Arts Scene Will Have to Tighten Belt As Well ; Letters

Summary

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A bit of an irritated rant from Ron Bendall or is it a polemic on the subject of subsidies in the local art scene (Opinion October 16)? Commerce is heading for ruin, he says, the Armed Forces will not be able to defend us and the road system is falling apart because the arts in the country are run by curiously dressed, middle class, and well-spoken people determined to bring innovative art to those uninterested in such things.

Whatever is offered in the way of theatre, dance and music will not persuade, so why is the taxpayer supporting such esoteric entertainments? I do not know at what level subsidies, if any, are handed out in the local area, but it is predominately the man and woman in the street who both visit and perform in many amateur productions of theatre, pantomime, choirs, and whodunnit nights; it is the ordinary people who produce such events and work tirelessly at stage production, auditions, scripts, rehearsals, ticket sales, and publicity. And are the artists in oils, watercolours and mixed media, gilded youths with garlands in their hair? Of course not, they are quite ordinary people who might be, or have been, van drivers, cleaners and farm hands.

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Extract

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Arts Scene Will Have to Tighten Belt As Well ; Letters

In the Bridport area, many art-based exhibitions ta...

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