Originally it was thought that only the Atlas Theater in Emmen was eligible for funding
Translated by Thomas Ansell
The De Nieuwe Kolk theatre in Assen is to receive 274,000 euros in funds to help it through the Coronavirus outbreak and its follow-on effects. It was earlier thought that only the cinema portion of the arts centre would benefit. As reported by the Dagblad van het Noorden.
The Dutch government has put up a total of 1 million euros for the cultural sector in Drenthe. Initially it was thought that only one museum, one theatre, and one cinema could claim the money. Therefore, in corroboration with the Province of Drenthe, De Nieuwe Kolk decided to apply only for support for its cinema. The Atlas Theatre in Emmen was then put forward by the Province for support.
After the initial applications were lodged, further discussions were held with the national government, and it was decided that more Drents theatres could apply. This was partially due to the Atlas Theatre only needing relatively small support from the funds. Aside from 75,000 euros for DNK’s cinema, a contribution of 274,000 euros has now been granted to its theatre.
In accordance with the rules around the support, the DNK also had to have half of its support paid for by local government. The Gemeente Assen then stepped into as co-financer, to speed up the application process.
Assen expects to pay for its 137,000 euro contribution from the Drenthe ‘emergency fund’. This fund was set up when it was unclear if the various cultural institutions would get national government support, and is a pot of around 500,000 euros.
