IN the face of ongoing funding cuts, political instability and a fragmented sector, Scotland’s arts organisations are coming together in an attempt to spark change.
State of the Nation invites organisations to create a space to start building a unified and strategic response to empower the future of Scottish arts. The gathering will be held on October 24, from 11am to 5pm at the Citizens Theatre in Glasgow.
State of the Nation is intended to serve as the starting point for more lasting change in the industry. It is an event co-hosted by An Tobar and Mull, Citizens Theatre and Playwrights’ Studio.
Organisers have described the event as a “vital, energised space” and expressed hope that art companies can reassess their power as a collective and begin to shape a strategy that works for the entire sector and for the art it supports.
The programme will focus on three key areas of discussion. The first is resource sharing, where participants will explore how meaningful collaboration can lighten the load and unlock opportunities that are simply not possible alone.
This will be followed by advocacy and lobbying, in which the group will consider how to move from a reactive to a proactive position, ensuring that policy is shaped by those who are at the heart of making and enabling art.
The cohort will then look to the future to ask how the sector can avoid repeating the same struggles in two years’ time and how to ensure that those who have historically been excluded from these conversations are meaningfully included moving forward.
Attendance has already confirmed by key representatives of Scottish theatre including:
- A Play, A Pie and A Pint
- Beacon Arts Centre
- CatStrand
- Eden Court
- Federation of Scottish Theatre
- Lung Ha
- Lyceum Theatre
- Lyth Arts
- North East Arts Touring
- Pitlochry Festival Theatre
- Rockfield Centre
- The Touring Network
- Theatre Gu Leor
- Traverse Theatre
- Wonderfools
- National Theatre of Scotland
- Scottish Society of Playwrights
- Toonspeak
- Tron Theatre
- Equity
Throughout the day, there will be structured panel discussions offering space for reflection, and attendees will have the opportunity to share their immediate priorities after recent funding decisions.
In a dedicated space titled What is Tomorrow, organisations will be invited to share the projects they were unable to pursue due to funding and explore potential new partnerships to help those projects come to life.
Rebecca Atkinson-Lord, artistic director of An Tobar and Mull Theatre, said: “After years of firefighting, it feels powerful to be co-hosting an event that’s unapologetically about hope, ambition and collective action.
“This is our chance to stop reacting and start shaping the future we want - on our own terms.
“I hope this gathering sparks a renewed sense of agency and solidarity across the sector, and marks the beginning of a movement towards lasting, systemic change.”
