As Theatre Royal Plymouth’s (TRP) CEO Adrian Vinken prepares to step down from his post, the organisation has launched an in-depth podcast with their leader of the past 30 years.
The podcast sees Adrian Vinken speaking with Bill Martin on The Lyric Stage as they discuss Adrian’s career. They look back on how Adrian came to lead TRP, his fondest memories and biggest challenges, along with how he came to the decision to leave the organisation after 30 years at the helm.
Adrian Vinken said: “As I reach the final few months as CEO of Theatre Royal Plymouth, I wanted to share my journey in this outstanding organisation. It was a pleasure to look back on my career with Bill and discuss memories I hadn’t re-lived for a long time.
“Leaving TRP was never going to be an easy decision but I know now is the right time. I’m thrilled to be handing the reigns over to James Mackenzie-Blackman in January next year and look forward to seeing to what new heights he takes the Theatre.”
Adrian Vinken joined Theatre Royal Plymouth in 1990 after a ten-year career in Sheffield during which he founded and directed the iconic Leadmill music venue. Since then he has built an organisation with an enviable reputation for its broad and eclectic artistic programme drawing audiences of over 350,000 each year and, in 2019/20, over 81,000 attendances from people of diverse backgrounds through its sector-leading engagement and learning programme.
The charity operates across two sites. Theatre Royal Plymouth opened in 1982 and is the youngest listed theatre in the UK housing three auditoria. It is complemented by TRP’s award-winning 2003 Production & Learning Centre, TR2, on Plymouth's waterfront. TR2 houses the theatre’s learning and engagement programmes plus its world-class rehearsal and production manufacturing facilities. In April 2019 Adrian also oversaw the commissioning and installation of Messenger, the UK's largest ‘lost wax’ bronze sculpture created by Joseph Hillier, situated in front of the Theatre.
Listen to the podcast here or watch the full video recording.
The podcast has been produced by Tom Edwards Sounds on behalf of Theatre Royal Plymouth.