At meetings in both Bristol and London yesterday, Bristol Old Vic launched its appeal to raise the £2m still required for the Georgian theatre's £7m revamp. The hasty announcement of its sudden closure for refurbishment last month, following a board meeting called with just 24 hours' notice, is leading to the loss of more than 30 jobs, the closure of the theatre's workshops, the departure of artistic director Simon Reade and the cancellation of a proposed autumn season - including Ivanov directed by Kenneth Branagh - of which any theatre of national standing would have been proud. If the £2m is not raised by the end of the year, then it looks highly unlikely that the theatre will ever re-open.
Of course, Bristol Old Vic must be saved - and not just for the people of Bristol and the fact that it supports much-needed jobs (although the theatre workshops seem unlikely to re-open, according to chair of the board Rupert Rhymes, unless they can be put on a more commercial footing). As a producing house, Bristol Old Vic plays a major role in the national and local theatre ecology. But the question that remains unanswered is whether it will be as a fully-fledged producing house that the theatre returns, if it re-opens its doors on schedule in 2008.
If the money isn't raised then the theatre has no future, but the danger is that in securing those funds it sells its birthright for a temperature-controlled auditorium and seats that all face the stage (some of them don't). Clearly under Reade, the theatre did not win the loyalty or affection of Bristol audiences. But if the theatre's refurbishment and closure had been conducted in an orderly fashion, there would have been time for widespread consultation to find out what the people of Bristol would like from their theatre and where that might fit within wider theatre activity in the south west and a national strategy for regional theatre and touring. Instead, an attempt is being made to raise money before anyone knows what might go on inside the building.
Sadly it seems like yet another fundamental misunderstanding about the nature of theatre on the part of the board. A theatre is not bricks and mortar: it is what goes on inside it. An empty theatre - however wonderful its wiring and redecorated toilet areas - is simply a museum gathering dust, nothing more. The danger is that in the absence of an artistic director and artistic voices on the board, it will be business considerations that win out over a cohesive artistic vision.
The chair of the appeal committee, former advertising man Nick Bacon, seems a nice enough chap and his job is simply to raise the dosh, but he admits he has no experience of theatre and it is worrying when he declares, as he did at the press conference: "We have to hold out a promise to those who give money that in the future we will put on the kind of theatre that they enjoy in a comfortable environment." By this he appears to mean "traditional work that people love and enjoy" and concurs with Rupert Rhymes, who talks wistfully of audiences who have been lost because they have "gone east to the excellent Theatre Royal, Bath."
Of course those who have deep enough pockets to fund the appeal may indeed want an endless diet of light comedies with star names, but because you give money to a theatre it doesn't mean you should get to choose the programme. This would be akin to letting Travelex choose the National Theatre repertoire.
Over the last few years Bristol's theatre culture has changed substantially and for the better. The Tobacco Factory, Andrew Hilton's Shakespeare seasons and the increasing number of young companies basing themselves in the city all hint of a theatrical renaissance that is happening despite - in most cases - little or no funding, and which is part of a wider south-west revival. This is, after all, a city in which Arnolfini thrives and which has a large student population.
Bristol Old Vic is no longer the only player in town but one of many engaged in all kinds of theatrical activity in the region. It must look forwards not backwards and become a resource for everyone - both local and national. In fact, the current crisis could turn out to be a catalyst for a change of model in the way building-based regional theatres fit into their local theatre ecology and are encouraged to share resources in a much more equitable way, which doesn't put them in competition with other theatre-makers but creates a climate in which local and national activities can complement each other and flourish. The days of the old monolithic structure - in which one building dominates regional activity, holds all the power and eats up most of the resources - are numbered in a colder funding climate.
The excellent umbrella organisation Theatre Bristol is facilitating a meeting using open space technology to discuss the future of the Old Vic on July 21 in Bristol. If you want your say, you can find out more about the meeting here.
