Announced today by the Barbican Theatre Plymouth, Laura Kriefman has been appointed as the new CEO.
Laura joins the core Barbican Theatre team of seven. As an Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation (NPO), the team are getting set to write their new vision for 2021 – 2024. This work will form the basis of Barbican Theatre’s application for NPO status for the next four years.
Laura will also work with the Barbican team on the Thrive Emerging Artists programme, FUSE: Diverse Dance project, providing strategic leadership around young people’s training outreach programmes and the Barbican’s own, and co-produced, work.
Matt Hall, Barbican Theatre Chair said, “We are absolutely delighted to welcome Laura Kriefman into the city. The Barbican Theatre has always been in the vanguard of innovation and change and this appointment ensures that the theatre continues its ground-breaking work. Laura will continue the theatre’s strong tradition of talent development with young people, emerging artists and communities bringing 21st-century expertise into how performance is made and distributed. Laura’s creative skills, digital expertise and national and international connections make her the ideal candidate for Barbican Theatre and Plymouth as the city’s cultural ecology goes from strength to strength”.
Laura says, “I’m so excited to be joining the thriving Plymouth cultural scene at this time, and am looking forward to being part of the Barbican’s future. Barbican Plymouth is in a brilliant position to become a key lynchpin in the UK’s live performance and tech scene. To become a go-to destination creating the next generation of pioneering practitioners who are armed with not only great theatre and dance skills but also the confidence to work at the leading edge of creative contemporary physical storytelling in the UK.”
The team at Hellion Trace have been celebrating too. “At Hellion Trace we love creating big, extraordinary spectacles, that surprise and delight. We’ve been based in the South West for eight years as a company, and are so excited to see what great new collaborations and relationships grow from Laura’s CEO role at the Barbican in Plymouth. We can’t wait to see what the artists and collaborators we so respect make for Plymouth, Devon and Cornwall.”
The team will keep working away on Hellion Trace projects and ideas, supporting Laura in her new role.
“Hellion Trace exists because of Laura’s artistry: The collaborators and team will continue growing her ideas and vision, and look forward to creating a big event with her every 18 months or so. We will continue to tour our smaller projects, interactive installations and will continue our company’s consultancy work.”
Laura will assume the new role on 4th May 2020, following a brief period of hand-over from current CEO and Barbican Theatre co-founder Sheila Snellgrove. Laura’s work with Hellion Trace will continue alongside her new role at Barbican Theatre.