After 12 highly successful years as artistic director, James Brining is leaving Leeds Playhouse in April 2025 to become artistic director and joint CEO of The Royal Lyceum Edinburgh.
Leeds Playhouse executive director Shawab Iqbal has been appointed joint CEO, co-leading the theatre through its next chapter.
James said: “Leeds is my home town and it’s been the privilege of a lifetime to lead this great theatre. It’s been a huge honour to have been a custodian of the Playhouse, rooted in the city and the region I was brought up in and care about deeply. The theatre has a national and international reputation not only for producing impactful and incredible theatre but equally for our pioneering initiatives, including becoming the world’s first Theatre of Sanctuary, and for our seminal work in developing relaxed and dementia friendly performances. I’m very proud of all we have achieved together and want to thank the people of Leeds, our audiences and supporters and above all, the hugely talented and dedicated Playhouse staff and superb freelancers with whom I have worked.
“Shawab is a brilliant colleague and has been inspirational to work with and, having him jointly at the helm leading our exceptional team, puts the Playhouse in a fundamentally strong position for a bright new artistic chapter.”
During his tenure, James has directed over 20 different productions, from new writing to classics, large-scale musicals to studio work, and most recently highly acclaimed productions of My Fair Lady and Oliver! which have both been nominated for UK Theatre 2024 awards. Presiding over the production of around 140 original productions, including 65 new commissions, he has overseen work of regional, national and international significance. He also led the theatre through its £16.8m redevelopment, returning Leeds Playhouse to its original name and turning the building to face the city, further embedding it as a civic hub for the whole community. The Playhouse was named the UK’s Most Welcoming Theatre in 2022.
Shawab Iqbal joined Leeds Playhouse as executive director in October 2022 having previously been executive director and CEO at the Gate Theatre. He sits on Arts Council England’s London Area Council as a Mayor of London appointment and is vice-chair of Tamasha, a dedicated home for both emerging and established Global Majority artists.
Shawab said: “I will miss working with James immensely. During his tenure, he has overseen huge organisational achievements, without compromising the theatre’s longstanding commitment to access. The impact of this will forever live on.”
Laurence Brophy and Simon Robinson on behalf of the Board of Trustees said: “We want to thank James for the drive and creativity he has brought to the Playhouse, and for his passionate and confident leadership over the last 12 years. He has played a particularly important role in re-imagining the programme and producing high quality productions that have toured extensively nationally and internationally. He has also led strategy around inclusion and collaboration that has seen the Playhouse work with communities across the city and region. We are incredibly fortunate to have Shawab’s strong leadership, as joint CEO, to take us through this period of transition and lead us to flourish in the future.”
The recruitment process will begin shortly.
