Festival Symposium - ‘Ends or means? - Instrumentalism in arts policy and practice’

An afternoon of discussion on ‘instrumentalism’ in arts policy and practice: reasons, causes, effects, alternatives.

We are looking forward to the deeply considered and passionate contributions of Steven Hadley, Fionnuala Kennedy and Anthony McCann.

Anyone with an interest in the arts as watcher, listener, reader or creator will find the perspectives offered by the discussion very pertinent to the situation of the arts in Northern Ireland and to broader cultural and political questions.

Free entry.

All welcome.

Guest speakers

• Dr Steven Hadley is an arts manager, writer and lecturer whose work has taken him around the world to deliver consultancy and training for the cultural sector. Steven has over 20 years arts marketing and management experience in both the visual and performing arts, most recently as Chief Executive of Audiences NI, the audience development agency for Northern Ireland. He has experience of working with a wide range of arts organisations, funders, local authorities and government departments and recently sat on the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure (DCAL) Ministerial Arts Advisory Forum working to develop a new ten-year strategy for the arts. 

• Dr Anthony McCann is a creative and versatile polymath. As a keynote speaker, after-dinner speaker, consultant, coach, trainer, and facilitator, he inspires people to reimagine and redesign their relationships, working environments, and communities through a better understanding of proximity, power, and possibility in their lives. His work is based on 20 years of original research and teaching across the humanities and social sciences, and also of practitioner experience in leadership, community development, and performing arts.

• Fionnuala Kennedy is a playwright theatre-maker from Belfast. She co-founded Macha Productions alongside playwright Jo Egan, to use ground-breaking theatre to challenge the current structures existing in society which dominate, repress and block development of communities and individuals. Fionnuala has written and directed for many companies including Kabosh Theatre Company, Replay Theatre Company, Accidental Theatre and Terranova Theatre Company.