Award-winning theatre company Headlong, has today announced Lisa Maguire as their new Executive Director and Joint CEO. Lisa, who is currently Executive Producer and Deputy CEO at National Theatre of Wales, will take up the position from Alan Stacey in Spring 2022.Â
Lisa joins Headlong after a nine year tenure at National Theatre Wales. As Executive Producer and Deputy CEO she oversaw the creation of over 40 multi-artform productions in an extraordinary range of locations across Wales, internationally and online. These included critically acclaimed productions such as Tonypandemonium, The Gathering/Yr Helfa, Mametz, Iliad, City of the Unexpected, We’re Still Here, Refrain and On Bear Ridge. For seven years she worked as Executive Producer and joint CEO at Frantic Assembly where she helped create an award-winning series of productions watched by over 175,000 people in the UK and internationally. Lisa previously worked at the Young Vic and Lyric Hammersmith and her work as an independent producer has included projects with Manchester International Festival, The Work Theatre Collective and the London fringe. She holds a degree in Drama and Theatre Arts from Goldsmiths College, University of London, and is a trustee of Common Wealth.
In her new position as Executive Director and Joint CEO, Lisa will work closely with Headlong’s Artistic Director Holly Race Roughan as the company continues to bring innovative new writing, reimagined classics and influential 20th Century plays by some of the UK’s finest artists to audiences across the country. Together Holly and Lisa will lead Headlong as it creates work that responds to the significant shifts in the UK’s cultural, social and political landscape, nurtures the next generation of artists and theatre makers and delivers on its commitments to justice and equality.
Lisa Maguire says: “I’m thrilled to be joining Holly and the team at Headlong. It’s been an honour to be a part of the National Theatre Wales journey. Connecting with the incredible people and places of Wales, and collaborating with remarkable theatre makers and communities to create extraordinary experiences. I’m excited about working with Holly to explore how a producing powerhouse like Headlong can respond to the challenges this moment presents for reaching out to audiences across the UK and the opportunities of contributing positively towards a fairer, more equal and more sustainable theatre community. All whilst retaining the bold and original storytelling the company is renowned for.”
