Sadler's Wells Annual Report 09/10
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Sadler’s Wells Annual Report 09/10 g n i n n i d n e l G o g u Russell Maliphant’s AfterLight . H : o t Part of Sadler’s Wells’ major production for o h P 09/10, In the Spirit of Diaghilev . Contents Foreword by Sir David Bell 3 Foreword by Alistair Spalding 4 Artistic Programme 5 Developing Audiences 14 Our Supporters 20 Commercial Activity 21 Financial Position 22 Supporters 23 Staff 24 References 25 3 Sir David Bell Chairman I joined Sadler’s Wells as Chairman of the Board late I would like to thank the Board and the wide range of in 2005; Alistair had only recently been appointed as supporters who ensure that Sadler’s Wells thrives. Artistic Director and there were major questions being This year we were delighted to welcome two new asked about the future direction of Sadler’s Wells. Board members – Marco Compagnoni and Arlene Phillips – both of whom bring a vast amount of Looking back now, almost half a decade later, I am experience in their respective fields. Chrissy Sharp, incredibly proud of the journey on which Alistair our General Manager, left us to return to her native embarked. Under his leadership – and with the help Australia and we were sorry to see her go. But we are of a very fine team – Sadler’s Wells has firmly delighted that Laura Stevenson, who was previously established itself as a dance house on a global stage, Deputy Director at the Hayward Gallery, has with some of the world’s finest choreographers succeeded her. We were also sad to say goodbye to working as Associate Artists and over 40 Janet Reeve who has been involved with the commissions and productions under its belt. Development team of Sadler’s Wells for many years, most recently as its leader, and has gone to New Despite the difficult current economic climate, the Zealand with her family. We are delighted to welcome past year has seen audience figures continue to rise Georgie Shields into this role. and the theatre’s activity continue to expand – over 850 performances to an audience of over 600,000 in We have a very exciting programme for the coming 12 months is a remarkable number for any venue. year and forward bookings are encouragingly strong. 70% of our turnover comes from ticket sales and so Even so we have no illusions about the challenges we are incredibly grateful to our audiences who ahead as the government makes cuts in every area continue to support us and enjoy our diverse and including, of course, the arts. But our finances are critically-acclaimed programme. strong, our support is excellent and our team superb, which gives us huge confidence for the future. 4 g n i n n i Alistair Spalding d n e l G o Artistic Director & Chief Executive g u H : o t o h P When I first envisioned Sadler’s Wells as a producing Our offsite projects continue to grow in scale and house I hoped to support and commission works ambition and I am pleased that we have once again that brought in artists from other disciplines, who been able to work with a wonderfully diverse range of could exploit the form’s incredible versatility. The artists and venues to take the Sadler’s Wells name past year has really seen that vision come to fruition beyond the walls of the theatre, and into spaces with more of our productions on the Sadler’s Wells where people can engage with dance in a completely stage and touring the world than ever before. different way. From the wild-abandon of the Latitude mud to the white-walled calm of Tate Modern, we’ve It felt absolutely right that our celebration of Les covered a whole spectrum of performance spaces Ballets Russes, In the Spirit of Diaghilev , should be and each time the reaction has been the same – more! about seeking new ideas, so it was a thrill to ask four of today’s most groundbreaking choreographers to It is a difficult time for all businesses; impending cuts create new work, rather than to restage existing to the arts are going to force all venues to rethink pieces by Diaghilev’s company. Together with a how they operate and where their priorities should remarkable range of artists from different disciplines lie. Sadler’s Wells has worked hard to grow and they created a superb evening of work, which has develop our audience to ensure we are able to thrive continued to tour around the world. I’m certain despite a low government subsidy, and we recognise Diaghilev would approve. and are grateful for the loyalty of our supporters and audiences. We will continue to commission and It was a privilege to present our Focus on Forsythe produce new work and bring the very best dance to season. Forsythe is an artist whose work I admire London because we believe it is a vital part of the hugely and it has been a long-standing ambition of UK’s cultural life. mine to present his work to as wide an audience as possible. It is important to reflect on the body of work of an important artist and we will continue the series with a retrospective on Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker’s Rosas in 2011. 