Newport Live are once again extremely grateful to the Arts Council of Wales for funding as part of their Cultural Recovery Fund 3 to support The Riverfront Theatre and Arts Centre, helping to secure activity both within the building and across the communities of Newport.
Newport Live received £98,000 from the Cultural Recovery Fund Round 3, delivered jointly by the Welsh Government, the Arts Council of Wales and local authorities, to help the sector during what continue to be unprecedented times and, will help the theatre and Arts Centre to welcome people through its doors and continue to inspire people across Newport with arts and creative activity. The funding will also allow The Riverfront to further develop its programme and activities for the future.
Part of this funding will also be allocated to upgrading the hearing loop system in The Riverfront’s theatre in order to enhance the system that is currently in place and make the venue a more accessible place. Safety measures introduced to stop the spread of Covid-19 are having negative consequences for people with hearing difficulties as they create additional communication barriers, so this work is vital at this time as The Riverfront continues to become more accessible to audiences with additional needs.
Although able to re-open its doors back in August 2021, The Riverfront Theatre and Arts Centre has continued to suffer the prolonged affects caused by the Coronavirus pandemic and related government restrictions. Due to the reimplementation of guidelines in December 2021 numerous performances that were due to go ahead in January and February that have had to be postponed or cancelled, reduced capacities or challenges for touring companies who had to change their plans are also ongoing. The Riverfront also faced the challenges of a second year without its well-known and much-loved pantomime that traditionally runs from November through to January bringing audiences from Newport and beyond to the building to enjoy festive family fun.
Despite these challenges, The Riverfront continued to delight customers and audiences through a jam-packed workshop programme catering for all ages, free arts and craft activities every Saturday and a high-quality cinema programme. With additional funding from a Winter of Wellbeing and a grant to support Youth Mental Health, The Riverfront has also been able to continue its great work in the community including with schools and community groups outside the building.
Gemma Durham, The Riverfront Theatre and Arts Centre’s new Head of Theatre, Arts & Culture comments “We are once again extremely grateful to the Arts Council of Wales for this funding and their continued support. We have so much great activity planned for this year including shows, workshops and events in the community and are so grateful that we are able to continue to provide fun, creative activities and opportunities for people across Newport.”
The funding comes following a previous successful application from Newport Live to the Arts Council of Wales’ Stabilisation fund for Organisations and Cultural Recovery Fund Round 1 and 2 to support the theatre during the pandemic
To find out more about The Riverfront Theatre and Arts Centre visit https://www.newportlive.co.uk/riverfront or follow The Riverfront on social media at @TheRiverfront on Facebook or @RiverfrontArts on Twitter and Instagram.
Newport Live is a non-profit distribution organisation and charity which delivers fun, inclusive and accessible arts and sports programmes in our community for children, families, schools, sports clubs and local groups across the city. You can find out more about how you can support The Riverfront and Newport Live here: https://www.newportlive.co.uk/support-us/
