We’re Recruiting: Senior Producer to join Shubbak in shaping the next chapter of contemporary Arab & SWANA culture in the UK.

About Shubbak

Shubbak is a UNESCO award-winning festival of contemporary Arab & SWANA culture and the largest of its kind in Europe. Since 2011, we’ve delivered eight biennial multi-artform festivals, bringing together artists, communities, and audiences across London and beyond. Our programme spans multiple art forms, including theatre, music, dance, literature, visual art, and interdisciplinary performance, showcasing bold new work from across the region and its diasporas. 

Shubbak Festival 2025 marked our most ambitious and far-reaching edition to date, presenting over 50 unique events across three vibrant weeks of contemporary Arab & SWANA arts in London and beyond. Of these, 15 were world premieres and 10 UK premieres, reaching an audience of more than 200,000 and cementing our position as a leading international platform for showcasing and commissioning Arab and SWANA artists. Just under half of these events sold out, reflecting an unprecedented level of audience demand and engagement. 

Outside of the festival years, we run a rich year-round programme of community engagement, artist development, residencies, and touring work. Examples include artist residencies with Tunis-based light projection artists Interference, place-making activation Shubbak Corner, digital commission An Artist’s Manual Against Apartheid and commission of Poems of Consumption by Hamed Sinno. 

Shubbak is a National Portfolio Organisation supported by Arts Council England. This post is supported by a combination of funders.

The Role

The Senior Producer will work closely with the Artistic Director & CEO to realise Shubbak’s artistic vision, playing a central role in shaping and delivering the biennial festival across London as well as the organisation’s year-round development, commissioning and touring activity. This is a dynamic, hands-on role with potential responsibility for the line management of a team of producers and freelance teams around the festival period depending on fundraising effort. The postholder will ensure the care and support of programmed artists and will build and nurture strong, long-term relationships with key stakeholders and partners across the cultural sector. 

The Senior Producer will lead the producing and delivery of Shubbak’s ambitious artistic programme, overseeing strategic planning, risk management, partnership development, resource and budget planning, and co-owning income targets. The role spans complex international projects delivered in collaboration with major cultural venues, as well as public-realm and multi-venue contexts, across both biennial festival programming and annual large-scale projects. As a key member of Shubbak’s small and collaborative team, the Senior Producer will bring a clear, organisation-wide perspective alongside the practical ability to plan and deliver work with care, rigour and creativity, underpinned by a strong commitment to inclusion, innovation and international collaboration. 

  • Reports to: Artistic Director & CEO 
  • Location: Hybrid, including 2 days, Tues & Thurs, at our office at The Arab British Centre. Contract: 1 year, starting on 1 July 2026 
  • Salary: £42,000 pro-rata 
  • Working pattern: 
  • 2 days/wk for 6 months, increasing to 4 days/wk in following 3 months, going full-time for 3 months around the festival period 
  • Hours are flexible between 9:00 - 19:00 with core hours between 10:30 - 16:30 

Key Responsibilities 

Production & Operations 

Administer and deliver Shubbak’s festival and related programmes across multiple venues, alternative sites and public-realm contexts, including partnership building, budgeting, contracting, risk management, production functions, financial tracking, visas, travel arrangements, delivery and evaluation. 

  • Manage the programme-wide delivery schedule, coordinating timelines and dependencies across team, and convene regular cross-functional production meetings to track progress, and address risks and mitigations. 
  • Negotiate with venues and partners to support efficient, sustainable and values-aligned delivery models. 
  • Ensure Shubbak’s Monitoring and Evaluation framework is being implemented, supporting the Finance and Operations Manager and Executive Director in ensuring it is appropriately applied across all strands of activity. 
  • Work with colleagues across Operations, Finance, Development, Production & Technical, and Marketing & Communications to ensure joined-up planning and delivery. 
  • Support the creation of a safe, inclusive and welcoming festival environment for artists, audiences and staff. 
  • Ensure the effective delivery of Shubbak’s access and inclusion approaches, including accessible pricing models, audience-centred practices, and embedding access considerations from the outset of projects (e.g. BSL, captioning, audio description, relaxed standards), working with artists, venues and partners. 
  • Monitor and support the artist and partner experience, contributing to a culture of care, collaboration and best practice. 
  • Report on projects to funders, stakeholders and partners across financial, narrative and other strands as required. 
  • Maintain high production standards across all activity and contribute to continuous improvement.
  • Engage with artists and partners locally and nationally. 
  • Manage allocated programme budgets, reporting regularly to senior management and work with the finance team to maintain financial oversight. 
  • Ensure travel and accommodation, contractual arrangements with artists, venues and partners are implemented.

