THE NUGENT INQUIRY INTO THE MAJOR PERFORMING ARTS
Mission
The Inquiry will identify options and make recommendations on actions
that can be taken both by governments and the sector to ensure that Australia
has a financially healthy, artistically vibrant, and broadly accessible
major performing arts sector.
Specifics
The Inquiry will identify and report on:
- the current financial position of Australia's major government subsidised
performing arts companies, including the managerial and governance capabilities
of the companies; their cost and revenue dynamics; the extent to which
the financial health of the companies enhances or impedes their ability
to achieve artistic outcomes; and the extent of their accessibility
across Australia;
- the forces driving further change in the sector, including the impact
of global and local competition, new technologies, and governments'
funding policies on the sector;
- structural, financial, managerial and governance barriers that may
impede the sector's sustainability and development; and
- measures for action by the companies, Commonwealth and State/Territory
Governments to ensure an artistically vibrant and financially stable
sector, including structural, financial, managerial and organisational
initiatives.
The report should canvass options, including a preferred option, and
an implementation strategy over a three year timeframe.
The Inquiry will cover all companies currently funded by the Major Organisations
Fund of the Australia Council, the symphony orchestras supported through
Symphony Australia, the opera and ballet orchestras, and the state and
national opera companies, and will take into account the best way the
companies, government, venues and festivals can work together to ensure
the long term vibrancy and efficiency of the sector.
The Inquiry will consult funding agencies at Commonwealth and State/Territory
levels, companies, venues and festivals, and take account of the full
range of Commonwealth and State/Territory objectives for cultural development.