Theatre Artists Fund raises £1.6 million to support theatre workers

News

Jul 27

Director Sam Mendes has announced that the Theatre Artists Fund he has been spearheading, following a sizeable donation from Netflix, has raised £1.6 million to date.

As previously reported, the fund has been set up to support creatives who are ineligible for government help during the pandemic. The £1000 grants will be distributed to a number of applicants this week, having been supplied through donations and support from the arts community.

Key contributors to the fund include: new joint headline supporter The Estate Of Sir Peter and Lady Saunders, The Mackintosh Foundation, Eileen Davidson Productions, Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation, Linbury Trust, Benedict Cumberbatch and Sophie Hunter, Imelda Staunton, Eddie Redmayne, Sonia Friedman, Caro Newling, Colin Firth, Hugh Bonneville, Tom Hiddleston and others.

The monetary figure also contains £85,000 worth of donations from members of the public and leading industry figures including Michaela Coel, Michael Frayn, David Hare, Nicholas Hytner, Armando Iannucci, Thea Sharrock, Mark Strong, Emma Thompson, Laura Wade, David Walliams and Edgar Wright.

Whilst the amount raised is huge, this will still only allow grants to be passed on to under half of the 4000 applicants who registered.

Mendes said: "The theatre industry is 70% freelance. So we know that literally thousands more actors, writers, directors, stage managers, costume designers and many more urgently need our help. We have raised £1.6 million in this first round of fundraising, so we are able to help 1,600 people. Now we want to help many more."

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