A project to develop a special Season of Culture celebrating the arts and culture across the Chichester District will be forging ahead following the appointment of a dedicated project manager.
Gregory Nash is a creative director, producer and programmer with more than 35 years’ experience in venues, festivals and cultural organisations both here in the UK and worldwide. He was appointed in February and will take up his new part-time post this month.
“I am delighted to be invited to take on this exciting new role and look forward to working with season partners of all kinds as the adventure unfolds,” says Gregory. “With the people of Chichester we plan to stage a summer that will celebrate the unique culture and creativity of the district, attract visitors from across the UK and connect with the world via an innovative digital programme.
“Having grown up in Worthing and worked at Brighton Festival and the Point in Eastleigh, I know and love this stretch of coast from east to west. I am also lucky to know first-hand how life-changing taking part in the arts can be. I can’t wait to bring my experience of working throughout the UK and internationally to the making of a season of culture that every person in Chichester is part of, and proud of, and talks about for a very long time afterwards.”
The Season of Culture will take place between March and October 2022 and is being organised by the Chichester District Cultural Partnership, which includes Chichester District Council, Chichester Festival Theatre and Pallant House Gallery. The council agreed to support the project and match-funded initial investments made by both the theatre and gallery.
Gregory will lead the project, alongside partnership organisations, aimed at developing a programme of events to celebrate and showcase the outstanding range of arts and culture on offer across the district, involve communities, attract visitors and provide opportunity for local creative artists.
“In 2022 several of the district’s key cultural organisations will be marking some key milestones and our Season of Culture will celebrate these incredible anniversaries,” says Councillor Roy Briscoe, Cabinet Member for Communities Sport and Culture at Chichester District Council. “The aim is to showcase what our district has to offer, with a diverse range of activities and events to engage residents and visitors alike while helping to support the extraordinary range of local arts and heritage organisations that we are proud to have here. We are really excited to be working with Gregory, he brings a wealth of experience from across the arts sector and we look forward to seeing this exciting programme of events develop over the coming months.”
Kathy Bourne, Executive Director of Chichester Festival Theatre, says: “It’s wonderful that Gregory will be joining us to develop Chichester’s Season of Culture 2022. He has a wealth of experience and brings with him an understanding of how cultural organisations can work together to produce high quality exciting creative events. We’re hugely looking forward to working with him, CDC and our fellow artists and organisations to create a memorable year.”
People across the district are also being invited to suggest ideas events that they would like to see as part of the festival and let the organisers know of anything planned by their groups or societies during June 2022. Ideas and suggestions can be emailed to [email protected]
More information about the Season of Culture will be released as plans are developed. People can keep up to date on news from the council by visiting www.chichester.gov.uk/latestnews or following its social media channels.
