£570,000 boost for Wolverhampton Grand as culture fund cash dished out
The Grand Theatre is celebrating a major boost as it prepares to relaunch its live shows after millions of pounds was given to cultural centres across the region.
It has been awarded £568,357, which comes on top of £1.2 million it was given by the Cultural Recovery Fund last year.
The Grand says it is ready to re-emerge from the nightmare of the pandemic. Its first big show is due to start with The Elvis World Tour on July 4 before a full programme from September onwards.
Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden visited the theatre to mark the announcement. He met Wolverhampton singer Beverley Knight and Wolves legend Steve Bull, who is a major supporter of the theatre.
Mr Dowden said the success of the vaccine programme and the “common sense” of the British people meant the Government’s plans to exit lockdown were on track, although he urged caution over surging cases in Europe.
And he said he was looking forward to having a pint in his local boozer as he vowed to help the hospitality industry “pivot from survival to reopening”.
Cultural Recovery Fund: Who benefits?
More than £390m has been awarded to 2,700 organisations across the country as part of the latest round of funding distributed by Arts Council England.
Organisations benefitting in the West Midlands include:
Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery - £820,841
Birmingham REP - £553,641
Birmingham Town Hall and Symphony Hall - £465,000.
The Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust - £1.14 million
The People’s Orchestra in Sandwell, is getting £27,000
Lichfield's Garrick Theatre - £134,000
Weston Park - £96,439
Wolverhampton independent label Revolver Records - £58,404
The Asylum Art Gallery, Wolverhampton - £12,500
Halas Homes in Halesowen, a charity supporting adults with learning disabilities - £25,000
Musicmann, which supplies local authorities with hire equipment - £31,900
Dudley’s Red By Night venue - £88,000
Stage Audio Services in Wordsley - £283,799
Creative Academies - £98,852
Wolverhampton’s Steel Mill Events - £58,500.
Dudley promoter Ellis Live - £1 million loan.
Restrictions were eased on Monday with further freedoms set to be restored on April 12 and May 17, before life returns to as close to normal as possible on June 21.
Speaking during his visit to the Grand, Mr Dowden said: “We’re on track with the roll out of the vaccine, and that means we can be on track with the roadmap.
“Of course, we need to be cautious about what’s happening in Europe but at the moment we’re on schedule.”
He said restoring the hospitality industry – one of the hardest hit by the pandemic – was “absolutely vital”.
He added: “I cannot wait to get back into my local boozer for a pint. Our pubs are at the heart of our community life, and of course it all fits together because people will come and see a performance at the theatre and go to local pubs in the area.
“We need to get all parts of our national life back up and running. We’ve put the money in when they have needed it, through business rates relief and the furlough scheme. Now we need to pivot from survival to reopening.”
The show must go on
“It’s no exaggeration to say that without this money the Wolverhampton Grand would not be here today.”
Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden is proud of the combined efforts that have seen the 127-year-old theatre survive what has been the toughest year in its history.
A £1.2 million grant last year helped the Lichfield Street site navigate its way through the pandemic which has seen shows cancelled and seen jobs put at risk.
Now that nearly £570,000 has been secured from the latest round of the Culture Recovery Fund, Mr Dowden says the Grand – and other theatres like it – can start to plan for the future.
“The initial funding to get through the pandemic was absolutely essential,” he said.
“But this extra money is about moving from surviving to thriving.
“I think it will be a process of rebuilding that is part of the roadmap back to reality, enabling performances to resume and the Grand to continue all the fantastic work they do as part of the community – and in creating the stars of the future.”
Under the Government’s roadmap out of lockdown socially distanced performances can resume from May 17, while Mr Dowden says he expects to see most restrictions removed for June 21.
“That’s when we can get back to a point where we can have bums on seats and stop the risk of places like this going bust,” he said.
“We’re putting the support in place to get them to when a full season can resume in September.”
The theatre has undergone a miserable period since it closed for the first lockdown on March 17 last year, with the annual pantomime – a real money-spinner for the Grand – among dozens of major shows cancelled.
With no money the perilous financial state led to a formal consultation being launched at the start of the year over potential job losses.
Adrian Jackson, CEO and artistic director at the Grand, said the Government cash had helped to safeguard the theatre and begin the process of reopening.
The new funding has been earmarked for small-scale socially distanced events and the return of community engagement programmes.
Mr Jackson said he could not wait to get this year’s programme up and running in July, which starts with The Elvis World Tour, before a full season is launched in September featuring hit shows including Chicago and 9 to 5 The Musical.
He said: “Being closed for a year – for a theatre with an £8.5 million turnover – has had a massive impact.
“This money will now enable us to restart, to regroup and get the theatre back to full capacity as soon as possible.
“It looks as if the dates are going to be solid and we are very hopeful of being able to reopen on schedule. We’ve got some great shows coming up, all building up to our pantomime Cinderella in December.
“We can’t wait to get the audience back in here now.”
During his visit to the Grand Mr Dowden watched a performance by local storyteller Peter Chand and dance artist Jaivant Patel, who told him how the theatre was connecting with communities across the region. Also present were city-born superstar Beverley Knight, and Wolves legend Bully, who has just launched a vodcast in conjunction with the Grand.
And Wolverhampton South West MP Stuart Anderson said everything was now falling into place for the expansion of the Grand to finally get off the ground.
A decision is due in the coming weeks over the theatre’s plans to take over a site next door and open it up as an ‘arts park’ using some of the cash from Wolverhampton’s Towns Fund allocation.
Mr Anderson said: “We had two goals for the Grand. One was to keep the doors open, which we couldn’t do without the funding, and the other is the arts park next door.
“We’ve seen underfunding across Wolverhampton for decades, but the Grand has bucked the trend and gone from strength to strength.
“Now we want to expand that cultural offer so the whole country can see what this city has to offer.”