5 ARTISTIC PROGRAMME Media and public perceptions of dance have changed radically in recent years and Sadler’s Wells has responded to this growth with an increasingly diverse programme, which has attracted a multi-generational, multi-cultural audience. In 2009/10 we presented performances at our main Rosebery Avenue site, our West End venue the Peacock Theatre, the Lilian Baylis Studio and at eleven offsite venues. In 2009 / 2010… We presented 136 productions † We took £13 million at our box office There were 872 performances on our stages and on tour We sold 618,501 More than 50,000 tickets tickets were sold as part of our multibuy offer 39% of our tickets were priced under £20 We sold over 40,000 access tickets The Sadler’s Wells e-mailing list reached 140,000 members Our website had almost 3 million visitors “The Wells has become a busy creative hub, buzzing with vibrant premieres, exciting foreign attractions and trendy young audiences. From Sylvie Guillem to Matthew Bourne, from Russell Maliphant to Christopher Wheeldon, from Akram Khan to Hofesh Shechter, from Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui to Wayne McGregor: Spalding has commissioned and facilitated more new contemporary dance than anyone else working in Britain today.” THE TIMES ii 6 NEW COMMISSIONS AND PRODUCTIONS In 09/10 we presented 22 new Sadler’s Wells productions. We firmly believe that one of the most powerful contributions Sadler’s Wells can make to the dance sector is the commissioning of new work that crosses artistic and cultural boundaries and appeals to diverse audiences. Some of our highlights of the past year include: Svapnagata Festival of Indian Dance and Music Svapnagata , curated by Sadler’s Wells Associate Artists Akram Khan and Nitin Sawhney, was a two- week celebration of Indian arts. It featured dance events, music concerts and theatre, including new commissions from Akram Khan, Nitin Sawhney, The festival culminated in a brand new collaborative Aakash Odedra, Yuko Inoue, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, work from Akram and Nitin, commissioned by Shantala Shivalingappa and Riz MC. The programme Sadler’s Wells, entitled Confluence . This new played to packed houses and very diverse production featured an ensemble of dancers and audiences, many of whom had not visited the theatre musicians, and looked back at Khan and Sawhney’s in the past. unique collaborative partnership. It was performed for three nights in November 2009, with future touring currently planned. In the Spirit of Diaghilev A major Sadler’s Wells production for 09/10 was In the Spirit of Diaghilev . To celebrate the centenary of Les Ballets Russes, Alistair Spalding invited Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Javier De Frutos, Russell Maliphant and Wayne McGregor to create new works, inspired by Diaghilev’s legendary company. The production was a critical and commercial success and toured internationally during 09/10, with Russell Maliphant’s piece ( AfterLight ) picking up an Olivier nomination for Best New Dance Production. 7 In the Spirit of Diaghilev was filmed and shown on BBC Three as part of the BBC’s schedule of Christmas Focus on Forsythe viewing. It drew some controversy due to the nature of Javier De Frutos’ piece, prompting a media debate We presented a major survey of recent works by about television’s censorship of the arts. seminal choreographer William Forsythe, at Sadler’s Wells and offsite venues including Tate Modern, “It’s 1909 all over again. Boos rang out, nightclub Fabric and a goods shed on the Kings shocked patrons walked out. Never mind Cross industrial estate. The events drew excellent Frieze, the most provocative art event this audiences and reviews. Telegraph critic Sarah Crompton gave it five stars and described the week is Sadler’s Wells’ In the Spirit of retrospective as “a stimulating season, which has Diaghilev …This is absolutely the way dance prompted me to think about how we watch theatre should go” dance” .iv EVENING STANDARD iii Forsythe gave a fascinating series of interviews Russell Maliphant will bring AfterLight back to about each of the works featured in the Sadler’s Wells, expanded as a full-length evening retrospective, which can be seen on Sadler’s Wells piece for three dancers. Screen at www.sadlerswellsisdance.com 8 Eonnagata A major collaboration between Sylvie Guillem, Russell Maliphant & Robert Lepage, this Sadler’s Wells production returned in June 2009 due to phenomenal demand for tickets, and toured internationally throughout 09/10 (see touring map, over the page) .