Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch (QTH) is today announcing its creative leadership team for the
2022/23 year, starting from 1 April 2022, with current Artistic Director, Douglas Rintoul, leaving
to lead the New Wolsey Theatre in May.
Maisey Bawden and Danielle Kassaraté, founders of Mawa Theatre, the UK’s first all Black all
Female Shakespeare Company, will be working together part time as Associate Director
(Talent Development), overseeing all aspects of this growing programme and focusing on
ensuring the support offered increasingly reaches more underrepresented and underserved
creative practioners.
Graeae, the acclaimed and award-winning theatre company championing the best in Deaf and
disabled talent, will take on the role of Creative Associate. Their team of associate artists will
support leadership in innovation at QTH, helping the venue discover and work with more Deaf
and disabled artists from across its wide catchment area, as well as further exploring what
digital practice might mean to QTH post pandemic.
Tim Jackson, director and choreographer, who is choeographing Merrily We Roll Along at the
New York Theater Workshop later this year, will direct the regional premiere of a co-production
of an acclaimed musical this Autumn. Tim choregraphed Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch and
New Wolsey Theatre’s celebrated revival of Made in Dagenham.
Caroline Leslie, who has an array of directing credits, and has most recently been Head of
Acting at LAMDA and Director of landmark QTH productions So Here We Are and The Kitchen
Sink, will direct this year’s pantomime Sleeping Beauty.
Stef O’Driscoll, award winning director, previously Artistic Director of nabokov, now interim
Artistic Director at the Gate Theatre, will direct at QTH for the first time. Stef will be working
with Vicki Donoghue on developing the world premiere of Vicki’s new play about the Canvey
Island floods of 1953, to be staged in Spring 2023.
All of the 22/23 creative leadership team will work closely with Mathew Russell, Executive
Director, and the QTH team, to help further develop and deliver the charity’s ambitious plans
and will access the organisation and its resources to maximise this developmental opportunity
for everyone involved.
“We’re excited to be announcing a 2022/23 creative leadership team that enables us to work
with an array of talent and voices, some of whom are new to us, with others having been part
of the success of the last five years. It’s an innovative opportunity to experiment with different
forms of what creative leadership might mean to Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch, to feed in the
fantastic ideas of these colleagues at the heart of organisational change, and to play our part
in supporting and developing more artists so they become even better equipped to lead
fantastic 21st century producing theatres and theatre companies.” Mathew Russell, Executive
Director, Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch.
“As individuals and as Mawa Theatre Company we have always been committed to making
long lasting change within the industry. In 2020, in collaboration with Queen’s Theatre