LONDON: Acclaimed playwright Caryl Churchill has withdrawn from a project with a London theater over its sponsorship by Barclays and the bank’s links to companies supplying arms to Israel.
In a statement, Churchill, who is a long-time advocate for Palestinian rights, called on the Donmar Warehouse to cut ties with Barclays, The Guardian reported.
“Theaters used to say they couldn’t manage without tobacco sponsorship, but they do. Now it’s time they stopped helping advertise banks that support what Israel is doing to Palestinians,” she said.
The project had not yet been publicly announced but would have marked Churchill’s return to the Donmar for the first time since “Far Away” in 2020.
Her move has been backed by more than 300 artists and arts workers, including actors Harriet Walter, Juliet Stevenson, Alfred Enoch, Samuel West and Tim Crouch, who signed an open letter in support.
Barclays has faced increasing pressure from arts and activist groups over its provision of financial services to defense companies operating in Israel.
In 2023, the group Culture Workers Against Genocide published a letter condemning Barclays’ sponsorship of Sadler’s Wells, with signatories including Maxine Peake, an actress.
Last year, the Bands Boycott Barclays campaign led to the bank being dropped as a sponsor by several UK music festivals, including Latitude and The Great Escape.
Barclays declined to comment on Churchill’s withdrawal but said on its website: “While we provide financial services to these companies, we are not making investments for Barclays and Barclays is not a ‘shareholder’ or ‘investor’ in that sense in relation to these companies.”
Barclays CEO C.S. Venkatakrishnan defended the bank’s position in a 2023 Guardian article, writing: “These companies are supported by our democratically elected governments for their role in protecting the UK and allies in Europe. We will not undermine our own national security by de-banking them.”
Responding to Churchill’s decision, Culture Workers Against Genocide said: “Arts institutions have an ethical duty not to contribute to oppression and injustice. By continuing to accept sponsorship from Barclays, Donmar Warehouse is helping to launder the bank’s reputation as it profits from Israel’s genocide in Palestine.”
The Donmar, which lost its £500,000 ($679,355) annual government grant in 2022, has increasingly relied on private support, including corporate sponsorships. It has been approached for comment.
Churchill was previously stripped of a European lifetime achievement award in 2022 following criticism of her play “Seven Jewish Children” and her public pro-Palestinian stance.
