The Federation of Scottish Theatre board is elected by the FST membership, the board meets quarterly.
Anita Clark
Director
Anita has been dancing since she was 3 years old and has forged a career in dance as a practitioner, producer and in funding and policy. She is now Director of The Work Room, an artist-led organisation based in Glasgow. Her previous roles include Head of Dance at Creative Scotland, Artistic Director of City Moves in Aberdeen and Education Officer at Birmingham Royal Ballet. Anita holds an MA in Arts in Social Context from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and a BA (hons) in Dance & Related Arts from London College of Dance. She is on the board of directors of YDance and Take Me Somewhere festival and is also part of the executive committee of National Dance Network, a UK-wide network of dance development organisations.
Caroline Newall
Director of Artistic Development
Caroline (she/her) is Director of Artistic Development at the National Theatre of Scotland and a member of the Senior Management Team. She heads the Artistic Development department, which leads on the commission and creation of new artistic projects for the Company’s programme and the long-term diversification and development of artists. Caroline established and heads the Company’s cross departmental Access and Equalities team and designs and leads strategic initiatives to break down barriers for artists and audiences.
Christine Martin
Arts Programme Manager
Christine has over 17 years’ experience programming touring dance, theatre, music and comedy for OneRen’s cultural venues Paisley Arts Centre and Paisley Town Hall as well as project managing and a wide range of arts projects in Renfrewshire including co productions, artist residencies, and participatory and engagement projects. Christine currently leads the development and delivery of OneRen’s Festivals Programme, including Paisley Book Festival as well as developing the cultural venues performance programme. Christine studied the PG Cert in Arts Festival and Cultural Management at Queen Margaret University and has trained as a mentor with the Federation of Scottish Theatre.
Kate Nelson
Artistic Director/Chief Executive
Kate is Artistic Director of the award-winning, independent touring company Nutshell, which she founded in 2002. In addition to directing and producing, she lectures in Drama and Performance at Queen Margaret University. Her current research is in the fields of applied dramatic discourse analysis and in the benefit of the arts to rural economies. As part of her work at Queen Margaret, she has recently been awarded an Innovation Fellowship for 2021/2022. Kate has also worked as a freelance director and participatory arts practitioner in theatres across Scotland and the rest of the U.K. She served on the board of the Independent Theatre Council for 6 years and is currently a board member of Stage Directors U.K. and is a member of the Artistic Steering Group for Cumbernauld Theatre.
Mairi Taylor
Executive Producer
Mairi is the Executive Director at Birds of Paradise Theatre Company working across the company’s Theatre, Development and Strategic strands – from producing award winning creatively accessible theatre such as My Left Right Foot – The Musical to designing and delivering consultation and training around the world. Mairi has been working in access and disability equality across the arts for over 20 years in a wide range of roles and contexts, including as FST Access Project Manager 2008 – 2010. Mairi originally studied fine art and has a MFA from Duncan of Jordanstone, Dundee and BFA Ruskin School of Drawing and Fine Art, Oxford University.
Marek Litwin
ACCA Charted Accountant/Finance Manager
Marek is an experienced finance professional with a strong background in charity, culture, and the Scottish attractions sector. He currently serves as Finance Manager at the National Federation of Music Societies, where he oversees financial management and supports organisations in accessing Creative Tax Reliefs. His career spans roles with the Association of Scottish Visitor Attractions and RSPB Scotland, where he was involved in the delivery of multimillion-pound grant programmes and provided financial and governance support to a wide range of projects. Earlier in his career, Marek worked in the City of London with Fitch Ratings as a Financial Analyst, where he gained significant experience in international markets, credit analysis, and financial reporting. An ACCA charted accountant and ACIE affiliate, he brings expertise in charity accounting, project finance, and training.
sharon burgess
Chief Executive
Sharon Burgess is a seasoned arts executive with a global perspective, currently serving as the Chief Executive of Aberdeen Performing Arts, a charitable organisation responsible for the operation of three key city centre venues in Aberdeen: the Music Hall, His Majesty’s Theatre, and the Lemon Tree. Sharon is driven by a deep passion for the arts and is known to foster a collaborative environment for the organisation where innovation thrives. Aberdeen Performing Arts is behind several prominent festivals, such as Granite Noir, Rise Up, Delve, and Light the Blue youth arts festival. Before her role at Aberdeen Performing Arts, Sharon held the position of Chief Executive at ARTRAGE, a non-profit cultural organisation based in Perth, Western Australia. In this capacity, she played a crucial role in steering the organisation through the tumultuous period of the Covid-19 pandemic, ultimately leading ARTRAGE to a position of stability and strength, poised for continued success and delivering lasting positive impacts on the Western Australia community.
Susannah Armitage
Senior Producer
Susannah Armitage is a Producer with over twenty years of experience. At Eden Court she is responsible for the Live Performance Team and programme, in house and co-productions and Artist Support. She also chairs the Access and Inclusion Working Group. Prior roles include Programme Director and Head of Producing for the National Theatre of Scotland, Producer for Vox Motus and Producer and latterly Chief Executive for A Play, A Pie and A Pint. Having benefitted enormously from formal and informal mentorship throughout my career, she is looking forward to supporting other people through the mentorship process.
Viv Coady
HR Professional
Viv is an experienced HR Professional with over 30 years’ experience. She has worked in both the private and public sector in a range of different roles, leading primarily on organisational change, management development and employee relations.’ In her most recent role, she worked for the Scottish FA as Head of HR. Viv holds a BA (Hons) in Public Administration, and completed an MSc in 2011 in Human Resource Management at Strathclyde University. Her research focussed on, ‘The Employment of Older Workers’. In her spare time Viv has acted as a Volunteer for Age Concern UK as part of their , ‘Sharing Time’ Scheme.