My first show was St Machar Academy’s production of Bugsy Malone. I was 13.
I got to wear a sharp suit, spats and a funny-looking pencil moustache. We destroyed Fat Sam’s gang by splurging them with a combination of egg and flour. It was great fun. I was part of Dandy Dan’s gang (we had less to do in the show, but wore better suits – a decent trade-off for less stage-time).
Since then, I’ve been lucky enough to continue performing, whether that be in the Student Show, in local plays, or as part of The Flying Pigs. As with my teenage experience of Bugsy Malone, the human connections you make stay with you for life.
Amateur theatre is route one into a career in the arts. Listen to Desert Island Discs, and many of the great actors of our generation will tell you they started out in amateur dramatics.
They became professional through a combination of formal training, determination, and self-belief. They all learned the essentials of operating as a team in those early days – you work hard, you make sure you don’t let anyone else down and, ultimately, you do your best.
I am the current chair of the Arts Centre on King Street in Aberdeen – we have a duty to promote the well-being of the younger generation by ensuring there is provision for affordable arts education. The team do great work but, year on year, it becomes harder and harder to stay afloat, as grants don’t keep up with the cost of living.
I remain hopeful our local government funding will stay at the same level this year. That would be a win, even though it is a net decrease due to inflation.
I couldn’t be prouder of what the team at the Arts Centre achieve on ever-decreasing grants, during a cost-of-living crisis, and while dealing with regulatory pressures. Castlegate Arts, which runs the Arts Centre, is a charity, but I am pretty sure not many people in the city fully appreciate that. We are kept going by the goodwill of our wonderful volunteers.
But we shouldn’t simply survive. With the right amount of funding, that beloved civic asset of ours could be the injection of creativity the city needs.
Other arts organisations are in the same boat (see the Belmont Cinema). At the Arts Centre, with regular, monthly donations, we would enhance our arts education programme for young people, and increase our local outreach to residents of all ages in the city. We could co-create projects with our many community groups.
Culture isn’t ‘nice to have’ but essential
I am not the first to say it and I won’t be the last, but cultural offerings are not a “nice to have”; they are essential. They will drive the things you and I will be proud of and hailing in 20 years’ time. So, give them the oxygen they need. Somebody needs to keep shouting about their importance. And loudly.
We need someone with energy, vision and passion, who can step into the spotlight. A storyteller. A champion.
The city and Shire must have long-term cultural leadership and vision. I am talking about a 10, 15, 20-year vision for a region that can sustain its own theatrical base, a flourishing creative arts scene, and a vibrant digital community that’s the bedrock of future entrepreneurial success.
I am talking about creating jobs and careers, apprenticeships, of partnering with UK and global educational creative establishments to retain our best talent.
Yes, this requires funding – but, trust me, not that much, in the grand scheme of things.
I wish Creative Scotland and all the various Scottish family trusts and foundations would take note: this is the stuff that will make a difference to cities and communities. For some inexplicable reason, the north-east of Scotland gets far less than its fair share of the Creative Scotland budgets. What more can we be doing to change that narrative and better tell our story?
Let’s get leadership, vision and funding right
A definition of insanity often attributed to Einstein – doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results – is relevant here. We have to think and act differently.
We need the region to be entrepreneurial. Yes, Creative Scotland has a role to play, but so do Film Scotland, Scottish Enterprise, the business world, foundations, trusts, and philanthropists. How do we unite all these players and get them behind one united vision?
Perhaps we need to better explain how any funds will be used, and what the outputs will be. Thinking about it with my business head, that’s what I would like to see before I invest any of my own money.
For this is an investment – there will be smaller returns in the immediate period as we watch the next generation of creatives make their mark. But the big pay-off comes when we can sustain a creative sector that rivals Glasgow, Cardiff or Manchester.
And if we get the leadership, vision and funding right for new, homegrown projects and productions, then the next generation may just give us all a standing ovation.
Moray Barber is managing partner at EY Aberdeen, chair of Castlegate Arts, and a performer and writer with The Flying Pigs
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