Five hour meeting for small progress. This is how it was settled the meeting was held this friday Teatro Principal de Alicante (divided equally between Alicante City Council, Banco Sabadell and Generalitat Valenciana since 2018) is the seat of the general assembly and governing council of the Community of Owners. called for a new appointment within a month, 11 Novemberto try to solve some pending issues haunting Alicante coliseum They continue as they have been since Paco Sanguino left as director in April 2019 and three years later: María Dolores Padilla, a selection process occupy the address; the debt accumulated by the theater 900,000 euros Due to the objections of Alicante City Council’s Response service, it still has not been able to pay part of the 3 million euros contributed by Generalitat, which has created new conditions for using this money in the municipality. pending rehabilitation from the Colosseum.
The good news is that this Friday’s meeting did not end with bitter conflicts nor with the intention of snatching each other’s possessions, as at the last meeting a year ago, and at least willingness to “continue the dialogue” At the next appointment in November.
at today’s meeting 2022 theater budget approved this year (2,400,000 Euros) and The first half of the 2023 programIts administration was presented by María Dolores Padilla, who was acclaimed by the mayor, Luis Barcala, but The second part of the program is pending. and one next year’s budget forecastMoreover Fundamentals governing the director/manager selection processa, something to take to the next meeting in November, at the request of the Generalitat, whose first meeting was attended by the Regional Secretary for Culture, Ximo Lopezwith the undersecretary Eva Coscolla and IVC director, Abel GuarinoYeah
this argument It focused on the programming planned for the next season, where Generalitat requested a more detailed report from what was contracted in the first part of 2023 and by what criteria, outlines were presented. As Generalitat and PSOE, United We Can and Compromís believe that the owners’ contribution to the theater should be increased, the programming proposal for the second term – which went from 140,000 this year – to 180,000 euros each, to present a program that joins the approaches, as reported by some attendees at the meeting “less commercial” and also, as noted, “the diversity and promotion of works, writers and directors from Alicante and criteria for Valencian promotion”. Xavi Lopez, from United We Can. On behalf of PSOE, Trini AmorosAs he had already suggested at the last meeting, the annual contribution in 2023 “must be 250,000 or 3,000 euros to pay off the debt and because the higher the budget, the higher the quality and excellence in programming, it has to depend on the box office”, at which point Sabadell refused as stated. showed.
Barcala said, “There is no point in making a program so that no one leaves, and the numbers show that the programs of the last two years have recovered the viewers lost due to the pandemic.”
this generalitatIn this context, for 2023, he said, “All the inclinations to increase the budget for programming and the meeting on 11 November are very good for us to make upward adjustments to our 2023 budget draft.”
Although the Ministry of Culture was asked to address the issue in the minutes of the last meeting, they reminded this. direction contest, this was not on the agenda. According to him, “it was agreed to include this issue at the next meeting” and “The city council has promised to make a proposal” on the basis for the selection process. “We’ve been waiting since 2019 – already in the fall of that year the Generalitat submitted a competition proposal – which the City Council rejected. Solving this problem is very important to Generalitat. because it is thought that a cultural field as relevant as the Director needs a person to lead a strong project in cultural material”.
For the Alicante City Council Government teamHowever, the theme director selection is not such a priority such as debt settlement and rehabilitation. earring. According to Cultural Council Member Antonio Manresa, “The City Council has pledged to continue discussing the issue of governance.”
For Manresa, however long the meeting had lasted, “Overall it has been positive and productive“We’ve reached an agreement for the theater, approved the programming and the budget and the steps for its rehabilitation, and we continue to work despite the supervisor’s obstacles.”
The mayor recalled this, both for the debt and for the rehabilitation of the theater. “We are at the expense of the terms set for us by the auditor”. For his reform plans, “He needs an agreement we already have with Sabadell. Now he’s asked two more questions: the three owners’ commitment to tender the rehabilitation recorded at today’s meeting and a letter of commitment from Sabadell He stated that he supported the reform of the City Council.
Despite everything and the rehabilitation project being “more or less sketchy”, Manresa alone estimates that bidding will take four or five months and that work on the theater won’t start until next summer, taking advantage of the summer closure to change seats.
audience increase
The City Council stated that 2021 was a year where the restrictive measures on the capacity were still affected, making management difficult, working with 50% and 75% capacity throughout the season, but still providing capacity increase. audience participation. Audience attendance decreased to 26,992 in 2020, increased in 2021 52,929 Despite the continued restrictions, which amounted to a box office revenue of 1,180,519.33 euros.
In the revenue budget 2021, the sums of the partial deviations give the final absolute deviation in revenues of 552,307.68 euros and expenses of 497,858.85 euros. The result of the exercise shows: More than 54,448,83 euros. Fulfillment of obligations committed and accrued is dependent on receipt of box office revenue, with contributions from Alicante City Council, Banco Sabadell Foundation and Generalitat Valenciana of €180,000 each for 2022.
opposition criticism
reconciliation spokesperson, Natxo BellidoHe thinks “things won’t be so good if they have to meet again in a month” to address the same issues with the owners of the Alicante theatre. “The truth is that the legislature will end and four years later the theater is still not fixed“Without knowing the deadlines for rehabilitation and being clear about the transparency process required to select the director,” says Bellido. “The Manresa-Barcala duo is a failure”.
for the socialist Trini AmorosThe Alicante City Council said, “The Teatro Director did not make the necessary effort to get the place he deserves. Is it normal for us to run a legislature without a manager, without knowing the basis on which it will be run, and without sufficient funds to pay off its debt?», he wonders, after considering that the government team was hiding behind Intervention problems to explain the Colosseum’s future inaction. «But the three-year Intervention problems? Find a way to fix it. What is really hiding this delay? is a lack of political will. It’s like we’re either stagnant or worse off,” he added.
in your opinion Xavi LopezThe biggest problem with the theater of Alicante is the debt of close to one million euros, which “and weighs the programming”. The mayor of United We Can also sees a “clear obstacle” in the process of choosing the new direction and the lack of action “to continue to control the programming and management of the theater”: “The money is there. It cannot be blocked by the disadvantages that the intervention always puts ».