A new chair has been appointed to the leadership team of Queen's Theatre in Hornchurch.
Spencer Phillips will take on the role at Queen’s, bringing more than 20 years of senior leadership experience in entertainment and culture.
He will play a key role in recruiting a new chief executive as the theatre prepares to celebrate its 75th anniversary in 2028.
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Mr Phillips said: "I'm genuinely thrilled to be joining Queen's Theatre Hornchurch as chair. This is a theatre with a proud history of making its own work, right at the heart of its community, and a reputation that reaches far and wide.
"Having spent more than 20 years working across live entertainment, heritage and the visitor economy, I've seen first-hand what a confident, ambitious local theatre can do for the place it serves: bringing people together, growing new audiences and giving young people a first step into the arts.
"I'm looking forward to working with the board, the leadership team and the wider community to build on the theatre’s strengths and secure its future for the next generation of audiences and artists."
Mr Phillips has held senior roles at Ticketmaster, The Path Entertainment Group, and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s LW Theatres.
At LW Theatres, he helped to revitalise the London Palladium and worked across other major venues including Theatre Royal Drury Lane and The Adelphi Theatre.
He is also chair of Showtown, Blackpool’s museum of entertainment, and serves on the executive committee of the Royal Variety Charity.
Sonja Lahiff, interim co-chair of Queen's, said: "Spencer brings a valuable mix of strategic leadership, governance experience and a genuine passion for the arts and the communities we serve.
"We are looking forward tremendously to working alongside Spencer as we move towards the theatre’s 75th anniversary and the next stage of our exciting journey."
Recruitment for the theatre’s new chief executive has just begun.
Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch serves more than one million people across outer east London and south Essex, welcoming more than 106,000 audience members annually and engaging 30,700 through community programmes.
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