Movie star Judi Dench is raising commotion after learning that the government may possibly be taking money from film and theatre to pay for the upcoming 2012 Olympics. According to Dench, she is worried that as amounts keep being siphoned off, smaller theatres will have no choice by to close their doors.
Dench is scheduled to play Titania at the Kingston Rose Theatre of production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream stated that she wants to take the role, but that she is also performing to keep attention on the theatres and keep their doors open.
She additionally stated that with the compound effects of the recession, taking money from the arts makes it much harder on actors. She went on to say that abroad many people talk about how great the British theatre system is, but that ironically within Britain the Government does not give it the proper amount of respect.
Dench will be starring in the BBC’s Cranford Christmas upcoming special, and wants people to realize that art funding needs to be protected. She does not stand alone, as many others have echoed her view.
Society of London Theatre member Richard Pulford stated that June negotiations to help repair the West End with the Government failed because of the large cost of the Olympics preparation.
A recent example is the UK Film Council who will lose 15% of their lottery funding or about Ł20m to the Olympics this year.
