Seymour Centre to receive artistic grant from RISE

The University of Sydney’s Seymour Centre has been awarded a grant from the Restart Investment to Sustain and Expand (RISE) Fund, under the fourth batch of grants for Australia’s creative and entertainment sector.

Shared by 82 leading organisations across the country, funding to the Seymour Centre will allow the delivery of 178 performances to 19,000+ audiences through 16 months of multi-genre productions and events.

“Funding to the arts sector is critical to Australia at this current time as pandemic restrictions and closures have dealt the industry one blow after another,” University of Sydney Vice Chancellor and Principal Professor Mark Scott said.

“This generous funding through RISE will allow us to answer the strong demand for our programs and continue to support the arts and theatre industry during this challenging time. It will provide the Seymour Centre potential to offer theatre audiences diverse works from a range of artists, but just as importantly it will also provide artists with the certainty of ongoing work.”

“There is no doubt that this grant is a game changer for the Seymour Centre,” said Timothy Jones, Artistic Director and General Manager of the Seymour Centre.

“It provides us with certainty (in a time of great uncertainty) that we can pursue our core purpose throughout 2022: the production and presentation of outstanding theatre works that champion new voices, question the status quo and inspire wide-ranging audiences through the creative expression of big ideas.”

Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts, the Hon Paul Fletcher MP, said this $40 million in funding is especially important during such a difficult period for the sector.

“Demand for RISE funding has been significant since it opened last year. The latest funding will be allocated immediately to create more than 56,000 employment opportunities across the country,” Minister Fletcher said.

“RISE has been critical in supporting Australia’s live performance venues and events during an unprecedented time of widespread disruption from the pandemic.”

In March 2020, the Morrison Government announced the RISE Fund would receive an extra $125 million, building on an original commitment of $75 million.

To date, the Government has allocated $140 million of the $200 million RISE Fund, creating more than 145,000 job opportunities and expanding cultural and creative experiences for audiences across Australia.

The Morrison Government is investing more than $1 billion into the arts and creative sector in 2021- 22.

Further information on the RISE Fund is available at: www.arts.gov.au/covid-19-update