Dramatic exit for Tricycle theatre boss Nicholas Kent after funding battle
‘I can’t start all over again,’ says director after massive cut to successful drama venue’s grant
Published: 7th July, 2011
by DAN CARRIER
HE has run one of the country’s most successful theatres for more than a quarter of a century, mixing grit with artistic brilliance.
But Nicholas Kent, artistic director at the Tricycle in Kilburn, is finally calling it quits because, he says, he has grown weary of the constant battle to attract funding.
Mr Kent, who joined the theatre in 1984, has seen government grants slashed by the Conservative and Lib Dem Coalition Government and says he has now had enough of trying to plead for more cash.
“If all art is based on an economic criteria, then this will be a very boring and unhealthy society,” said Mr Kent. “It has been a constant struggle and, frankly, I am exhausted by it.”
The Tricycle recently discovered they will lose £340,000 of their Arts Council grant this year – 40 per cent of the venue’s annual budget. And that has been compounded by substantial reductions in the amount of money provided by councils due to central government cuts.
Mr Kent’s decision comes as the Tricycle has gone from strength to strength on stage with a series of plays based on real transcripts including Sir Richard Scott’s Iraq inquiry, the investigation into the murder of Stephen Lawrence, scenes from the Bloody Sunday enquiry and the case of the death of Iraqi hotel worker Baha Mousa, in the custody of British troops.
Mr Kent told the New Journal that he wanted to hand over the theatre to a new broom.
He said: “I have fought for this building for 28 years and to start having to fundraise like this all over again, where we have to find another £1million a year, is just too much.”
He said that as an artistic director – his tenure at the Tricycle has been marked by critical success after critical success – he had been dragged away from directing and producing by the need to find money.
Mr Kent recalled taking over the Tricycle in Kilburn High Road and finding a dilapidated building with shows that fitted the rundown surroundings.
He said: “Most of the shows had not been a success, and the building was badly rundown.
“It had grimy posters all over the walls and the bar was damp and dirty. Our first job was to redecorate.”
It began to flourish and the theatre later overcame the setback of a fire in 1987 to rise again as one of the capital’s best-loved off-West End venues.
But to fight back yet again is a battle too far for the popular director.
“All the time money is being diverted away from the arts, and that is what we want to spend our time on: producing the best art and the most challenging works,” said Mr Kent.
“By cutting our grant you are going to cut jobs. It will mean people on the dole, not paying their taxes or National Insurance contributions. The country will be poorer in the long-term.”
It was at the Tricycle where shows such as The 39 Steps began, before going on to become West End fixture. Tony Sher’s Broken Glass also began life at the Kilburn playhouse.
Mr Kent added: “All of this is pump priming, done by a small theatre in Kilburn with a small amount of investment.
“You also cannot quantify the spiritual health and happiness of the nation due to the work done by the arts. How do you measure this? How do you measure how people engage with issues?
“The theatre can be an important force for good, where people can feel challenged and inspired.”
‘New style’ – Legacy of Nick Kent
THEATRE critic Susannah Clapp insists Nicholas Kent’s influence on the British theatre scene must not be underestimated – and his impact on our society not forgotten.
The Observer writer said: “It is easy to underestimate how smaller theatres feed into general theatre. They are able to be nimble, to respond. This is not always recognised.”
Ms Clapp cited the theatre’s plays based on real-life courtroom, commission and inquiry transcripts. She said: “There is a real sense of immediacy at the Tricycle.”
Ms Clapp, who lives in Bloomsbury, said that this style had not been done previously and the success of the Tricycle meant it had been mimicked elsewhere. She added: “Watching The Colour of Justice, with the parents of Stephen Lawrence in the audience, certainly focused the mind. It makes you feel able to respond to the evidence, as if you were really there. But Nick Kent’s legacy is the fact the Tricycle is not simply a political theatre. He has built a new style of taking ordinary speech and putting it on stage.”