TAITMAIL Wimbledon’s acting lesson
Wimbledon College of Arts is turfing out its fine arts operation so that it can teach acting. In three years or so, if things go according to plan, half of the thousand students in the leafiest corner of the University of the Arts London (UAL) empire will be performers; the other half will be costume or set designers.
City scope: putting culture alongside housing
Last week we brought you the report of the Cultural Cities Enquiry which could shift the base of arts funding in this country. But what does it mean? Jonathan Todd, chief economist at BOP Consulting, was part of the research team that led the UK-wide consultation process and provided the year-long enquiry with its essential data
RA picks Axel Rűger as new CEO
Axel Rűger, director of Amsterdam’s Van Gogh Museum, is to succeed Sir Charles Saumarez Smith as secretary and chief executive of the Royal Academy.
Fatoş Üstek next Liverpool Biennial director
The new director of the Liverpool Biennial is to be the Turkish-born curator and writer Fatoş Üstek.
Making an art school for actors
Can - should - an art school teach acting? The University of the Arts shares its plans for Wimbledon with Simon Tait
Arts ‘treading water’ on diversity
An Arts Council England report published today shows that its National Portfolio Organisation clients are not progressing enough with implementing diversity.
Darwin ‘Origin’ page may be sold abroad
A temporary export bar has been placed on a handwritten page from Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species.
Laurie Sansom is new boss of Northern Broadsides
Northern Broadsides has appointed Laurie Sansom as its new artistic director and CEO in June this year.
First steps
The National Youth Dance Company is in rehearsal for its seventh professional new production – with it seventh new troupe. Simon Tait talks to the company’s general manager Hannah Kirkpatrick
New trust to give London artists affordable studios
Private and public funding are coming together to create an independent trust to provide affordable workspaces for artists in London.
The real Mary Queen of Scots
A rare and frank portrait of the teenage Mary Queen of Scots goes on display at Hever Castle on Friday, February 8, the anniversary of her execution in 1587.
‘Culture key to cities’ growth’ – report
Investment in culture is the key to our cities’ growth, according to a report published today.
How reviving Bodies makes theatre magic
The husband-and-wife team of Tricia Thorns and Graham Cowley, who operate as Two’s Company, rediscover a forgotten 20thcentury theatre masterpieces and produce them. Their latest, as Simon Tait discovers, is a James Saunders gem
Jerwood fall-out threatens Hastings gallery
A “family” row is threatening the future of the award-winning Jerwood Gallery in Hastings, with the venue’s sponsors, the Jerwood Foundation, withdrawing its collection of British art and financial support.
Cinema audiences boom from UK productions
UK cinema audiences have reached record numbers, with the second highest spend on film and TV production in this country.
Maritime museum chief steps down
Kevin Fewster, director of Royal Museums Greenwich since 2007, is to stand down having transformed the former National Maritime Museum with muliti-million-pound developments.
TAITMAIL The Grand Old Dame of York
By Patrick Kelly
It’s always a privilege to watch a master at work, and audiences at York’s Theatre Royal were honoured to witness Berwick Kaler’s 40thand final season as panto dame. The season, as usual, has been a complete sell-out as theatregoers trampled on each other to acquire tickets for this last opportunity to see a superb craftsman go about his business.
Ex-BBC White City centre to be theatre complex
The BBC’s former media village at White City in West London is to become a large-scale pop-up theatre, opening this summer.
Survey reveals massive council cuts
Council spending on museums, libraries, arts, and culture has been slashed by nearly almost £400m since 2010.
THE ART OF PHOTOJOURNALISM Image of the month
Beyond the Deepening Shadow, The Tower of London, November 2018, by Jeremy Selwyn
‘Their finest hour’ becomes Biggin Hill museum
Biggin Hill Airfield, one of the main stations flor the Battle of Britain in 1940, is having its timeless story told in a museum that opens today.
DEA BIRKETT But seriously – welcome!
In the latest in her series marking the 250th anniversary of the circus, Dea Birkett – the official Ringmaster of Circus250 – finds that media misuse of circus language shows disrespect of a gentle art
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