When I first embarked on The Phoenix Project what seems like an age ago, I found it hard to believe that there could have been so much resistance to, or such a lack of assistance for, what seems to me to be such a logical and straightforward concept. Over the years that disbelief has turned into frustration bewilderment, and outright fury. We have in this country a wealth of talent both performance and technical that lies wasted year in and year out because we have systems in place that are simply not equipped to deal with utilising it. We have come, in more legislative circles, to regard careers in entertainment as an indulgence of our fantasies rather than serious choices as to how we are going to live our lives and earn our living. Our arts bodies too with their convoluted and illogical funding systems do not even come close to addressing or even recognising that there is a problem. What is even more distressing is that the cliché of the resting actor is one that we have come to accept with a certain satisfied amusement.
Well I have never been satisfied or damned well amused.
This production is an illustration of everything that Phoenix and ultimately I stand for. We have in a few short weeks and with relatively little money, created an original show which, while it is by no means perfect, is of a standard far above many produced with full funding and backing. The performers and technicians involved here, talented in so many ways, have all found it next to impossible to find a break in the wall that stops them from earning a living through the skills that they have trained for many years to acquire. Now they are here and showing the world just how good they can be, and through a great deal of hard work that is very good indeed.
Our systems in this country must change if this industry, one of the last we can still legitimately call our own, is to survive let alone prosper. It must change in so many ways and on so many planes that the mind boggles to take it all in.
We must first and foremost change the funding system so that it recognises that commercial factors DO have a bearing on this arts world of ours. We must learn that Ars Gratia Artis is not always acceptable. Art is a truly wonderful thing but you can't eat it and it doesn't pay the bills. So we must create a system that funds the instigation of new projects, existing projects which have hit on hard times, or innovative projects which develops our understanding further. However this funding system must not become a way of life so that we as companies forget that ultimately we have a duty and obligation to support ourselves. Theatre companies must understand that they in turn must begin producing work that will attract audiences in order that they are able to sustain themselves. Three commercial productions in a small theatre would pay for the one experiment, and would allow available funding to go to those who really have no chance otherwise to explore and develop their work. Ultimately we must stop the system that allows £100 million of public money to be spent on a building, which may be shut for a year because it is financially incapable of running itself. When one thinks of how many small theatres, companies, and out of work performers and technicians that kind of money would have provided a lifeline for...
We must forge greater links with the commercial sector so that sponsorship plays an important part in what we produce. The production of good commercial work that attracts large audiences would be extremely attractive to potential sponsors and would ultimately mean more revenue for the theatre or company to improve their work. It is one of those exasperating theatre ironies that we resist doing the very things that would ultimately provide us with the revenue we spend our lives screaming like stuck pigs that we do not have. We must start to take responsibility for ourselves and not regard the Government as a fairy godmother bestowing upon us the means to exist. No one is owed a living.
However what our Government must do is create within the system a network which will support and work with those in the industry to create jobs and sustain them. As there have been and still are systems in place that will help you if you are a bricklayer, a plumber or whatever and you are out of work, so, if you are a performer or technician in the entertainment industry, you should be afforded the same assistance, and not just pointed in the direction of the nearest supermarket. One would be hard pressed to find anywhere a Job Centre where, on announcing that you are an performer, you are not greeted with an uncomprehending look and told that there is no help for you. Yes as theatricals we must and more often than not do, recognise that alternative employment options must be explored, but any so called equal system must afford me the actor with the same support mechanisms as him the mechanic. It is simply not fair or just to force anyone in a direction without first addressing the problem properly and offering the same informed support mechanisms that are available to others. When an incoming Prime Minister tells me on air that if I have drive, ability, talent and enthusiasm, I should know that I have a government that is behind me, I will say "show me".
In the end it comes to the fact that we must again regard our theatres and venues as an industry with commercial capabilities and responsibilities. Though there are many that will regard this as heresy and spit nails at the proposal, there is simply no difference between running a theatre or venue, or any other business. We live in a commercial world and we must accept this. We must learn that we are sublimely privileged to have a system which allows funding to be available, but this funding must be available to all, not just a chosen few, and we must, in order to receive it, demonstrate that we will make every effort to become self sufficient. That funding must become a helping hand to start, to get us out of trouble or to improve on what we are doing, not a way of life. A Welfare State for the entertainment industry that recognises all, not just dramatists. We must also stop the incredible waste of resource which goes on, with so many local council owned theatres empty for most of the year when there are so many people just begging for the chance to use them.
There is so much to do, and it has only just begun. I have for so long dedicated my life to making these changes, but have often felt as though I was just one small voice in the maelstrom. There were times when I questioned, as any rational man must, whether what I was embarking upon was just. With so many important people ignoring what I was saying, I wondered whether I had a point at all. Then I saw the thousands that came to the auditions for this show, all in the same position. I saw the hard work and dedication that the team I have assembled has offered. I have seen the product of that work created in far less than ideal circumstances. I am intensely and fiercely proud of them all. I defy anyone to tell me that this is wrong and should not be supported. We have taken so little and offer so much in return, in the enjoyment we will provide to the audiences, and the support for the children's charities we have adopted. We have the power to change people's lives for the better and I, as founder of this project, want to see this continue and gain in strength. This is only the beginning and we will get stronger. There is so much to do, and it has only just begun. Ignore us if you dare.
ROBERT SAXON
FOUNDER: THE PHOENIX PROJECT 1998
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