| The magic of Fierce has always been in its agile nature. Being small, fleet of foot and flexible has always meant we can work reflexively and responsively to the ever-changing sector we sit within, allowing us to embrace change. So it is with this spirit we celebrate 2 of the Fierce leadership team, Catherine Groom and Pippa Frith, stepping down from their roles together this summer, after 8 brilliant years at the helm of the organisation. Having worked with the previous Director Aaron Wright to deliver 3 festivals and 2 major Commonwealth Games projects, they collaborated with Clayton to deliver his first iteration of the festival last year. Catherine and Pippa will both now go on to their next adventure, taking up positions with organisations well within the Fierce orbit. Catherine will become the new General Manager for Artsadmin and Pippa will become the new Executive Producer for Selina Thompson Limited, alongside a little bit of freelancing and a bit of (hopefully) slowing down. Alongside their departure, our wonderful Marketing Coordinator Bec Welsh will also stand-down, going on to co-lead a new organisation Open Futures Studio alongside her thriving PT business (we’d plug it here, but honestly she’s overflowing with clients as it is). Bec was only ever supposed to be with us for 9 months, but we have clung onto her for 3+ years, so it feels only fair we finally let her make a graceful exit. These changes have offered an incredible blank page for Fierce to imagine an exciting and viable future. At the same time, the team have been having to do what many friends and colleagues nationally have also had to do in recent months – have a good look under the bonnet of our organisation and answer some difficult questions about financial sustainability. With 15+ years of standstill settlements from our core funder (save small inflationary increases), a bankrupt City Council, increased pressure on trusts and foundations, and venue partners unable to support at the same level due to their own financial challenges, change is inevitable and needed. With our core values of trust, rigour, joy and disruption, we will take this opportunity to reset the structure of the organisation once again, in a way that feels sustainable and responsive to this moment, now. This means we are shifting our model to recruit an Executive Director to lead the company alongside Clayton and a Producer to help deliver our programme. Fierce has a long track-record of offering opportunities for the next generation of leaders to cut their teeth, make their mark, and find their way into the national fabric of leadership in experimental and Live Art practice. It is something we are deeply proud of and believe is a vital part of who we are. We hope this is a new opportunity for that classic Fierce brand of leadership development through delivery… in at the deep end, with loads of support and love to make it happen successfully. Pip, Cath and Bec will join that long and brilliant list of past staff and current cheerleaders, doubtlessly still finding ways to knit our work together and continue collaborations in our new roles. — From the latex piggies, the 15,000 keys, the queers in every corner of the Botanical garden, the bath of broken glass, the very specific German bricks, the 2 million flies, the spinning circles, the homemade poos, the palm-reading children, the banging parties, the endless buckets, the white dance floors, the hundreds of promises, the singing teenagers, the tiny copper discs and the rolls of paper, it has been a BLAST. #IfYouKnowYouKnow Thank you to every single artist who has seen us through these 8 years, made it worthwhile and magic, without you we have nothing. To the partners who have nurtured us, tolerated us, championed us and mentored us as we grew up and worked out how the hell to do this stuff. Thank you. To the funders – we literally could not have done it without you. Thank you. To the team, past and present, it has been a joy and an honour to call every one of you a colleague. Thank you. To the board, thank you for your faith, for your trust and your unwavering support. Tapping out, picking up our pompoms so we can cheer on Clayton and the next iteration of the team to hop on the magical ride that is running Fierce. xx |