Pleasance Theatre Trust Awarded Money from Edinburgh Festival Fringe's Resilience Fund

The Pleasance Theatre Trust have been awarded £156,900 out of the £1.275 million distributed from the Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society's Fringe 2022 Resilience Fund, developed with support from the Scottish Government's Platforms for Creative Excellence (PLACE) programme.

The fund is designed to support resilience, recovery and creativity and the Pleasance will use this funding to reduce the financial risk to artists attending the Fringe - with targeted interventions which will support debut and early career creatives. The funding awarded to Pleasance will cover the following:

• Underwriting guarantees for any show in a venue under 150 seats. This bold and vital change will reduce risk for companies in smaller venues where ticket sales are more limited. The Pleasance has always been committed to supporting debut and early career artists. This change will enable companies and artists to increase earnings for new work presented at the Fringe and will provide more financial security for their next steps beyond the festival.

• Enhanced staffing provision within the festival team to provide greater support to visiting companies through an increase in the number of industry professionals, alongside further training and support for those participating in the Pleasance Festival Volunteer Programme.
  
• External evaluation of festival staff and volunteer programmes to explore future improvements and the positive impact these programmes have on early career development for those wishing to join an industry that has lost so many skilled workers due to the pandemic.

• Mental health training and mental health care provision for staff, artists and volunteers with onsite preventative mental health care liaison.
  
• Enhanced on site Wi-Fi and web facilities for e-ticketing and online sales and marketing.

Additional funding from patrons, as well as the Scottish Children's Lottery, The Arts Society, and Stevenston Charitable Trust, will expand the Pleasance's Schools Programme. This will enable approximately 600 primary school children, from communities who otherwise feel excluded from the Festival, to see shows and take part in activities in the Pleasance Kidzone, with transport, tickets and activities provided for free.

A work experience programme for young people will allow 16-20 year olds to experience the Fringe first hand. The programme will include meals, tickets and opportunities to shadow and learn about different roles across the Pleasance festival operation.

Funding from the Crowdfunder campaign, the Pleasance ran in 2020, will also mean that £400 is being given 'no strings attached' to 60 companies making their debut this summer.

All of this support is in addition to the £150k that has already been pledged by the Pleasance Theatre Trust to support shows coming to the Fringe through a variety of Pleasance Futures schemes, made possible through the generosity of our patrons and funders.

Anthony Alderson, director of the Pleasance Theatre Trust, comments: We are extremely grateful for the support we have received. The costs of presenting work at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe have increased dramatically in 2022, in particular, the cost of accommodation. These increases put the whole event at risk. We have always shared the risk in presenting work at the Pleasance and we are delighted to be using these funds to directly support those coming to participate and to perform. Without venues being able to build solid support structures and provide ongoing infrastructure, festivals such as this one cannot continue to provide vital platforms for new creative work.

Notes to Editors

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Box Office Tickets for all shows are available at www.pleasance.co.uk or by calling 0131 556 6550.

Pleasance Theatre Trust

As a registered charity in Scotland, England and Wales, the Pleasance Theatre Trust aims to create a compelling platform to discover, nurture and support fresh artistic talent from across the globe. As a not-for-profit organisation, all proceeds from the Festival and our London base are invested back into the development of new people and new ideas. This artist development strand is called Pleasance Futures. The Pleasance Theatre Trust receives no regular funding and do not run our own bars, therefore we rely almost entirely on the income from our artistic programme.

The Pleasance Theatre Islington has been one of the most exciting Fringe theatres in London since it opened its doors in 1995, providing a launch pad for some of the most memorable productions and renowned practitioners over the past two decades, staying true to the Trust's mission of providing a platform for the talent of the future. This year-round programme compliments our world-renowned operations in Edinburgh.

Since opening in 1985, the Pleasance has become renowned for delivering an inspiring programme year on year that uniquely embodies the spirit of the Festival Fringe.

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