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Read our annual reports and discover how we've been firing the imagination over the years.

2022 – 2023: The Story So Far

Read our annual report (PDF | ISSUU)

In the past year we have undergone significant transformations. Our new spaces Cabaret, Ffwrnais , and Bocs cater to Wales’ diverse communities’ and champion inclusivity and creativity. 

As our spaces increase, so does our impact in Wales. Over 6,500 young people have been inspired by our creative programmes, including Creative VoiceRadio Platfform and Dros Nos. A further 11,000 community members have connected with over 160 community-led performances, exhibitions, experiences and cultural celebrations in our building. 

We’ve continued to work with emerging artists from across Wales to produce and platform their stories, with our stage productions and digital experiences reaching over 40,500 people worldwide.  

We remain at the forefront of sector innovations, with our immersive art and storytelling venue Bocs, unique to any arts centre in Wales, and our participation in One Planet Cardiff's heat network, set to reduce our annual emissions by 80%. 

These changes only scratch the surface and mark the exciting next chapter in our story as we work to develop permanent youth-led Maker Spaces, which will nurture the next generation's creative talents.  

None of this would be possible without the support of our audiences, funders, partners, visitors, Wales Millennium Centre teams and volunteers. Diolch.  

2021 - 2022: The Story So Far

Read our 2021-22 Annual Report

We’re proud of how much we continued to achieve in 2021/22. None of this would have been possible without the Arts Council of Wales, the dedication of our teams, partners, volunteers, wider community and family of supporters.

Over 318,000 of you visited when our building was open, including our community led re-opening exhibition, Your Voice; and over 140,000 of you saw shows across our spaces.

We worked on the development of 10 future Wales Millennium Centre productions with new and emerging artists – including our first Welsh language musical comedy, Anthem. We also offered 511 hours of space in kind for 30+ artists, community groups and schools to develop their ideas. 

We welcomed new and diverse audiences – 13% of bookers for our production The Boy with Two Hearts were from Black, Asian, mixed and ethnically diverse groups (compared to 3% for our commercial shows). We continued to make performances more accessible to our communities, including installing dedicated ‘pay what you can’ seating in our main theatre.

We continued to co-produce programmes with young people, including our free youth training programme, Creative Voice, online, which resulted in in-depth engagement with 100 young people. We collaborated with 60+ young people on the design of our Maker Spaces and worked with 50+ community, national and international partners throughout the year, including our eight cultural residents.

Diolch o galon – we are excited for so much more to come.

2020 - 2021 Annual Report

Read our 2020 - 2021 Annual Report

This was a unique and difficult year for us and the wider sector. Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, we closed our doors on 17 March 2020, and only reopened in July 2021. With the cancellation of all shows and events we lost 85% of our revenue overnight and had to navigate these unprecedented circumstances, ensuring the survival of Wales Millennium Centre.

While we weren’t able to present any productions on our stages or welcome people into our iconic building, we kept the flame of creativity alight by working with the community and moving our creative learning programme online. Almost 3,000 young people engaged with us through virtual workshops led by industry leaders, gaining valuable skills.

We were also one of four of Wales’ best loved festivals who joined forces to create and present Gŵyl 2021, a free online festival packed with music, comedy and talks. Artists such as Cate le Bon and Brett Anderson were among our line-up. An incredible 107,101 people watched Gŵyl 2021, via the BBC Wales’ website.

2019 - 2020 Annual Report

2019 - 2020 A Year in Review

This was a landmark year for us, especially in terms of staging our own productions.

Autumn 2019’s Performances for the Curious, featuring more than 30 shows, was our most accessible yet. English and Welsh productions of Lovecraft (Not the Sex Shop in Cardiff), our award-winning co-production with Carys Eleri, toured extensively across Wales and at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, to rave reviews.

We made our debut in Asia in February 2020 with a brand new co-production of The Mirror Crack’d, performed in Mumbai, and our co-production The Beauty Parade, a brand new, female-led theatre show made by Deaf and hearing artists, was a box office hit in March 2020. Off-stage, Radio Platfform launched its second studio – in Porth, Rhondda Cynon Taff, in July 2019.

Meanwhile, at home in our Glanfa foyer, we hosted a series of community banquets which were a huge success, and which we hope to revisit when we reopen our doors.

2020 Annual Report and Financial Statement

 

2018 - 2019 Annual Report

2018 - 2019 Annual Report

In November 2019, we turned 15 and reflected on the privilege of being able to nurture the hearts, minds and wellbeing of our nation. From welcoming 26,000 people through our doors for our very own Festival of Voice and 300,000 visitors for the National Eisteddfod, to bringing international sensations War Horse and Wicked to our stage; there are some impressive highlights.

We pride ourselves not only on bringing world-class productions and festivals to our country’s capital, but also in developing and supporting local artists and broadening the horizons of our young people. Find out how every penny spent at Wales Millennium Centre helps fire the imagination of our nation.