It’s been nearly seven months since Sharon Burgess took on the role of chief executive of Aberdeen Performing Arts (APA).
She made the move to Aberdeen from Perth in Western Australia and instantly fell ” in love” with both the city and the job.
The Glaswegian is at the helm of Aberdeen Performing Arts’ venues which include His Majesty’s Theatre, the Lemon Tree and the Music Hall.
Her aim is simple.
To make people feel welcome and encourage them through the doors of every APA venue believing there’s a place for arts and culture in everyone’s life.
“I do believe that art is for everyone. I’m a working class girl. I never went to the theatre until I got a pay packet.
“I believe making art accessible for everyone should be our ultimate aim.
“We are very fortunate as city we have such a diverse range of arts and culture but we need to use it or we’ll lose it.”
Sharon is keen for people to make use of all APA venues and one of the things she introduced was children eating for free at the Music Hall cafe during the school holidays.
Affordable ticket prices
Sharon revealed this year’s pantomime Sleeping Beauty has already beaten ticket sales from both 2018 and 2019.
But is still very much aware of the cost-of-living crisis facing many families.
She said: “One change in the dynamic is that people are buying later. There is a hesitancy. That makes it a little more risky for us but they are buying tickets.
“We do recognise that cost-of-living is affecting everyone and we try and keep our ticket prices affordable.
“It is a challenge but I remember back in 2008 when we had a crisis then and it felt like the arts was the one affordable luxury that people were prepared to have.
“It feels we offer an escape because life can be dreary.”
Encourage young talent in Aberdeen
Sharon currently has a team of 270 staff with venues operating throughout the whole year.
Bringing new shows to the Granite City is always top of her list, along with supporting others to make new work.
She said: “I spend my weekends reading the culture magazines to see who is touring and on a Monday morning I’ll send a list to the programming team.
“We are constantly looking for ideas and being available for those opportunities to come.
“We ensure we are out there and open for business.
“We are never going to be a producing house. We are not Dundee Rep which has a cast in repertoire all the time. We don’t have that opportunity.
“What we can do is partner with people like the National Theatre of Scotland to create new work with other producing houses where they make the work and we support it with the touring.”
Funding concerns
One challenge facing APA is funding and ways to keep it coming.
Sharon said: “It’s a global challenge.
“However, doing nothing is not an option. We have to look at ways we can create a more robust income stream.
“Look at alternative ways where if funding is reduced what can we do more of that allows us to maintain the work and output we have.
“It is a challenge but it’s one I feel like we are well prepared for.
“I feel like I’ve inherited such a solid foundation. We have the new restaurant at the terrace, the Music Hall is well prepped for being a significant player around corporate events.
“There are a diversity of income streams where we are looking at ensuring we are maintaining the robust financial model.”
