Alicia Ríos - Ali&Cia Food Artists , Madrid

Dear Richard,

We at Ali&Cia Food Artists are shocked and dismayed at the Arts Council of Wales’ decision to withdraw revenue funding for CPR. CPR’s work has been unrivalled in it’s promotion of cutting edge performance practices. It has been a credit to Wales and Welsh arts administration and I am baffled at how the ACW could allow this reputation to be jeopardised.

As you’ll remember, my relationship with CPR goes back to my participation in the fifth of the Points of Contact series in 1994, dedicated to performance related with food and cookery. This conference was a revelation, as was the issue of Performance Research published in conjunction, which I continue to consult almost 15 years later. We have subsequently worked together on other occasions, including on other continents, pursuing and developing those themes of mutual interest, producing inspirational works that were possible thanks to our continuous collaboration.

I have just reserved flights so that I can attend the Giving Voice festival this year and will be going with other friends from Madrid who share my confidence in CPR to yet again host a prestigious line up of top international quality.

Through the many labours of your team, CPR has earned for Aberystwyth, and for Wales as a whole, a reputation not only as a world stage for pioneering theatre, but as a committed player in cutting edge arts research and development.

The compromise to your programming that the withdrawal of revenue funding would inevitably entail, would be a loss not only for Aberystwyth and Wales but to the international arts community and beyond.Good luck reversing the decision.

Alicia Ríos, Bárbara Ortiz, Simon Cohen, Miguel Eraso and Diego Vega
-- Alicia Ríos - Ali&Cia Food Artists , Madrid.
www.alicia-rios.com