A DIRECTOR of a community theatre community has warned that they may not survive unless the Scottish Government step in to help theatre groups.

Andrew McVie, director of Ibrox - based Jazz Hands Glasgow Productions has called upon the Scottish Government to provide more guidance and support for the arts community.

Due to the ongoing impact of the coronavirus pandemic, groups such as Jazz Hands have had to cancel all activities for the forseeable future. This has had an impact on their fundraising activities as Jazz Hands rely on ticket sales from putting on performances to raise money.

Andrew said: “We had three or four bag bag packing events at supermarkets planned this year, which is a major stream of funding for us. We don’t know when we will be able to do this again. All of our fundraising opportunities have been lost. We’ve only been able to raise £20 this year and that was from an online bingo night.”

While Andrew and his company have been able to hold an online pantomime this year, he says this isn’t the same. As well as the lack of funds available, the pandemic has also had a huge impact on members socially. The troupe have 18 members and have had to cancel their upcoming show “The Wizard of Oz” which they have now postponed to next summer.

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Andrew said: “I thought this year would be our year. We have more members and we had our first proper show planned. When we were told in March that would be our last rehearsal, I was really upset. This is a big part of my life. It’s a good social event in the community. I miss it, it’s the longest time I’ve gone without theatre.”

Andrew feels that theatre groups are missing out. He said: “We feel theatre groups are getting less help than other clubs and we get nothing. We’ve tried everywhere to get help but you need to be a registered charity or business.

“If clubs don’t get this funding, they won’t be able to survive. We’ve got dedicated members who want to stay with us.”

“I would ask the Scottish Government to support clubs no matter what with funding that we are able to apply for and clear guidance over what we can and can’t do. I found the information really confusing.Let clubs who are not registered have opportunities for funding so that we can relaunch. That would make my life easier.”

A spokesman for the Scottish Government said:“We do not underestimate the devastating impact this pandemic has had on Scotland’s culture sector, particularly for organisations which rely on audiences and live performances. At the outset of the pandemic we acted quickly to provide unprecedented financial support and though it will not be possible to reach every person affected by the impact of the pandemic, we are actively considering what more we can do.

“We have worked closely with stakeholders to develop guidance to help performances resume and venues reopen as soon as it is safe to do so. We’re determined to do all we can to help the sector though this difficult time and into recovery so that they can continue to make a vibrant and rich contribution to Scotland and will continue to consider how remaining funding is best used.”