TheatreOne has a brand new general manager.
Late last month, the Nanaimo-based company appointed Eliza Gardiner as their new general manager.
Gardiner, a part-time theatre instructor at Vancouver Island University, takes over from former general manager, Mary Desprez, who recently stepped down from the position due to family matters.
Gardiner says the appointment is the realization of something special.
“It is really my dream come true,” Gardiner said.
Desprez was hired back in September to replace Daurel Neve, who retired earlier last year.
Gardiner says although her appointment was mid-season for the company, everything remains the same.
“I am coming in after all the decisions and budgeting and artistic vision was decided on,” she said. “I’ve really hit the ground running.”
In addition to her work at VIU, Gardiner has worked for numerous non-profit organizations as well as the Western Edge Theatre Society.
“Nanaimo has offered me so many opportunities,” she said.
Gardiner, who grew up in Lindsay, Ont., but has lived in Nanaimo over a decade, says that her appointment will also be a benefit to her theatre students as well
“My students are super important to me and if I can share with them the ins and outs of the professional theatre world then it is going to be great,” she said.
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