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The Scottish government has launched a new £10 million fund to support performing arts venues in the country through the coronavirus crisis.
It comes after the #LetTheMusicPlay campaign was launched this week, demanding support for venues that are in severe danger of closing down during the pandemic without government support.
The new targeted £10 million fund, labelled the Performing Arts Venues Relief Fund, will support Scotland’s performing arts venues and comes as part of the Scottish government’s extensive £185 million Business Support Fund.
Culture Secretary Fiona Hyslop announced the new fund, saying: “Our theatres and performing arts venues and the talented freelancers who work with them are an essential part of the fabric of Scotland’s culture and communities and promote our international reputation, and we are determined that they will survive and be able to thrive again.
The Performing Arts Venues Relief Fund has been announced today, a targeted £10 million fund to support Scotland’s performing arts venues.
We’ll publish full details on the fund shortly – you can find the full announcement here: https://t.co/EHA1hbRxhD pic.twitter.com/l9fHqinLqM
— Creative Scotland (@CreativeScots) July 3, 2020
“Our performing arts venues effectively had to close overnight, with an almost complete loss of income. There is no doubt that in doing so they saved lives, and for that I am extremely grateful.”
Hyslop went on to say that the government are “actively considering support for grassroots music venues”. Full details on the scheme will be published shortly.
Earlier this week, the #LetTheMusicPlay campaign was co-signed by Paul McCartney, Dua Lipa, The Rolling Stones, Coldplay and more, demanding immediate action to prevent “catastrophic damage” to the music industry in the wake of the coronavirus lockdown.
It comes after the Music Venue Trust penned a letter signed by over 560 of their venues calling for a £50million cash injection to allow the venues to “hibernate” until October and prevent their permanent closure.
It’s also been revealed that 92% of festival businesses are also at risk of collapse and called for government support to “make it to next year without being wiped out”.
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