ANNUAL REVIEW Our 60th-anniversary festival embodied IntroductioN everything that Southbank Centre strives to do well. Innovative and inclusive, all- In 1951, when the UK had every right to encompassing and artistically excellent, celebrate what we had achieved and colourful and joyful, our celebrations every incentive to anticipate eagerly transformed our venues and public space where we could yet go, millions of and accelerated our transformation into people shrugged off the grey post-war the world’s biggest and best permanent austerity and visited the South Bank festival site. Our interpretation of culture site for the Festival of Britain. It was goes way beyond performances on a national event, the only light in the stage to embrace food, design, debate, otherwise foggy post-war gloom. architecture, environment, even politics, as cultural phenomena in their own right. Sixty years later, against a similar mood We have worked with an extraordinary of austerity, 2.8 million people visited range of partners this year, to whom we our 60th-anniversary festival in just are enormously grateful. The Eden Project over four months and 400,000 attended turned the once desolate roof of the ticketed or free events. More than 3,000 Queen Elizabeth Hall into a stunning new artists, including musicians, singers, rooftop garden, working with Grounded visual artists, dancers, authors, poets, Ecotherapy, a team of gardeners all conductors, DJs and comedians took part. previously homeless. This gave the public the chance to admire wild flowers, river views and allotments in the centre of London. Pirate Technics created Susan, an enormous straw fox who made her den beside the Hayward Gallery and greeted commuters over Waterloo Bridge. Dishoom built an environmentally friendly pop-up restaurant on a formerly quiet side of our site, serving chai and daal to queues of people. Breaking this new ground has not been achieved at the expense of what has made Southbank Centre so popular in the past. Our pre-eminence as a standard our programme, which goes beyond their bearer for classical music would not be primary role as world class performers in possible without our Resident Orchestras. their own right. The audiences they attract The London Philharmonic Orchestra, are also the people who on their visit to the Above from left to right: the Philharmonia Orchestra, the London halls can ‘bump into’ performances and Jude Kelly, Artistic Director, Sinfonietta and the Orchestra of the Age discussions and displays that they would Rick Haythornthwaite, Chairman, Alan Bishop, Chief Executive of Enlightenment all play a central part in not normally associate with an evening’s 2 concert going – and become repeat power of the arts to transform lives. visitors to the wider site. From the effect of an encounter with an This eclecticism may be one of the international master such as Lang Lang, reasons Southbank Centre now finds itself to a more intimate interaction with our at the heart of the nation’s cultural life. This Lion and the Unicorn installation, art would not have been possible without the is able to inform, shock, provoke and support, input and encouragement of our inspire. We recognise we are privileged to donors and sponsors who have enabled be in a position where we can influence our site to blossom both artistically and and enrich those encounters; we do not commercially over the past year. We were forget that. So we strive to combine the delighted that MasterCard generously seriousness and importance of our task supported the Festival of Britain 60th of being custodians of this vital heritage anniversary celebrations and will do so site with a sense of playfulness and again for the summer festivals in 2012 and irreverence that has infused it since 2013. We look forward to working closely its creation. The coming years will hold with them. great things for Southbank Centre. We Every individual who donates their time are determined that in six decades’ time or their money to Southbank Centre, no Southbank Centre will still be showing matter how much or how little, is crucial the world the power of the arts at their to our ongoing success, and we owe them life-changing best. a debt of gratitude. Even though we run ourselves as efficiently as possible, we Rick Haythornthwaite, Chairman could still not cover the basic costs of Alan Bishop, Chief Executive maintaining this vast site and opening the Jude Kelly, Artistic Director buildings every day without substantial core funding from Arts Council England. To this end we are pleased to report that the financial results for this year surpassed expectations. Operating income remained similar to the previous year as higher commercial income linked ‘the 2011 southbank to the Festival of Britain celebrations, festival pays tactful and strong ticket sales and an increase in considered respects to fundraising and events offset a reduction the event that acted in public funding. This, coupled with as an inspiration... tried prudent financial management, has and tested entertainers resulted in a breakeven result after a small transfer to reserves. will make it a memorable show. a knees-up in a Above: Southbank Centre’s Finally, a personal note. Over the Riverside Terrace during course of the year, all three of us, together time of austerity.’ the Festival of Britain 60th anniversary celebrations. and individually, have observed the Iain Sinclair, The Guardian 3 Vision England of £19 million. We earn £9 million WHO WE ARE: per year through our artistic programme To be the world’s most inspiring centre (including income from almost one million We are for the arts. ticket sales) and £11 million through Royal Festival Hall commercial activities. Queen Elizabeth Hall MISSION Annually we have over £3 million to raise Purcell Room and contributions from individuals, trusts, Hayward Gallery To draw everyone possible to this loved foundations and companies are vital to our And 21 acres of public outdoor space site and captivate them through our continued success. unique arts programme and the warmth of our welcome. How We Work We are home to: Arts Council Collection O b j e c t i v e s Southbank Centre’s heritage is rooted in Saison Poetry Library the 1951 Festival of Britain, which melded 4 Resident Orchestras > To offer life enriching encounters art, design, architecture, food, music, 16 Artists in Residence between audiences and the world’s literature and technology in a glorious great and emerging artists in music, celebration of Britain’s culture. visual arts, dance, performance Today, Southbank Centre is the world’s and literature. biggest and best permanent festival site. Our festivals are designed to provoke > To enable anyone to experience the and inspire. By working with both excitement of exploring their own established and emerging artists, our creativity and artistry through our programme represents the very best in far-reaching programme of learning artistic excellence, whilst never being ‘One of the and participation. afraid to explore big social issues, from capital’s feminism to attitudes to death to the pre-eminent > To welcome the world to the unrivalled UK’s relationship with the world’s visitor experience of our riverside site emerging powers. cultural with its iconic buildings and history and Our work is not just restricted to our centres’ its continuous sense of festival. performance and exhibition spaces. The Guardian We encourage designers, chefs, > To demonstrate successfully that architects and games designers to use commercial entrepreneurship can all the nooks and crannies of our 21- live happily beside the demanding acre site to explore their creativity and requirements of art-making and present our visitors with a unique and profit both. stimulating cultural experience. From Above: The bandstand, the young ceramicists whose products Southbank Centre Market How We’re Funded are on sale in our Festival Terrace shop Square. Designed by RIBA London architecture to the renowned architects who designed students as part of the Southbank Centre was funded in 2011/12 A Room For London, the temporary Festival of Britain 60th anniversary celebrations. by an annual grant from Arts Council hotel on the Queen Elizabeth Hall roof, 4 to other artists working in different art forms and to members of staff from all departments. The artists’ presence here is part of what makes Southbank Centre a genuinely creative organisation. Artists in Residence 2011/12: Mary King – Performer and Director of VoiceLab Simon Armitage – Poet Colin Currie – Classical percussionist Marin Alsop – Conductor Olly Coates – Cellist Benedict Johnson – Photographer and film-maker Gauri Sharma Tripathi – Kathak dancer and choreographer Hide and Seek – Game design studio Lea Anderson – Choreographer Lemn Sissay – Poet Mica Levi – Experimental singer, songwriter, composer and producer Bellowhead – Contemporary folk band David Dunkley Gymiah – Videojournalist Martin Bright – Journalist, thinker and founder of New Deal of the Mind Creative Connection – Graphic artists Jeremy Deller – Artist Paul Morley – Journalist Shlomo – Beat-boxer Jane and Louise Wilson – Visual artists Projects in Residence 2011/12: ‘One of the Southbank Centre seeks to present the for everyone to discover, enjoy and very best of British and international deepen their engagement with the arts. SE1 United – Youth Forum capital’s Tomorrow’s Warriors – Jazz music education pre-eminent culture to the widest possible audience. These range from hundreds of free events This entrepreneurial approach has not to long-term, structured participation cultural only provided a boost to the careers projects, particularly with local schools R e s i d e n t O r c h e s t r a s centres’ of many young businesses, but also and young people across London. We have The Guardian enabled Southbank Centre to boost our recently made our spaces available to The foundation of Southbank Centre’s financial sustainability and decrease our schools to use as alternative classrooms extensive and wide-ranging classical music dependence on public grants.