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#SaveEchoEcho

LETTER WRITING CAMPAIGN

We are asking you to write to the Communities Minister Mr Gordon Lyons MLA, to express your support for Echo Echo Dance Theatre Company after its annual funding grant of £112k was completely cut by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland. 

As it stands this cut will mean that within the next few months all staff will be made redundant and Echo Echo Studios will close. 

To address the areas of criticism, made by the Arts Council in the assessment of the company and its work, it would be useful if you could respond according to your experience with Echo Echo as honestly and in as much detail as you can. 

Please give a reasonable amount of detail about who you are, what your background is and how you came into contact with Echo Echo, Steve Batts, Kelly Quigley, Ayesha Mailey, Tonya Sheina and/or Zoe Ramsey.

Please respond to some or all of these themes as you see fit:

·      Artistic Quality

·      Poetic Movement practice and its importance and what it has meant to you

·      Professionalism of the organisation

·      Integrity and ethics

·      The quality of the core artists of the company

·      The experience of and value of Echo Echo Studios as a space/venue

·      The Echo Echo welcome

·      Echo Echo’s support for your creative work and your cultural/artistic/career development

·      The quality of the work of the artists of the Echo Echo Ensemble

·      Importance of the company to Derry and Ireland in your view

·      The effect on you and/or your loved ones from engagement with Echo Echo

·      The ripple effect beyond you through your work with other people

·      Anything else that you feel is important

INSTRUCTIONS TO SEND BY EMAIL

STEP ONE - Compose the letter and save it as a pdf.

STEP TWO - Attach the pdf to an email.

STEP THREE - Put “SAVE ECHO ECHO” in the subject line and send the email to:

Communities Minister Mr Gordon Lyons MLA, Department for Communities: gordon.lyons@mla.niassembly.gov.uk, private.office@communities-ni.gov.uk 

Also cc to: info@echoechodance.com so that we can collect all the responses.

 

It would also be helpful if you could cc to:

colm.gildernew@mla.niassembly.gov.uk

chief@artscouncil-ni.org

council@artscouncil-ni.org

sian.mulholland@mla.niassembly.gov.uk

john.ball@communities-ni.gov.uk

(Colm Gildernew, Chair Committee for Communities. Roisín McDonough, Chief Executive Arts Council of Northern Ireland. Liam Hannaway, Arts Council NI Chairperson. Sian Mulholland, Chair All Party Group on the Arts. John Ball, Head of Arts Branch Department for Communities)

We may publish some or all of the letters of support at some point in future and they may be used in future funding bids by Echo Echo Dance Theatre Company. If you would prefer to limit how your response is used by us don't hesitate to get in touch: info@echoechodance.com.

Echo Echo will comply with all GDPR data processing laws. Your contact details will not be added to our mailing list. If you wish to sign up to our email list please do so via our website.

INSTRUCTIONS TO SEND BY MAIL

If you would prefer, you may write a letter and post it to:

Minister Gordon Lyons MLA

Department for Communities

Causeway Exchange

1-7 Bedford Street

Belfast

BT2 7EG

 

If it is possible and convenient to send us a copy that would be great. We can then scan it and send it on to other relevant people. 

Echo Echo Dance Theatre Company

Waterloo House

Magazine Street

Derry-Londonderry BT48 6HH

Northern Ireland

Feel free to contact us if you want support or guidance.

Thanks so much for your support!

#SaveEchoEcho

 

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