A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity

When Tamsin was a student of Drama and English, she had no idea there was any such a thing as a career in arts programming. So how did she find her path to leading the newest cultural quarter in the UK?

Starting out

Wanting to work in theatre and not minding in what capacity, I took a box office role at a pub theatre – The Bull in High Barnet, north London. I have such happy memories from my days there, where I did everything from box office to serving behind the bar, from duty management to running the youth theatre and writing brochure copy.

Then the stars aligned and an education assistant role came up at an arts centre, which involved booking children’s shows. And that small-scale arts centre developed into artsdepot – a multi-venue, purpose-built arts centre, again in north London – where I progressed to head of programming & education. That was my introduction to arts programming.

I often reflect on those early days – a quarter of a century ago now – and how important they were in establishing a strong work ethic; and how they shaped and supported me to step into the leadership roles I’ve held over the last decade.

Programming the arts

In 2007, I arrived at Southbank Centre (SBC) just after the refurbishment of the Royal Festival Hall, under Jude Kelly’s leadership. Jude was implementing her festival methodology, and I had the privilege of working with her to develop SBC into the cultural destination it is today.

When I started there, my focus was free programming across the indoor and outdoor spaces. I loved developing engaging programmes that drew in diverse artists and audiences. I created programmes around themes such as Death and Gender Equality, while also leading the Imagine Children’s Festival, enabling me to experience an incredibly broad range of creative work.

Rather than programming to my taste or to a specific genre, I experienced all sorts of topics, styles and disciplines, which I credit with making me a better arts programmer. I love programming to one big idea and connecting with artists to tell a story through a range of perspectives. Seeing audiences with different lived experiences and interests bump into each other in a shared space remains one of the biggest joys of my career.

Southbank Centre was ever changing – there was always a new idea or project to engage with. The creative energy of my team kept me running to work every day, invigorated by the ethos that anything was possible, and no idea was too crazy.

I was also passionate about Southbank Centre as an open and democratic space which you could visit any hour of the day, knowing there would be something thought-provoking on offer. This idea of the public associating a place with creativity and accessibility is my hope for East Bank.

Museum programming

Working for a museum was completely different. At the Museum of the Home, what I found most exciting was the ambition to open up collections to a programmer to seek out new possibilities. And I found the theme of Home so interesting, and the chance to write and implement a new arts strategy was an exciting challenge.

One particular highlight was a programme to rethink their famous Rooms through Time with support from east London communities – I recently returned to see these new rooms realised with Vietnamese and Irish voices represented.

Continues…

Some of the cultural institutions making up East Bank. Photo: Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park

Fashioning culture

Wanting to be part of East Bank was one of the driving forces which led to me join London College of Fashion (LCF), part of the University of the Arts London. When I arrived at LCF, East Bank working groups were already up and running, and I leapt at the chance to be part of those conversations.

I absolutely loved working with the curators and cultural programmers from across V&A, Sadler’s Wells, BBC and UCL East and was very inspired by their commitments to building collaborative programmes.

When the opportunity to apply for the director position came up, it quickly felt like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

East Bank

I came to East Bank ready to roll my up my sleeves and get stuck into making things happen. My role as director is to bring the partners together, seek out opportunities for collaboration to ensure we deliver the things that matter.

In trying to piece together this puzzle, I knew from the start that programming with and for local people had to be central, the pillar around which the physical buildings would arrive, one by one.

Taking a step back now – a little over a year into my time as director and right in the middle in East Bank’s season of opening – it’s barely believable to see how much we’ve made happen already.

Looking ahead, with Sadler’s Wells East fully operational, V&A East Storehouse on the cusp of opening, and V&A East Museum and BBC Music Studios to follow soon after, we’ll be welcoming scores more families, students and creative practitioners from across the world to join in.

If I had to name just one thing I’m most excited about over the next few years at East Bank, it would be bringing together our shared resources to build multiple pathways into the arts for our local communities.

Whether through attending careers week or a summer school, performing as an artist, studying at one of the universities or working in one of the East Bank venues, I want to ensure there is a welcome for everyone in all aspects of the programme.

Watch this space, the best is yet to come!