Curve appoints Joanne Benjamin as Executive Producer

Joanne Benjamin has been appointed Executive Producer of Leicester’s Curve theatre replacing Chris Stafford who was appointed Chief Executive at Curve earlier this year. Joanne joins from Hackney Empire, where she has been Producer since 2014.

Joanne brings a wealth of experience to the role of Executive Producer, having worked in the theatre industry for over 40 years as stage manager, theatre manager, general manager and producer. She worked with Producer Michael White for over ten years, on many shows as Associate Producer and General Manager including the multi-award winning musicals She Loves Me and Crazy For You.

She set up the Entertainment Business, a production, general management and consultancy company, in 1995. The company has managed number of shows including Lend Me A Tenor The Musical, Loserville The Musical, both in the West End, A Spoonful Of Sherman at the St James’s Theatre and a tour of Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy. She was also Chief Executive of the International Festival of Musical Theatre in Cardiff and Managing Director of the Fondation de l’Orchestre de Verbier which runs the UBS Verbier Festival Orchestras.

On accepting the role of Executive Producer, Joanne Benjamin said, “I am delighted to be appointed as Executive Producer at Curve and am excited to be working with my predecessor Chris Stafford in his new role as Chief Executive and Artistic Director Nikolai Foster. Chris’s two years as Executive Producer have seen him substantially grow Curve’s artistic programme, as well as develop the theatre’s national and international touring portfolio. I look forward to the challenges we will face and am thrilled to build on Chris’ brilliant work as we look to the future together with the board and our very talented team.”

Chris Stafford, Curve’s Chief Executive, said of the appointment: “It’s an incredibly exciting time for Curve and both Nikolai and I are thrilled to be welcoming Joanne Benjamin as our new Executive Producer. Joanne is a hugely talented and experienced producer and we very much look forward to working with her as we build the next chapter for Curve.”