Further supplementary memorandum submitted
by the V&A
THEATRE MUSEUM
Who the V&A approached for support for the
Royal Opera House partnership project either as potential donors,
or as bodies or individuals whose support might influence potential
donors
The main fundraising effort on the potential
V&A-ROH partnership was actually undertaken by the Royal Opera
House because we thought it would be a good idea if someone took
a fresh look at raising money. They approached (on a confidential
basis) a range of key arts donors and theatre management groups.
The Royal Opera House also took the lead on discussions with SOLT,
although the V&A was represented at most of the key meetings.
Interestingly, they experienced exactly the
same problems that the V&A has encountered over the years.
In brief, the main reasons why people and organisations will not
give are as follows:
— the existing building is seen
as well located but not "fit for purpose" as a museum
and one that requires significant expenditure in order to make
a meaningful difference and donors feel that this is unlikely
to be good value for their money, particularly as:
— the building is held on a lease
and not freehold and so donors are not buying the benefits of
naming that would come from a donation to the Royal Opera House
or V&A.
The Royal Opera House found that the decision
by the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) to reject two funding applications
for the building was a major disincentive to donors. HLF assessments
are seen by a wide range of donors as rigorous and strategic and
so their lack of enthusiasm for the building was seen as crucial.
Finally, whilst the Royal Opera House was talking
to donors it also became publicly known that SOLT would not be
supporting this project, and this was a further heavy blow to
the appeal of the project.
The V&A also liaised with the National Theatre
and Royal Shakespeare Company to keep them informed about the
potential partnership. Both organisations expressed an interest
in playing a limited role, although both have significant commitments
elsewhere.
WHEN THOSE
APPROACHES WERE
MADE
The approaches were made in the spring and summer
of 2006.
How much funding you were looking for and how
it would have been used if donors had been found
The partnership was looking for two sorts of
funding.
We agreed with the Royal Opera House that the
building required a capital investment of £4 million-5 million
in order to create appropriate spaces for exhibitions and education.
However, we also agreed that, being realistic, the key priority
was to raise at least £1m by the autumn of 2007 in order
to do some basic work prior to re-opening.
We were also seeking a major partner to contribute
to education work and were looking for annual contributions in
the range £200,000-£400,000.
What options were put to the Society of London
Theatres
SOLT has in the past made some, modest, contributions
to the operations of the Theatre Museum including some funding
for the National Video Archive of Performance and some contributions
to exhibition costs.
Both the Royal Opera House and the V&A thought
the new partnership could offer a significant opportunity to SOLT:
instead of continuing with a wide range of educational activities,
they could join us as the third partner and use the new venture
as the primary vehicle for delivering their educational objectives.
Such participation also offered other advantages because the presence
of a "theatre" partner would have allayed some (actually
unfounded) concerns about the over-dominance of opera and ballet
themes in the new venture. We had been seeking an annual contribution
of around £200,000.
Who were the "well known figures in the theatre
world" to whom you refer in Q31, and what efforts they made
I had in mind, in particular, the efforts made
by Vanessa Redgrave. She was particularly helpful in assisting
the Royal Opera House with leads and connections, as part of their
fundraising drive.
Whether any other options for the future of the
Theatre Museum have been explored during the last year (including
options that would retain the collection at Covent Garden); and,
if so, what approaches for support for made
A number of ideas have arisen as a result of
the consultation paper we issued in April 2006, and because of
the publicity that the Theatre Museum has received.
Approaches received include those making the
case for the running of the site as a museum of classical music,
a comedy museum, a studio theatre and other ideas in a similar
vein. Unfortunately, none of these looked promising—with
insufficient thinking on cultural objectives and no plausible
financial or business plan.
We also received an approach from Blackpool
Council about doing a feasibility study into the case for the
whole museum, or elements of it, moving to Blackpool as part of
the Council's regeneration plan. The town has a long theatre tradition
(particularly at the Opera House and the Grand Theatre) and ambitious
plans to create new visitor attractions. The idea has been discussed
by our Board and we have agreed to work with Blackpool on a feasibility
study.
We have not received any other local authority
approaches.
13 November 2006
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