After 6 years of CGO Institute, I start the 9th course tomorrow – which will also be the last with me as course leader, marketer, manager, and teacher. I am now interested to see whether anyone will step up to take on this aspect of our work.
The institute was quickly established when a major conservatoire dropped an MA programme after 2 years of course development, because of the shock to their institutional system of covid and lockdown, Understandable but sad that they never chose to revisit the work done, or the interest it had generated.
2026 is probably the busiest year from CGO Development and the Institute – with courses in Malta, with Korean and Japanese producers in London, with Korean writers/composers planned for London in the Autumn, and the visits/championing we are doing with Ukraine.
Producers’ Persona now has 185 producers from around the world able to research and connect with each other, growing projects and shaping new collaborations. I hope that will grow swiftly with some new championing.
We have also, this year, re-started Producers’ Pool offering alternating monthly in person/London and online/Zoom meetups for theatre producers around the world, and CGO Surgeries again in person and on zoom. This is the last year for these also, in their current regular form, and I hope someone will step forward to take these over. I started the Surgeries in 2007 and took on Producers’ Pool from Julie Clare in 2015. It is time for someone else to step up.
I intend for 2027 to have a work balance which allows me to focus on a few key CGO Development international projects, like Ukraine and Malta. To do that I need someone to become excited by the ‘goodwill’ available for them to take forward.
This blog is therefore, in a sense, an advert:
WANTED
A theatre producer, programmer, champion or maker who wishes to hold space for networks and development to happen. Willing to put in the time to maintain and grow networks, helping future producers and leaders to make connections and ‘make stuff happen’. This person could be part of an existing network or a building based organisation, given time and support to take these projects in house. It could complement a person’s existing portfolio on teaching, coaching or project management. It could be someone who wants to offer a very different service, but they are willing to have a longform consistency of offer over months and years.
I have a portfolio of assets which I can share with the right person. We can make sure that the networks and producers on my radar are happy to be part of this new way forward. I hope that the work we’ve done since Tom and I had our very first surgeries in the bar of the National Theatre for aspiring and inspiring theatremakers, will not be wrapped – but rather unwrapped and refashioned by a new champion.
So friends…
Please take this blog, think about who might be interested, spread the word, and lets see what the Surgeries, Pools, Diplomas, and other projects look like in 2027.
Thank you for thinking about it.
In the meantime, tomorrow I meet with a producing cohort with bases in London, Kyiv, Warsaw, Manchester, San Francisco and New York to guide them to new discoveries with 5 inspiring co-teachers with me over 4 days.
Cheers
Chris