Former mayor becomes chair of theatre board

The former Mayor of the West Midlands, Andy Street, has been announced as the new chair of the board for a Birmingham theatre.

The Birmingham Repertory Theatre, commonly known as the Birmingham Rep or The Rep, announced the appointment on Thursday.

Mr Street served as mayor from 2017 to 2024, until he lost to Labour's Richard Parker in the 2024 election.

Speaking of his new role, Mr Street said: "It is a huge honour to be asked to chair one of my home city’s great cultural institutions and one that I am personally a huge believer in."

"Arts and culture are mission critical to the success and the story of Birmingham, and The Rep is right at the heart of that."

Rachael Thomas, chief executive of The Rep, said the theatre was delighted at the appointment, adding: "Andy’s passion for Birmingham and culture is well known. He lives in the city and as mayor was a tireless advocate for the cultural sector, recognising the benefits a vibrant sector brings to the region.

"Over the years he’s also been a regular visitor to The Rep and knows our work well, seeing work across all three of our stages - from large scale theatre productions in The House to one man shows in The Door.

"Together with the whole team here, I look forward to working with Andy to ensure that The Rep continues to be recognised as one of the most dynamic and exciting producing theatres in the country."

Many speculated on what Mr Street's next career move would be after he lost out on another mayoral term, with him announcing at the end of May that he would not be standing as an MP in the general election.

He admitted the role of an MP "has just never been for me" and that he would find it "extremely difficult to step back" from being an executive leader.

Previous to his political career he had a successful time in retail and was the managing director of John Lewis and Partners.

Now, he will be stepping into the world of theatre.

Mr Street said: "Whilst the theatre has a strong reputation locally, I believe we could be doing much more nationally and perhaps indeed internationally.

"Working with Rachael, her team, and the rest of the board, I intend to help make The Rep the best regional theatre in Europe.

“With my next career move potentially taking me into a national position I was determined to keep strong ties to Birmingham, and I couldn’t have wished for a better way to do that than by chairing The Rep. I cannot wait to officially get started."

He will formally take up his role as chair of the board on 1 November.

The theatre will also "shortly" be appointing a new artistic director after Sean Foley announced he was stepping down earlier this year.

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