An-Ting Chang To Step Down As Artistic Director/CEO of Kakilang Festival

An-Ting Chang is to step down as artistic director/CEO of Kakilang following the conclusion of the current Kakilang Festival, running at present in various venues across London till April 22nd, which she has curated along with her team of associates Si Rawlinson, Ling Tan and Daniel York Loh.

An accomplished composer, pianist, theatre maker and scientist, An-Ting became artistic director of the Arts Council NPO funded 'combined arts' company in 2018, inheriting the company name 'Chinese Arts Space'. Rebranding as 'Chinese Arts Now (CAN) she embarked on a series of CAN Festivals where she commissioned and presented work from a range of Southeast and East Asian heritage artists across multiple disciplines (including dance, drama, music, Queer work, family events and visual arts) with a strong emphasis on experimentation - including Jennifer Tang, Alissa Anne Jeun Yi , Jo Fong, Ming Ho, Jude Christian, Concert Theatre (Taiwan), Little Bean Theatre, Tangram, Belle Chen, Whiskey Chow, Joel Tan, The Mollusc Dimension, Nicola Chang, Raymond Yu, Daniel Phung, Hazel Lam, Pangottic, Xie Rong, Orang Collectif, Ken Cheng, Phil Wang, Evelyn Mok, Nigel Ng, Tobi Poster-Su, Pamela Carter, Jasmin Kent Rodgman, Eelyn Lee, Seph Li, Naomi Sumner Chan, Jack Tan, Enxi Chang and Julia Cheng - as well as creating her own work including Bats and Beats (Southbank's Soundstate Festival/Shanghai), the Augmented Chinatown 2.0 app with Joel Tan and Donald Shek, the award-winning every dollar is a soldier/with money you're a dragon with Daniel York Loh, Si Rawlinson, Ian Gallagher, Christine Ting-Urquhart, Cheng Yu, Wang Xiao and Chloe Wing, culminating in HOME X, a gaming/VR/dance mixed-media piece created with Ian Gallagher and Donald Shek which recently completed a sold out run at the Barbican Pit ('an utterly unique experience that astounds with technical marvel as it also reflects on the notions of home and feeling at home...' Reviews Hub). Last summer the company also successfully produced Low Carbon Chinatown - a community cooking/environmental initiative exploring food culture and its role in tackling climate crisis - produced by Ling Tan, as well two artist development programmes, after restructuring to an artist-led leadership team and rebranding to 'Kakilang', a Hokkien language word meaning 'Our People'.

An-Ting quote - I'm grateful for everyone I have worked with over the past five years, and very proud of what we (Kakilang and all Southeast and East Asian artists) have achieved here. In particular, I'm proud of the works we presented and the restructuring of the organisation with the permanent associate artistic director roles. I'm very excited for my next stage, where I will return to being a freelance artist and focus on my music and theatre-making.

Lai Lai Wong (Kakilang Board Chair) - Over the last five years, An-Ting has built and supported Kakilang to go from strength to strength. A great visionary

Daniel York Loh (Associate Artistic Director) - An-Ting has been the very best artist and the very best leader. I would really hope that this is not 'goodbye' but, rather, a reconfiguring of the way we make work together.

Si Rawlinson (Associate Artistic Director) - For as long as I've known An-Ting, she has been a true force of nature. Her vision has led Kakilang from strength to strength, and her unwavering dedication to the art, artists, and communities she serves is truly awe inspiring. Her passion for multi-disciplinary and groundbreaking art has made Kakilang an award-winning and exciting contemporary voice in its own right, and she will leave behind a legacy of bringing more people together, more meaningfully and inclusively, while boldly stepping into the future.

Ling Tan (Associate Artistic Director) - An-Ting is a leader with clear vision, deeply passionate about what she believes in: that art should be inclusive and multidisciplinary. Most importantly, she has a genuine curiosity about different artforms that has guided the way she has platformed us to produce our work with trust and freedom. It is very sad to see An-Ting leave, but at the same time, I'm excited to see what she will achieve next!

Kakilang are now recruiting a Director/CEO, aiming to appoint in June/July 2023 when An-Ting will depart. She will leave behind a fantastic legacy, including an exciting and ambitious strategy that her strong artist-led team and talented staff will drive forward under the leadership of a new CEO. To ensure a smooth and successful handover, An-Ting will remain at Kakilang to oversee the recruitment of the new CEO and prepare the company for its next phase of leadership.

The job description for the new Director/CEO is 'to lead, develop and execute a holistic strategy'

There is no avoiding the fact that effectively running any small-scale publicly funded arts org involves an administrative burden that is challenging for many artists. Kakilang have decided, after much discussion, to opt for a leadership structure where a creative producer/director will work with the three remaining associate artistic directors to develop and enhance the company's unique remit and breadth of work.

Much will depend on the individual we recruit for this but we believe this is a model that can and will serve us, and the sector we work in, very successfully in the years ahead.

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