“What we stand to lose today is terrible,” Artistic Directors tell Government

The eight most influential theatre directors in Australia have lambasted the Government’s decision to remove resources from the Australia Council in the wake of the funding cuts that fell on 65 arts organisations last week. Referring to the current cultural climate as “dark days”, the Artistic Directors from the Confederation of Australian State Theatre Companies (CAST) have issued a jointly worded statement warning that the outcome will be “a destructive impact on a generational scale”.

The open letter, signed by Geordie Brookman (State Theatre Company of South Australia), Jonathan Church (Sydney Theatre Company), Peter Evans (Bell Shakespeare), Eamon Flack (Belvoir), Matthew Lutton (Malthouse), Brett Sheehy (Melbourne Theatre Company), Sam Strong (Queensland Theatre Company and Clare Watson (Black Swan), comes as a more personal statement after Friday’s press release issued on behalf of CAST condemning the funding decisions that have left many in the arts community reeling. “This is an unprecedented assault on the independence and the viability of the arts in Australia,” they wrote, warning that the impact would be felt not just on every stage in the country but overseas as well.

Criticising as “poor policy” the...