Thursday, October 19, 2023

Issue:

Mackay and Whitsunday Life

ARTS ARTISTIC DIRECTOR ANNOUNCES DEPARTURE

Alison Richardson, the Artistic Director/CEO of Crossroad Arts, has made the decision to leave her role at the prominent inclusive arts organisation. She stepped down from her position on October 13th to return to her hometown of Sydney for personal and family reasons.

The organisation, board and community acknowledge Alison's artistic vibrancy and

advocacy for a more inclusive community through her commitment to the Crossroad

Arts vision of Arts for All. Her work over the years on the many projects and productions established unique relationships and connections within the community and uncovered many untold stories. Alison's dedication to developing meaningful access initiatives was instrumental in raising the profile of Crossroad Arts as a leader of inclusive arts practice.

Some notable highlights of Alison’s time at Crossroad Arts include collaborating with

Brenden Borellini and Georgia Cranko on the recent major production Breathe In, which pioneered multilingual storytelling and new embedded access initiatives. During her time with the company she developed partnerships with Dancenorth (Townsville) and La Boite Theatre (Brisbane) resulting in the annual national contemporary dance and theatre making intensive C.R.U.S.H .

Alison leaves a legacy in the numerous productions and programs developed in collaboration with artists with disability from the Mackay region and beyond. These programs enacted social change and celebrated the wider impact of the Crossroad Arts vision of Arts for All.

Alison reflects on her time with Crossroad Arts and shares a message of farewell to the community;

“Being involved in an organisation such as Crossroad Arts you can’t help but get swept up in the community’s enthusiasm, humour, creativity and genuineness. So to lead such an organisation and play some part in creating that culture has been a real privilege and one that I never took for granted.

“My time has now come to return to my hometown of Sydney but I will always look back fondly at the new connections made, the untold stories shared and the assumptions challenged during my time at Crossroad Arts.

“It has been extremely rewarding and satisfying to see such significant growth, stability, vibrancy and impact the company has enjoyed and I will always live the vision of the company and will be cheering everyone on from the sidelines for a long time to come.”

Brian Tucker, Chair of Crossroad Arts Board expressed the board’s gratitude.

“We will miss her inspiring presence and leadership, but understand and support her need to relocate back to Sydney and the personal nature of her decision.

“The organisation is working through a recruitment process to ensure an exciting and prosperous future for Crossroad Arts”

Crossroad Arts Artistic Director and CEO Alison Richardson

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