Greenwich Dance is delighted to announce it has been awarded a grant of £58k from the second round of the Government’s £1.57 billion Culture Recovery Fund.
Throughout the pandemic Greenwich Dance has remained operational, continuing to support artists, communities and the sector. Its online activities have seen audiences of over 45,000 watch a digital performance, take part in an online dance class or listen to its Talking Moves podcast. Recently, Greenwich Dance announced ArtsUnboxed, a new initiative to safely and sustainably tour new dance works across the country and kickstart creativity in the sector.
Melanie Precious, Chief Executive Office of Greenwich Dance said:
I am truly grateful that Greenwich Dance has been awarded this further support through the Government’s Culture Recovery Fund. This vital investment will allow us to continue to do dance differently, by finding innovative new ways of supporting artists and connecting communities through dance.
Although COVID has been devastating to our normal model of operation I am proud, that alongside my incredible team and the artists and producers we have been working so closely with, we have managed to successfully navigate these challenging times and continue to be there for our creatives, communities and for each other as we begin to emerge from this crisis.
As well as continuing its work on ArtsUnboxed, which launches this spring with six new performance ready works, this further investment will allow Greenwich Dance to continue its focus on creative education, artist support, and address issues around loneliness and isolation in the community.
Planned future work will see Greenwich Dance re-site its popular NRgDance youth programme in schools, taking dance directly to young people aged 8-19. It will also look to build on the success of its recently launched Arts Awards, a free resource for those in Greenwich to easily incorporate the arts into young people’s curriculum.
A new model for its community class programme will see a combination of online, outdoor and indoor classes run alongside online social events, courses and masterclasses to widen the programmes reach beyond Greenwich and deepen engagement with class participants.
This funding will also allow Greenwich Dance to explore new ways of delivering live COVID-compliant performances over the summer, following its successful delivery of a socially distanced doorstep tour last autumn.
Culture Secretary, Oliver Dowden, said:
Our record breaking Culture Recovery Fund has already helped thousands of culture and heritage organisations across the country survive the biggest crisis they’ve ever faced.
Now we’re staying by their side as they prepare to welcome the public back through their doors – helping our cultural gems plan for reopening and thrive in the better times ahead.
Sir Nicholas Serota, Chair, Arts Council England, said:
Investing in a thriving cultural sector at the heart of communities is a vital part of helping the whole country to recover from the pandemic. These grants will help to re-open theatres, concert halls, and museums and will give artists and companies the opportunity to begin making new work.
We are grateful to the Government for this support and for recognising the paramount importance of culture to our sense of belonging and identity as individuals and as a society.
The funding awarded today is from a £400 million pot which was held back last year to ensure the Culture Recovery Fund could continue to help organisations in need as the public health picture changed. The funding has been awarded by Arts Council England, as well as Historic England and National Lottery Heritage Fund and the British Film Institute.
