Eckhard Thiemann
Artistic Director & CEO
Eckhard Thiemann has been artistic director of Shubbak since 2012. Previously he was a producer for the London 2012 Festival and the Cultural Olympiad, curated the Liverpool Arabic Arts Festival (2011), OUTSPOKEN – NEW PERFORMANCE FROM ARAB ARTISTS (2010) and the dance season African Crossroads (2009). He currently also works as Programming Associate – Dance for The Lowry, one of the UK’s largest arts centres, and was Artistic Co-curator of the Oslo International Dance Festival in 2017.
Taghrid Choucair-Vizoso
Senior Programmer & Festival Producer
Taghrid Choucair-Vizoso joined Shubbak in the summer of 2018. She is co-founder and co-director of At Home in Gaza and London, a cross-cultural digital performance project bringing together artists and audiences in two cities. She produced and co-programmed the 2018 Arab Women Artists Now Festival (AWAN) in London. As a practitioner and associate with Kazzum, she leads engagement programmes with young refugees and asylum seekers in the UK.
Fiona Aber-Taruona
General Manager & Producer
Fiona Aber is an event, project and operations manager who works within music events, brand activations and marketing. Having started her career in publishing and content strategy 10 years ago, she has since spent the last 7 years focusing on the world of events covering the production and install of custom stage sets for music artists, theatre productions and brands, securing sponsorship deals and managing music venues. Past clients include Printworks, London, Relentless Energy Drink, Drambuie, V&A, The 1975 and The xx. She's also the founder of Visualise in Motion, an organisation centred around helping those at the early stage of their creative careers by offering services and experiences that make access to information and skills easier.
Jackie Friend
Marketing & Communications Manager
Following a degree in Fine Art Sculpture at Central and St. Martin's School of Art, Jackie Friend was awarded an 18 month traineeship in touring marketing with a focus on contemporary dance by Arts Council England. Since then she has worked with a wide range of organisations including LIFT (London International Festival of Theatre) Rambert Dance Company, Talawa Theatre Company, Spitalfields Music Festival, Crying Out Loud and Apples and Snakes. She is particularly interested in audience development and was part of the team at Crying Out Loud that delivered the successful Strategic Touring Project, Circus Evolution.
Youcef Hadjazi
Administrator
Youcef Hadjazi is an Algerian born, Kuwait raised, award-winning creative practitioner. Following his graduation from the Manchester School of Art, Youcef worked in a number of production and creative roles with, amongst others, Castlefield Gallery, Dibby Theatre Productions and ArtReach. He continues to develop his artistic practice which spans lens-based media and performance. The primary focus for his creative work is identity politics and notions of Diasporic queerness. Previous exhibitions and collaborations include Waterside Arts Centre, HOME Manchester and Journeys Festival International.
Kevin Wratten
Festival Projects Producer
Kevin is an independent producer committed to creating high quality, innovative experiences across circus, dance and outdoor spectacles. Since 2013, Kevin has worked in socially engaged contexts and with professional artists at leading venues and festivals including Sadler's Wells, Greenwich+Docklands International Festival and Roundhouse where he led a programme of social circus and artist development opportunities including regular training, masterclasses and producing new work.
Kevin is co-founder and producer of Split Second - a company collaborating with exceptional artists blurring the lines between circus, theatre and dance. Split Second produces and tours gripping performances across the UK and internationally and facilitates projects to develop independent producers and artists and strengthen the sector.
Young Shubbak
Young Shubbak are a new collective of 18-25-year-old artists, curators, producers and creatives who programme multi-art form events that are relevant to young people’s cultural experience, and promote inclusivity in the arts.
Find out more
Our wider team
Our festivals are supported by a team of volunteers, freelance producers and partner organisations.
PR consultant Anna Arthur.
Website by Bullet Creative.
Shubbak Trustees
Shadia El Dardiry
Chair
Shadia El Dardiry is an employment solicitor at Bates Wells Braithwaite, known for its leading role in the charity and social enterprise sector, and regularly advises charities and creative and arts organisations. Shadia comes from a human rights background, and prior to joining Bates Wells Braithwaite worked on human rights and migration issues in Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa. She has engaged in EU- and national-level advocacy as well as capacity building of local organisations. Alongside this, she has had a longstanding interest in the relationship between art and politics in the SWANA region, with a particular focus on 20th and 21st century literature from the region, and in art as a form of expression for migrants and refugees. Shadia holds a Masters in Political Science and a BA (Hons) in Political Science and Economics from McGill University.
Fady Alrayyes
Fady Alrayyes is a Principal at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), an institution established to help member countries develop their economies. In his role he covers the Arab countries, manages technical cooperation projects, and conducts policy dialogue on local currency and capital markets development. Before joining EBRD, he worked as a research analyst for Thomas Murray, a London based consulting firm specialised in providing information and risk rating of capital market institutions, primarily covering the Middle East and Africa desk and working on product development. Fady holds a bachelor in economics from London School of Economics, and a Master’s degree in investment and finance from University of Exeter.
Aaron Cezar
Aaron Cezar is the founding Director of Delfina Foundation, where he develops and oversees its interrelated programme of residencies, exhibitions and public platforms. He sits on numerous boards, committees and advisory groups such as All Change Arts, Alserkal Avenue, Shubbak, Davidoff Art Initiative, Caspian Arts Foundation, the Marrakech Biennale, the Kamel Lazaro Foundation and the Jarman Award 2012 among many others. Aaron has first degrees in Economics and Dance from Princeton University and a postgraduate degree in the Creative Industries from King’s College London.
Lynn Gaspard
Lynn Gaspard is the Managing Director of Middle-East specialist press Saqi Books. A fiercely independent forum for writers and artists from around the world, Saqi has made its mark as a publisher unafraid of taking risks, championing works by minority writers from the Middle East and beyond. Gaspard is a member of English PEN’s Writers in Translation Committee and of the MFest Expert Advisory Group, and was previously on the Nour Festival of Arts Steering Committee. She is the editor of the satirical collection Don’t Panic, I’m Islamic.
Sumantro Ghose
Sumantro Ghose is an Arts Producer, Curator and Cultural Strategist with over 20 years’ experience in museums and exhibitions, festivals, audience development and cultural diplomacy. Most recently he has been Managing Director of the London Design Biennale, and was previously responsible for exhibitions and museum programmes at Dubai Culture and Arts Authority. Prior to joining Dubai Culture, Sumantro was Deputy Director, Cultural Diplomacy Programmes at Qatar Museums in Doha. In the UK, Sumi has worked and consulted for a range of cultural and educational institutions including Tate, National Portrait Gallery, Frieze, Sotheby’s Institute, Richmond University and the American Institute for Foreign Study and was Acting Chief Executive and Director of Cultural Programmes at Asia House.
Jo Glanville
Jo Glanville is a journalist, writer and campaigner for freedom of expression. She has held senior positions at English PEN and Index on Censorship, and is currently a visiting fellow at the Arbeitsstelle Holocaustliteratur, Giessen University.
Almir Koldzic
Almir is a Co-Founder and Co-Director of Counterpoints Arts - a leading national organisation in the field of arts, migration and social justice, supporting the arts by, about and with refugees and migrants. His experiences in this context include leading on developing strategy and identity for Refugee Week UK Festival; developing Platforma - arts and refugees national network; building meaningful and long term collaborations with leading inter/national arts, cultural and advocacy organisations; and producing a wide range of events and commissions relating to displacement.