For the third year running, the Stephen Joseph Theatre has been nominated for a prestigious UK Theatre Award.
Last year, the Scarborough theatre was nominated for – and won – the award for Best Show for Children and Young People for its Christmas offering, Beauty and the Beast. The previous year, it was nominated for The Comedy of Errors (more or less) and actor Antony Eden won Best Supporting Performance for his role in Family Album.
This year, it’s up for the Excellence in Workforce Culture Award for its scheme promoting up-and-coming directors, Breaking the Mould – Reshaping Artistic Leadership.
The scheme has been running since 2017 and has seen four young prospective artistic directors learn the ropes of the day-to-day running of a regional theatre. The first incumbent, Lotte Wakeham, is now Artistic Director at the Octagon Theatre Bolton, and the second, Chelsey Gillard, is AD at the Torch Theatre in Milford Haven. Kash Arshad, the third person on the scheme, is now a sought-after freelance artistic director. The current incumbent is Chantell Walker.
SJT Artistic Director Paul Robinson says:
“We’re thrilled that the UK Theatre Awards has recognised this scheme.
We designed it to provide professional and personal development for individuals interested in becoming an artistic director in a regional theatre, but who had not had those opportunities available to them. It offers an 18-month, three-days-a-week fully paid opportunity for an individual to gain the tools, connections and confidence to lead an artistic organisation in the future."
“It’s very much tailored to meet the needs of the individual, and to reflect the experience they bring to the role as well as providing support in identified areas. They assist or associate direct at least one of our main shows in the year; become full members of the Senior Management Team, feeding into funding applications, business planning and programming; attend all Board and Committee meetings; and receive ongoing mentoring from both myself and our Executive Director, Caroline Routh.
“We want the scheme to provide opportunities for those in under-represented groups who might otherwise struggle to break through cultural barriers.”
Chantell Walker says:
“This scheme is a life-changing opportunity. It’s pushed me forward to the next step in my career, closer to my aspiration of being an artistic director of a regional theatre. I’m a working-class director and I didn’t have much access to the arts growing up. By the time I was 16, I’d only seen one play.
“Sometimes I still feel I’m playing catch up and I’m not as knowledgeable or well-read as my peers. It’s daunting when I see that many theatre directors have been privately educated or attended prestigious universities like Oxford or Cambridge.
“The scheme gives directors like me a chance to learn and to see themselves in the role as an artistic leader. The theatre is supporting me on this journey.”
This year’s UK Theatre Awards will be announced on Sunday 12 October at a ceremony in London.
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