DanceEast has been awarded £73,080 as part of the Government’s £1.57 billion Culture Recovery Fund (CRF) grants announced today by the Culture Secretary – this will be a vital lifeline to help the organisation face the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic and ensure a sustainable future.
DanceEast is delighted to be one of 1,385 cultural and creative organisations across the country receiving urgently needed support. £257 million of investment has been announced today as part of the very first round of the Culture Recovery Fund grants programme being administered by Arts Council England. Further rounds of funding in the cultural and heritage sector are due to be announced over the coming weeks.
As was the case for so many arts and cultural organisations, DanceEast was forced to close the iconic Jerwood DanceHouse on Ipswich Waterfront in March, decimating the organisation’s earned income almost overnight. Whilst the building has now partially reopened to enable students from the University of Suffolk BA (Hons) in Dance and talented young people from DanceEast’s Centre for Advanced Training to access their training in person – the DanceHouse is still closed to the wider public for classes and performances. Over the past seven months, thousands of people of all ages and abilities have enjoyed keeping active and connected through DanceEast online classes – however the hope is to be able to welcome live audiences back to the building soon.
The award from the Cultural Recovery Fund will provide much needed funding to enable DanceEast to do just that, developing a programme of socially distanced performances over the next few months.
Brendan Keaney, DanceEast Artistic Director and Chief Executive said:
‘It is so nice to have a positive story at a time when there is so much terrible news around – the funding will provide us with a vital lifeline and ensure we will still be here at the end of this year. It also means we can start programming some live socially distanced performances – which is great news for us, for our audiences and the people of East of England, and for the artists and freelancers who rely on us for work. Watch this space for more news about our plans’
Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said:
“This funding is a vital boost for the theatres, music venues, museums and cultural organisations that form the soul of our nation. It will protect these special places, save jobs and help the culture sector’s recovery. These places and projects are cultural beacons the length and breadth of the country. This unprecedented investment in the arts is proof this government is here for culture, with further support to come in the days and weeks ahead so that the culture sector can bounce back strongly.”
Chair, Arts Council England, Sir Nicholas Serota, said:
“Theatres, museums, galleries, dance companies and music venues bring joy to people and life to our cities, towns and villages. This life-changing funding will save thousands of cultural spaces loved by local communities and international audiences. Further funding is still to be announced and we are working hard to support our sector during these challenging times.”
