Welcome to the new Chair of our Board of Trustees

Sarah joins Theatre Royal with a wealth of Board experience including Vice Chair and Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee at the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women and Deputy Chair and Chair of Audit and Risk Committee at First Light Festival.

“I am delighted to join Theatre Royal and am greatly looking forward to working with the Board and the team under Owen’s outstanding leadership. It is both a joy and a privilege to be joining the Theatre at this time, following on from Roger who has been such a wonderful Chair, steering the Board throughout the various challenges of the last few years. The Theatre is such an amazing success story, combining respect for the history of the splendid building with the verve and imagination of both programming and performances.  I am grateful to Roger, all the  Board and of course, Owen, for their very warm welcome.” Sarah Kemp

Sarah takes the reins from Roger Quince who was in post for 8 years until August of this year.  Roger joined Theatre Royal’s board soon after the loss of our previous Arts Council funding and leaves knowing that the theatre has successfully returned to the ACE National Portfolio.  His steady leadership and guidance supported the core staff as they navigated the theatre’s closure due to the pandemic and he completes his tenure knowing Theatre Royal is thriving and in good hands.

“Theatre Royal will be forever grateful to Roger, who steered us so capably through two tumultuous periods: the death of my predecessor, Karen Simpson, and the impact of the Global Pandemic. Roger leaves Theatre Royal in excellent shape, both financially and creatively and that is testament to his leadership. Now we begin a new chapter under the guidance of Sarah. Sarah brings a wealth of experience from the charitable and creative sectors as well as a deeply-held passion for the arts. Sarah is going to help us to achieve great things, so this is really good news for the people of West Suffolk.” Owen Calvert-Lyons, Theatre Royal CEO & Artistic Director

Sarah brings an array of transferable skills from the world of consumer goods (Unilever plc), Retail (Laura Ashley), Arts (Royal Opera House) and the Charitable Sector (Trinity College London).  Sarah’s role as Chair is to lead the team of trustees to ensure the efficient and effective delivery of Theatre Royal’s operations in accordance with the charity’s strategy.

Sarah is initially appointed for one four-year term but with the prospect of a second term.