New trustees join Kenton board to make positive change

FOUR new trustees have been elected to the board of the Kenton Theatre.

Julie Deadman, Kathryn Siegel, Rachael O’Sullivan and Suzanne Yeates have taken on the role following the departure of Sarah Bell and Steph Maxwell, who left after five and three years respectively.

Of 142 members, 32 cast votes, representing 22.5 per cent of the electorate. Candidates need a minimum of 17 votes to be elected.

Ms Deadman, a human resources practitioner, said: “I want to be involved to give something back to the theatre, something that I very much enjoy.”

Ms Yeates, who has 25 years of experience in arts programming, said: “I’m thrilled to be joining the team. I’m so aware of what an incredible job all the existing trustees have done over the last two years to bring the theatre back to the condition it’s in now.

“It’s really exciting to be part of that and the positive time for the theatre moving forward.”

Ms Siegel, who used to teach film and media studies at The Henley College, said: “Getting involved here feels like a natural fit for me.

“A lot of my own work has involved fundraising, so I have written lots of grant proposals and that is the side of Kenton business that I’m going to take on over the next few months.”

Ms O’Sullivan, an environmental sustainability specialist, said: “I’ve been working behind the scenes for a couple of years and it’s great to be more integrated into the theatre becoming a trustee.

“I’m hoping that with my experience I can bring a lot to the board, so thank you very much for voting me in.”

Ms Bell said she had enjoyed working with the theatre and hopes residents will continue to support it.

She said: “When I first joined, it was just after the first covid lockdown and the theatre was in darkness. We have come a long way since then.

“These people are wonderful to work with, I’ve enjoyed every moment. It’s been hard work, it’s been stressful, and we need every support. It has been such a pleasure to work with everybody.”