The manager of a Liverpool city centre theatre on the brink of closure has hit back at the claim it no longer offers value for money for the taxpayer.
Earlier this month, the city council confirmed it was bringing its financial support for the Epstein Theatre to an end. Should no arrangement to replace the funding be found in the coming days, the curtain will come down on the arts venue for the final time this Friday, ending more than a century of productions.
In its rationale for ending the financial support, Liverpool Council said providing cash was “unsustainable” and ultimately the authority needed to “deliver value for money for the tax payer.” In an open letter to Cllr Harry Doyle, cabinet member for health, wellbeing and culture, Anthony Proctor, theatre manager and programmer, said how staff found such a description “hurtful.”
