1982 Chch Arts Festival cancelled

Press, 20 October 1981, Page 2

1982 Chch Arts Festival cancelled

Next year's Christchurch Arts Festival has been cancelled. because the Queen Elizabeth II Arts Council has not given the festival society a $20,000 grant. The festival director, Mrs Julia Perry, denied yesterday that the society had made a mistake by budgeting for the money, although it had not received it when the budget was. drawn up earlier this year. “The council’s funding guide specifies major grants to the Christchurch and Auckland festivals. We had no indication that we were not going to get the money,” she said. She said that the Auckland festival was going ahead, “but they are in a better financial position then we are.”

The Christchurch society has another problem — a $7500 debt from the 1978 festival.

Mrs Perry said that the money would have to be repaid before the committee could organise a 1984 festival.

The society would apply to the Arts Council for money for that event. Commenting on the can-

cellation of the 1982 festival, Mrs Perry said that inflation had caught up with the council, and “to be fair, its money has been cut too.” The council had made a cut-off point, and wanted to support events where people were being employed longterm.

“We were only going to employ artists for two weeks (in March),” she said. Mrs Perry did not think that waiting for four years, from the date of the last festival, before holding another would lose the impetus gained in previous years. “We have planned it for then because it ties in with the Adelaide, Perth, and Auckland festivals. It is a circuit,” she said.

The Mayor of Christchurch (Mr Hamish Hay) doubted that any benefit would be gained from waiting for the circuit to arrive.

“From my experience (he was the chairman of the festival for nine years) the advantage is not as easily gained as might be thought,” he said.

He urged the society to reconsider and conduct a festival in 1983. The Arts Council would probably re-

gard one in that year more favourably, he said. Mr Hay said closer artistic and financial links were needed between the society, the Town Hall board of management and the Arts Centre. He said that the society would also have to seek more support from the community. Mr Hay was “disappointed” that next year’s festival had been cancelled, but saw that decision as “probably inevitable” after the Arts Council had withdrawn the grant. The festival chairman, Mr C. F. Whitty, said that the financial weakness caused by the absence of the grant prompted the cancellation. “We have made a respectable and realistic decision not to proceed with the festival.

“A number of well known Christchurch businessmen were approached about possible finance — but their promises were not enough to help our situation,” said Mr Whitty. . Although there will not be a festival next year the society will present performances and exhibitions during the festival period.