Merrigong Appoints Kristopher McDowell As New Program Manager

Merrigong Theatre Company is delighted to announce the appointment of Kristopher McDowell to the newly created role of Program Manager. Kristopher's focus will be on growing commercial programs, and developing domestic and international relationships.

Kristopher is currently CEO of KMP Artists, an international tour producer and arts agency which he founded in 2004. With offices in both the US and China, he has cultivated an extensive range of industry relationships, working with numerous international presenters and festivals Worldwide with an emphasis on Asia-Pacific and North America.

Simon Hinton, CEO / Artistic Director of Merrigong Theatre Company said the appointment followed a rigorous search, and recognised Kristopher's extensive connections and extraordinary industry experience. "Kristopher's appointment represents an exciting new phase for the Company, as we further build our program and industry relationships," he said.

Kristopher commences full-time with Merrigong in mid-September 2017. He will maintain a role as Consultant for Asia-Pacific projects for KMP. Effective mid-September, the role of CEO for KMP will be passed onto Andrew Delicata.

Merrigong Theatre Company manages one of Australia's busiest, most dynamic regional venues - Illawarra Performing Arts Centre (IPAC) in Wollongong, about an hour south of Sydney. The company also manages the city's key civic and community venue, the Wollongong Town Hall. Since 2005, under Artistic Director Simon Hinton, Merrigong has developed into a vibrant theatre company in its own right - producing, presenting and touring exciting contemporary theatre and supporting the development of a wide range of theatre-makers. Merrigong presents a diverse annual season of theatre, dance and children's programming, including work sourced from Australia's finest performing arts companies, self-produced work, acclaimed international productions, and innovative contemporary work from new companies.