programming work from the Welsh company at the Traverse for example.
· National Theatre Studios for new writing. Theatre companies which are being set up as National companies for Wales to establish an allocation for new writing similar to the operation of the Royal National Theatre's relationship with the Royal National Theatre Studio. This would enable playwrights to work with an already existing resource of actors from the main stage repertory company for workshopping, scriptreading and performance and provide an alternative to any Cardiff-based new writing theatre company.
· Partnerships with media fostering a successful cross-over from theatre writing to film and television and vice-versa
Enabling television coverage of arts in Wales, providing publicity and engendering public confidence to buy and experience Welsh theatre and art
Possibility of funded placements for journalists on national daily newspapers on the condition that they regularly review and report on the arts in Wales
· Archive
A managed archive providing the texts, video footage and press coverage of previous work, enabling writers in Wales to see themselves within an historical context, draw on (or break away from) tradition and provide an educational resource for the cultural heritage of Wales
The Arts Council for Wales' current drama strategy works against most of the above aims, not simply in regard to new writing, but to theatre in general. The lack of funding makes any such services virtually impossible.
3. Where now in the short term?
We believe there are three options open to ACW in the short term:
i. ACW could press ahead and implement its proposal of a 'new' new writing company based in Cardiff but support it in a financially viable way so that the quality of work can improve and employment opportunities are maximised. This requires a much larger investment than currently on offer.
ii. ACW could realise that the plan which is currently on the table is going to fail in its objectives and fail writers and withdraw it until there are sufficient funds to build the kind of theatre culture we all want. In the meantime it could continue to support its present clients Made In Wales and Dalier Sylw to provide new writing provision. This does not preclude a stipulation that both companies perform in the Sherman Arena as part of their funding agreements and the space could then begin to be identified as the home of new writing in Wales. This alternative would also mean that budgets would not be cut and that work would continue to be made in both languages by different companies until another, better and deserving plan could be created. This would abate our core concerns.
iii. ACW could press ahead with the strategy as it stands and alienate writers and the WGGB even more than it has done already.
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