naomi-alexander

I am a theatre maker, community builder, and Founder CEO and Artistic Director of Brighton People’s Theatre. I am a 2019 Clore Fellow, an AHRC grant holder, and have been supported by Arts Council England. I work with artists, arts organisations, universities, drama schools, and public and voluntary sector bodies — helping them lead co-creative work that is ethical, playful, and built around the people it is made with.

My story

My working life began in community development. For 20 years I worked with inspiring people and projects: as a detached youth worker on the streets, as director of an active citizenship charity, and as a campaigner in and out of the House of Commons pushing for policy change in the community sector.

Then one day I realised I was miserable at work.

There was a quiet, unspoken creative dream in me. I had started out doing a Theatre degree at Warwick University — the first person in my family to go to university aged 18, thanks to a full grant. But like the vast majority of state-educated people, I couldn’t sustain a life in the arts without financial resources behind me. So I took a different path.

Years later, I started going to the theatre again. And as much as I loved it, I was troubled by something: the people I saw in the theatre were completely different to the people I saw on the bus on the way there. It annoyed me. Why didn’t someone do something about it? Then I realised — maybe I could.

I brought my community development experience together with my passion for theatre and set up Brighton People’s Theatre from my kitchen table. Today I lead a brilliant team on payroll, we work with hundreds of people every year, and we currently have four shows in development.

From community development to theatre-making — and why it matters


Group of diverse people smiling and posing in front of a sign that says 'Community Kitchen' with cooking utensils hanging behind them. Image courtesy of Brighton People's Theatre of Brighton Festival production of Born and Bread. Credit Rosie Powell.
A woman with shoulder-length reddish-brown hair, wearing a navy blue jumpsuit, smiling, with her hands in her pockets, sitting against a plain white background. Credit Emilie Lashmar.

Credentials

Alongside Brighton People’s Theatre, my freelance practice has been shaped by:

  • 2019 Clore Fellowship, awarded in recognition of my work to change how theatre is made and consumed

  • AHRC research grant for Let’s Create: Do we know how to? — exploring the craft of co-creative practice

  • Arts Council England grant to develop Let’s Create into an illustrated report and podcast series

  • Arts Council Developing Your Creative Practice grant for a deep dive into musical theatre

Everything I do has co-creation at its heart. I believe that who gets to make theatre, and who gets to be in the room, matters deeply. Co-creation is a political act. If that resonates with you, I’d love to talk.