Theatre Artists Fund was launched in July 2020, spearheaded by Sam Mendes. Through generous donations from Netflix, The Estate of Sir Peter and Lady Saunders, Backstage Trust, Arts Council England, Talking Heads Collective, John Gore & Broadway.com, Gatsby Charitable Foundation, Jerwood Foundation, The Mackintosh Foundation and Warner Media alongside individuals, corporates and trusts and foundations, we have raised a total of £7.8 million from over 3,100 people across the world. With this immense support, we have so far been able to support 8,294 theatre freelance professionals affected by the crisis, with grants of £1,000 and £500
Who has received a grant in Rounds 1-6?
Grant recipients are from all over the UK, from the Scottish Isles to Cornwall, Northern Ireland to Wales, and across hundreds of cities and towns in between. Over half of grant recipients (56%) are based outside of London.
Theatre artists supported by the fund are from a wide variety of socio-economic and educational backgrounds, and have worked in various onstage and offstage theatre roles including Writers, Prop and Set Designers, Stage Managers, Actors, Casting Directors, Technicians, Comedians, Dancers and Costume Makers. Currently over 38 different theatre artist professions have been acknowledged in successful applications to the fund.
Some recipients were more recent graduates or were at the beginning of their careers, others have been working in the theatre sector for many years. Anyone who has contacted the fund has also been offered signposting to mental health advice.
In a recent survey completed by 632 grant beneficiaries, over 70% of respondents said they had not been able to secure any professional theatre work since lockdown in March 2020. 85% of participants said the Theatre Artists Fund helped them pay their bills, mortgage or rent, with 62% saying it helped them put food on the table. 36% said they had used their creative skills to help the NHS or their local community.
Below are some of the individuals who benefited from the fund in Round 1.
‘The grant is a lifeline. It allows me to still survive this with my family and hopefully do all I can to protect them until our industry opens successfully again’
– CJ Mitchell (Youth & Stage Manager)
‘I was in a really difficult financial situation as I wasn’t eligible for any government help. A lot of money, just for living, has gone out over the last five months so being able to have some money in my account to stay safe during this time in case something else happens has been so helpful’
– Tess Letham (Dance Artist)
‘When the theatres do reopen, it will mean that I get my job back again, and not only my job, but the space in life that keeps me going. The space that I love. Theatre is medicine, if I’m honest’
– Loussin-Torah Pilikian (Actor)
Find out more about how the fund helped Louissin-Torah Pilikian in an interview here.
‘The grant itself has proved invaluable. It is an invaluable contribution to my living costs, for outstanding utility bills and family sustenance so it’s been an enormous respite despite the odds that we face daily.’
– Femi Elufowoju Jr. (Director)
‘As someone that has dedicated their life to the theatre, I applied for the Theatre Artists Fund as I very much hoped that this might offer me some support at this difficult time, especially without knowing when we would next be able to work in a theatre environment.’
– Amy Dolan (Company Manager)
Am I eligible to apply in future rounds?
To see our eligibility criteria, please go to our ‘Who is the Theatre Artists Fund For?’ page.
How do I donate to the fund?
If you would like to make a donation to the Theatre Artists Fund, please visit this page for more information. We welcome any size donation.