The Théâtre Nouvelle Génération (TNG) in Lyon does not intend to let this happen. The structure, labeled “national drama center”, announced in a press release this Tuesday that it had filed an appeal with the administrative court on November 17, 2023 to “contest the legality of the total withdrawal of its 2023 operating subsidy, by the executive of the Auvergne- Rhône-Alpes.” At the end of April, the community took the decision to withdraw all of the aid allocated to the TNG, i.e. 149,000 euros.
This choice had been explicitly justified, during a press conference, as a punishment in reaction to the words of the theater director, Joris Mathieu. The latter, interviewed in Telerama as a member of the national office of the Union of Artistic and Cultural Enterprises, had criticized the policy of Laurent Wauquiez, president of the region.
A request for “amicable resolution” without response
In July, to contest the withdrawal of its subsidies, which it considers “arbitrary and unfounded”, the TNG management first addressed to the regional presidency, “a free compensation appeal” in order to propose “a resolution amicable,” she specifies in the press release.
In the letter, she recalls that the initiatives taken by the regional executive must not “contravene the general interest” and cannot “in any case, reflect a clear desire to sanction political speech or union expression” .
“With no response from the region, the national drama center of Lyon took the decision to file a request with the administrative court, on Friday, November 17, in order to assert its rights with the competent jurisdiction,” he said. concluded. The appeal will be judged on its merits within twelve to eighteen months.