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Press Releases
AMBASSADOR THEATRE GROUP LTD SIGN MANAGEMENT CONTRACT WITH RICHMOND THEATRE TRUST FOR RICHMOND THEATRE AND APPOINT KARIN GARTZKE AS CHIEF EXECUTIVE
Issued : 1 December 2000
Following successful negotiations between the Ambassador Theatre Group (ATG), the Richmond Theatre Trust and the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, official contracts have now been signed for the management of Richmond Theatre. ATG have subsequently announced this week the appointment of locally based Karin Gartzke as the new Chief Executive of Richmond Theatre.
Karin Gartzke comes direct from a senior management position at ATG’s headquarters, The Ambassadors in Woking, Surrey, where she has been Head of New Projects for the last two years. This involved overseeing the expansion of ATG into one of Britain’s largest theatre operators. In this role, Karin has managed the successful negotiations and subsequent launch of the Victoria Hall, Stoke on Trent, the Regent Theatre in Stoke on Trent and the new theatre in Milton Keynes.
Karin has substantial experience in the theatre and arts entertainment industry, having spent 10 years with the Arts Council of England, where, as Drama Officer and Deputy Drama Director, she was responsible for Arts Council revenue and franchise funded theatre companies. These ranged from two national companies, Royal National Theatre and Royal Shakespeare Company, to building based companies (Leicester Haymarket and Nottingham Playhouse) and middle to small scale touring companies, such as the award-winning Right Size Theatre. Karin also held the position of Acting Deputy Director of Performing Arts at the South Bank Centre.
Having lived in Strand on the Green, near Richmond for the last 10 years with her family, Karin is actively involved in the local cultural life, with her two children attending local schools and taking part in Richmond’s Orange Tree Youth Theatre and the Hounslow Youth Orchestra.
Karin is a fervent supporter of Richmond Theatre and is keen to maintain the high level of quality associated with this landmark British theatre. She comments, “As a local resident, I know only too well how important Richmond Theatre is as a centre of artistic excellence both locally and regionally. It is renowned for being a drama powerhouse and as Chief Executive, my aim will be to maintain this high artistic quality but at the same time offer a broader programme, supported by education work, to encourage new audiences. With ATG at the helm, Richmond Theatre can look forward to benefiting from its management expertise and resources, as well as take advantage of the highly successful production arm of the Group.”
ATG is renowned for its highly successful management of theatre venues throughout the country. It currently owns and operates the New Victoria Theatre and multiplex cinema complex in Woking, The Duke of York’s and Ambassadors Theatres in the West End, has just acquired the Theatre Royal Brighton and is operating the Victoria Hall and Regent Theatre in Stoke-on-Trent and more recently acquired the management contract for the new theatre in Milton Keynes. In addition, ATG’s production canon includes the Royal Court Theatre’s production of The Weir, currently running in London and winner of the 1999 Olivier Award for Best New Play. ATG is also co-producing The Weir, which opened on Broadway in April, The Rocky Horror Show in London, Smokey Joe’s Café, Slava’s Snowshow and the new major musical, The Pajama Game, Soul Train and Simon Gray’s The Late Middle Classes.
Richmond Theatre, or the Theatre Royal and Opera House, as it was first called, was built in 1899. The grand Victorian building, with 840 seats, was closed in 1991 for restoration and refurbishment, to bring the theatre’s facilities completely up to date. As a result, Richmond Theatre offers luxurious surroundings whilst sustaining all the beauty and grandeur of the Victorian age.
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