There are two aspects to the farce at the Abbey Theatre that, in fact, make it a tragic-farce. Firstly, the theatre's most important role - the creation of exciting drama that brings people into the venue - is being overshadowed by seemingly never-ending dismal news about management and financial problems, and, secondly, control of this cultural institution may pass into the hands of a Government department as a result of this morass.
The recent discovery of a financial black hole - into which €800,000 vanished in 2004 - was bad enough, but the confused, and confusing, manner in which the official explanation was put into circulation, by the theatre, only strengthens the image of an organisation in disarray. First accounts of the cause of the extra deficit identified international and national touring as loss-makers; subsequently we had half-hearted admissions that the productions sent abroad actually made money.The proposed investigation by an independent expert must make public the precise reasons for the financial mess.
The current inclination of the Minister, John O'Donoghue, to change funding arrangements and bring the Abbey directly under the aegis of his department is, to some extent, understandable given the incompetence in handling taxpayers' money. The Minister and his officials, for good reason, feel a loss of confidence. However, to bypass the Arts Council and make our National Theatre a direct client of government would be shortsighted and wrong.
Our National Theatre - any national theatre - has a duty to present drama with a political edge; work that, in what it might have to say, challenges prevailing views and establishment orthodoxies. Could a future administration avail of this financial control in a way that might be used to stymie the theatre's artistic independence? The arm's-length relationship that the Arts Council - as intermediary between government and theatre - provides, should not be abandoned in the heat of the crisis.
The council has, in recent times, shown a determination, and capacity, to hold the Abbey to account. It is also important to allow the process of change to continue under the direction of the new director Fiach Mac Conghail. There is a consensus that a history of underfunding is a significant factor in the Abbey's recurring problems. That is true, though the recent careless handling of the funding the theatre does receive does not do much to help that particular argument. But when the theatre gets its house in order - as it must - realistic subvention has to be provided; otherwise we will be back in the middle of another farce.