Soundstreams announces Beth Brown as new Executive Director
OCT 25, 2021
Soundstreams Board of Directors President Daniel Weinzweig has today announced the appointment of respected Toronto arts leader, producer, and managing director Beth Brown, most recently of Nightwood Theatre, to the position of Soundstreams Executive Director. Brown joins Founding Artistic Director Lawrence Cherney at the helm on November 1, 2021. Emma Fowler, who had stepped in as Interim Executive Director, will return to her role as Director of Artistic Planning and Outreach.
From Founding Artistic Director Lawrence Cherney: “Beth Brown joins Soundstreams at a particularly opportune time in our near 40-year history. Before and during her stint as Interim Executive Director, Emma Fowler has played a crucial role positioning the company as the prime producer of Canadian music in our country and on the world stage. Beth has a proven track record in leading arts organizations to realize their dreams, and I really look forward to pursuing Soundstreams’ vision with her on board.”
“I am thrilled to be joining the incredibly talented and dedicated team at Soundstreams!” says Brown. “I am struck by the passion, drive and commitment of the staff and board as well as the incredible breadth of work that Soundstreams produces over the course of a season. I look forward to continuing the work of my predecessors, ensuring that flexible, adaptable and innovative systems are in place which will best support the vital work of this organization and the dissemination of that work not only to our local communities, but nationally and abroad. I am honoured to be working alongside Lawrence Cherney in realizing his artistic vision for the organization and ensuring its continued vibrancy and success moving into the future.”
Brown joins Soundstreams at the top of the 2021/22 season, and will be an instrumental part of the 40th Season in 2022/23. Soundstreams’s 2021/22 season launched this September, with a critically-acclaimed world premiere production, Garden of Vanished Pleasures, from composers Cecilia Livingston and Donna McKevitt based on the writing of Derek Jarman. This month Soundstreams launches its second world premiere of the season on November 19, with Love Songs. Featuring two brilliant works by composer Claude Vivier and a world premiere by Christopher Mayo. The Love Songs program is another in a series of Vivier productions over several seasons, that this year includes live presentations in Toronto and a European tour in May, featuring linchpin appearances at a Claude Vivier Festival hosted by London’s Southbank Centre.
ABOUT BETH BROWN
Beth comes to Soundstreams from Nightwood Theatre, Canada’s foremost feminist theatre, where she held the Managing Director role for over seven years and was able to grow the organization, ensuring financial stability in order to further its impact and reach. She is a professional arts manager who found her calling when her ability to work on the University’s musical was threatened because there was no bassoon part, which prompted her to accept her first Stage Manager position resulting in her working behind the scenes ever since. Beth graduated from Queen’s University with a Bachelor of Music Degree, and went on to study Technical Theatre Production at the National Theatre School of Canada. Upon graduating, Beth worked as a Stage Manager and Production Manager on productions in Toronto and abroad for many years. In 2010, Beth became General Manager of Theatre Direct Canada where she contributed to the opening and managing of a new facility. Beth is a Board Member for the Toronto Alliance of Performing Arts (TAPA) where she chairs the Dora jury nomination committee. She is also a proud board member of the WeeFestival and Eldritch Theatre Company.