Executive Artistic Director David Gilmore and Executive Theatre Director Guy Kitchenn are to step down from their roles at the St James theatre at the end of the month.
The pair, who worked together to launch the newly built venue that opened on the site of the Westminster theatre in autumn 2012, are leaving a year later to create work with their own production company.
Speaking about the news, Robert Mackintosh, the St James theatre’s Creative Director, said: “David and Guy have fulfilled the huge task of getting the St James theatre up and running and we couldn’t have asked for two better people to do the job. In its inaugural year, the main house has staged nine critically acclaimed productions, working with too many talented actors, directors and writers to mention, but including Anthony Andrews, Sandi Toksvig, John Caird, Diana Quick and most recently Trevor Nunn and Olivia Williams.
“Largely thanks to David and Guy, the theatre has become an important part of the West End – and local – theatre establishment. They have programmed the theatre through much of 2014 and will now leave their posts in order to focus on their own production company. I will remain as Executive Producer and will continue to work with our team to provide London theatregoers with ever more exciting productions at the St James theatre. I look forward to working with both David and Guy again in the near future on some of their own projects.”
Gilmore’s inaugural season at the St James theatre encompassed productions as eclectic as hit US musical Daddy Long Legs, Out Of Joint’s production of Our Country’s Good and Cinderella: A Fairytale, which received an Olivier Award nomination.
Gilmore and Kitchenn step down with productions programmed through until June 2014. Nunn’s production of Scenes From A Marriage closes this weekend, to be followed by UK Theatre Awards Best New Play winner and Pulitzer Prize finalist In The Next Room or the vibrator play. In 2014, hit US musical Urinetown, directed by Jamie Lloyd, opens in February and will be followed in May by the return of Out Of Joint presenting Stella Feehily’s new play exploring one family’s journey through the digestive system of the NHS, This May Hurt A Bit.