Arts Troubleshooter is a two part series following the work of world renowned arts expert Michael Lynch at two unique arts organisations whose futures are under threat.
The first programme in the series follows Michael’s work with Northern Ballet: the first major English ballet company to be based outside London. The company has just moved into a new state of the art home but when they receive an unprecedented cut to their government grant in March 2011 they can no longer afford to keep all of their dancers. Michael’s determined to help Northern Ballet save the jobs of the dancers who’ve devoted their careers to the company.
The second programme in the series witnesses Michael at The Theatre Royal in Bury St Edmunds – the UK’s only working Regency Theatre. The theatre was taken back to its original form by a £5 million restoration that ran from 2005 to 2007 but in these tough economic times the theatre has been undergoing staff restructures and has recently brought in a new chief executive. Michael wants to draw on his considerable experience to help bring long-term financial stability to one of the country’s true cultural gems.
No one understands the business of the arts better than Michael Lynch: he was Chief Executive of London’s Southbank Centre from 2002 to 2009, during which time he doubled visitor numbers, raised the cash to refurbish Royal Festival Hall and transformed Southbank Centre into the most dynamic arts centre in the world. Prior to that he ran the Sydney Opera House in his native Australia. He is currently Chief Executive of the West Kowloon Cultural District in Hong Kong: a HK$21.6billion project to transform the city’s artistic landscape.
