Cheryl Martin Joins Red Ladder Theatre Company as New Artistic Director

Red Ladder Theatre Company is pleased to welcome theatre director and writer Cheryl Martin as its new Artistic Director from January 2024, following Rod Dixon’s decision to leave the company after his 17-year tenure as its artistic leader.

Alongside her work writing and directing award-winning theatre productions, Cheryl has also fulfilled a variety of roles including supporting writers and practitioners at Contact Theatre, Traverse Theatre Edinburgh, and Oldham Coliseum.  Cheryl has also worked with Community Arts Northwest on a series of community plays, devised with, and starring mostly women refugees and asylum seekers.

In 2015 she co-founded LGBTQ+ Global-Majority performance arts company Black Gold Arts, a celebration in choreography, writing, directing and cabaret, which was part of the Eurovision cultural festival.  Black Gold Arts recently won the Best Event category at the Manchester Culture Awards for its free outdoor arts festival at The Whitworth in 2022.

In addition to being an Edinburgh Fringe Total Theatre assessor and judge, Cheryl was also Co-Artistic Director of Manchester’s grassroots Global-Majority-led publisher and writer development company Commonword and is Co-Director of Manchester Pride’s Candlelight Vigil.

Fiona Gell, Co-Chair of Red Ladder’s Board of Trustees said: “This is a historic moment for the company. We could not be more delighted that Cheryl will be joining as our new Artistic Director. We’re excited to see how the company will evolve under her dynamic artistic leadership, as she is an extraordinary practitioner with a great deal of experience and a wealth of ideas. Together with the Red Ladder team, the company will continue to play a leading role in developing compelling productions, with social justice and unheard voices at their heart.  We would also like to thank Rod Dixon for his amazing 17-year contribution and wish him well in his new venture.”

Following the announcement of her appointment Cheryl Martin, Artistic Director of Red Ladder Theatre Company, said:  “For me this is THE dream job!  To be able to work with a company with so much history and reach into so many communities. Red Ladder is always shape-shifting, evolving, and changing its approach.  A place where all the plays are new ways to connect with a working-class audience, where those connections are cherished, and where every show, the staff and the board, are dedicated to finding and amplifying the voices and stories of people who are so often unsupported.

“I feel incredibly lucky. I get to develop artists, to look for new audiences and the people and shows that will appeal to them, and I get to direct every now and then. I get to work with a team who are passionate about what they believe in and deliver a massive amount of compelling work.   Of course, it’s a dream job!”

Emma McDowell, Co-Chair of Red Ladder’s Board of Trustees, said:  “The working group managing the recruitment process felt such an incredible amount of responsibility of doing right by this great company and the work of the team past and present.

“Red Ladder has such a rich history of addressing critical social issues, pushing creative boundaries by producing entertaining and engaging theatre, supporting creative practitioners and working with local communities. We’d like to pass on our thanks to all those who applied and who supported the recruitment process from the beginning, and to Arts Council England for their continued support.”