News: Newcastle Theatre Royal Announces Appointment of New Chief Executive

Newcastle Theatre Royal Announces Appointment of New Chief Executive

Newcastle Theatre Royal Trust has announced the appointment of a new Chief Executive following a nationwide search.

Marianne Locatori will join the prestigious Grey Street theatre from Theatre Royal Plymouth - where she is currently Director of Strategic Projects – at the beginning of October and will succeed Philip Bernays who is retiring after 16 years at the helm.

Marianne Locatori

During her time at Theatre Royal Plymouth, Ms Locatori has implemented a number of innovative commercial and artistic strategies, which - alongside responsibility for programming a broad spectrum of high calibre productions - have been instrumental in firmly establishing the theatre as one of the most prominent regional venues in the country.

A committed advocate of regional theatre, Ms Locatori is passionate about the important role that arts and culture plays in generating positive change and community engagement.

Prior to joining Theatre Royal Plymouth in 2003, she spent a number of years at Ambassador Theatre Group. Earlier this year she was appointed as a Director of the Dance Consortium, a group of UK theatres dedicated to bringing the best of contemporary dance to audiences across the country.

Marianne Locatori said: “Newcastle Theatre Royal is one of the most highly regarded theatres in the country; it is an organisation that I have long admired and I am delighted to be appointed as Chief Executive. It will be a privilege to lead this successful and important cultural organisation in what is such a fantastic and vibrant city. I’m very much looking forward to working with the board, the team and the wider community and developing a vision that takes the organisation to its next stage of success.”

Nick Swales, Chair of the Board of Newcastle Theatre Royal Trust added: “We are delighted to have someone with Marianne’s impressive track record in regional theatre on board; she brings a wealth of valuable experience, which, alongside with her drive, passion and determination makes her absolutely the right person to take Newcastle Theatre Royal forward and deliver upon our strategic ambitions.”

Philip Bernays joined Newcastle Theatre Royal in 2005 and in early 2020 announced his plans to retire later that same year. As a result of the unprecedented challenges facing the arts and culture sector due to COVID-19, he subsequently delayed his plans to step down in order to continue to lead the organisation as it focused on managing the crisis. Philip will leave at the end of September.

Nick Swales added: “This has been an extremely challenging time for all those within the arts and culture sector and we are tremendously grateful to Philip for his ongoing support and leadership  during this extraordinary period.”

Newcastle Theatre Royal is a pioneer of arts and culture in the North East. One of only nine Grade 1 listed theatres in the country, it is home to the very best in touring theatre bringing world class musicals, drama, dance, ballet, comedy and opera performances to the region as well as staging the finest pantomime in the country.