Relationships and Fundraising 

  • Work with the Artistic Director & CEO and the Executive Director in the development of our fundraising activities, including commercial events, partnership development and taking ownership over a portion of funding proposals. 
  • Contribute to identifying and cultivating relationships with funders, sponsors and partners, including trusts, foundations, embassies, corporates and individuals. 
  • Assist with and lead on the development of proposals, cultivation activity and partner reporting to support sustainable income for current and future programmes. 
  • Build and maintain strong working relationships with cultural venues, boroughs, civic partners and international collaborators. 
  • Represent Shubbak at sector events, networks and partner meetings as required. ● Manage relationships with co-producing and commissioning partners. 

Team and Collaboration 

  • Line manage, support and mentor any producing staff and freelancers, ensuring a clear through-thread with the rest of the programme 
  • Champion inclusive, accessible and environmentally responsible working practices. ● Assist with planning freelance and project-based resourcing in line with delivery schedules. ● Contribute to free-lance producer recruitment processes as required. 
  • Work collaboratively across internal and external teams to ensure festival and programme activity is well integrated into Shubbak’s wider year-round work. 
  • Support diverse representation among artists and project teams and ensure contributors are supported to share their perspectives. 
  • Uphold Shubbak’s values and standards across all activity. 
  • Attend and contribute to team meetings around learning, reflection and skills development following projects. 

General Responsibilities 

  • Contribute to team meetings, cross-organisational projects and initiatives that support Shubbak’s mission and organisational development. 
  • Maintain professional development, staying informed about trends and best practice in live performance, festivals and cultural production. 
  • Ensure Shubbak’s values of inclusivity, sustainability and generosity are reflected in all aspects of work. 
  • Undertake other duties as reasonably required by Shubbak’s senior leadership team.

Person Specification 

Knowledge : Essential 

  • Strong knowledge of a specific artform, preferably theatre and live performance, with awareness of diverse cultural and artistic practices in the UK and internationally. 
  • Knowledge of producing at a range of scales, including festivals and multi-venue programmes.
  • Understanding of partnership working and fundraising models. 
  • Awareness of co-commissioning, touring models, IP and recoupment considerations.

Desirable

  • Familiarity with environmental and sustainability standards for live events (e.g. Theatre Green Book). 

Experience : Essential 

  • Minimum 3 years experience in a senior producing or programme management role within the arts. 
  • Experience leading projects and teams to deliver complex programmes in partnership with multiple stakeholders. 
  • Experience overseeing planning, budgeting and delivery across multi-venue or city-wide contexts. 
  • Experience contributing to fundraising activity and partnership development.
  • Experience working internationally and/or with diverse communities. 
  • Established professional networks within the cultural sector. 

Desirable 

  • Experience producing outdoor, site-specific or public-space projects. 
  • Experience working with Arab & SWANA artists, cultural workers and creative communities
  • Fluency in Arabic, with awareness of the linguistic & cultural diversity of our communities. 

Skills : Essential

  • Strong negotiation and stakeholder-management skills. 
  • Confident budget management and financial monitoring skills. 
  • Excellent producing, planning and problem-solving abilities. 
  • Excellent budgeting and financial skills 
  • Clear and effective communication skills. 
  • Ability to prioritise, delegate and manage competing demands. 
  • Experience supporting and motivating teams. 
  • Ability to respond calmly and effectively to challenges and incidents. 
  • Collaborative leadership skills across internal teams and external partners. 
  • Analytical thinking to support informed decision-making. 

We welcome applications from Black, Arab, Afro-Arab, Indigenous and People of Colour, disabled, d/Deaf and neurodivergent candidates, and those who have experienced barriers to accessing the arts. Flexible working is encouraged, and we prioritise care, collaboration and sustainability in how we work. 

APPLICATION PROCEDURE 

Please send your application to recruitment@shubbak.co.uk with the following information by midnight on Sunday 10 May 2026: 

  • Cover letter of no more than 2 A4 pages outlining why you would like to work with Shubbak and how you meet the person specification. 
  • C.V. (2 pages maximum)
  • Contact details of 2 referees 
  • Complete Equal Opportunities Monitoring form HERE
  • First interview stage: Friday 15th May 
  • Second interview stage: Friday 22nd May 

The post starts in the week commencing 1 July 2026 or as soon as possible after that date. Please indicate alternative availability in your application, if these dates do not match your current availability.