As a producer Jon was central to Made In Brighton Ltd (2003 – 2006) an organisation established with ACESE funds to help enhance Brighton’s ability to produce theatre in all its forms. Jon joined to develop outdoor, site specific and non-text based theatre within the city and worked with a number of companies developing work, infrastructure and strategy to help create opportunities and partnerships both nationally and internationally.
Jon is currently Producer for Caravan: Assembly, an initiative that aims to strengthen the international networks and expand the range of opportunities for performing artists and companies in south east England to work abroad. The Assembly took place during Brighton Festival 2008 and provided opportunities for the region’s artists to show work, share ideas, present new material and explore possibilities for collaboration and touring with international promoters and producers. Caravan is now confirmed again for 2010.
Jon continues to be a leading production consultant in the UK outdoor
arts world and is currently;
· Production Consultant for Wildworks
Theatre Company, the UK’s leading creators of outdoor theatre
· Head of Production for Winchester
Hat Fair (the UK’s longest running street theatre festival)
· Production Consultant and Safety Advisor for Norfolk
& Norwich Festival
· Production Consultant for Derby
Feste, a new outdoor cultural flagship event for Derby
· Head of Production for Inside
Out Festival a series of ‘extraordinary events in extraordinary
places’ staged across the county of Dorset in September 2007 and
which was followed by a one-off spectacular event in Weymouth in Sept
08.
He is also informal Production Consultant for Festivals
& Events International and ArtsAgenda.
Jon has a long association with Stockton Riverside International Festival (the UK’s largest street arts festival) and was Production Manager for STICKY, Improbable Theatre’s large scale outdoor show which toured throughout the world.
Other clients have included Newcastle Gateshead Initiative/Culture 10, Streets of Brighton; Henley Festival; Ross-on-Wye International Festival; Oxford 2000 (subsequently OOMF!); UZ Events; British Council at Chalon dans la Rue (Europe’s leading street arts festival).
Jon also spent many years working as a theatre lighting designer, lighting shows in the West End, at all the subsidised London venues (Almeida Theatre; Royal Court; Stratford East etc) and for most of the UK’s larger regional theatres (West Yorkshire Playhouse; Plymouth Theatre Royal etc). He was also resident lighting designer for Kenneth Branagh’s Renaissance Theatre Co. during its most prolific period of national productions and world touring.
He is member of Brighton & Hove CC Arts Commission where he instigated
an Outdoor Events Working Party formed to create policy guidelines for
the Council. He is an occasional lecturer/course leader for University
of Brighton; Independent Theatre Council; Visiting Arts; Independent Street
Arts Network
Robin Morley has a career of founding companies that have been influential
in the development of outdoor arts and events.
Robin was a founding director of ZAP Productions in Brighton which was
for 16 years a major influence in the producing and distribution of outdoor
street arts across the UK. The company developed a national partnership
network of annual street arts festivals which combined with a strong commissioning
programme was a key factor in the development of the outdoor arts sector.
He was commissioned in 1994 by Eurotunnel to manage the public Inauguration
Celebrations for the Channel Tunnel with an Ango-French programme of outdoor
arts and in 2002 he developed and produced in Surrey the “Rhythm
Cultures” programme for the 2002 Commonwealth Games Cultural Festival.
In 1994 he and Zap partner Neil Butler were invited by Glasgow City Council
to set up UZ Events
as an independent Scottish organisation to create large scale cultural
events for the City. UZ produced “Shine On” the city's large
scale Winter Festival and Hogmanay Celebration. Robin also produced Aberdeen's
Hogmanay celebrations in 1999 & 2000.
Between 2001- 2004 he produced Bradford International Festival with Neil
Butler, introducing many new & innovative programme strands as part
of the city’s bid to become the UK European Capital of Culture.
With the festival team he produced
Bradford Mela, the largest South Asian outdoor arts festival in Europe
and in 2003 raised £735,000 of EU funding for the festival.
Since 2004 he has worked as an independent consultant working for arts
organisations, strategic agencies and high education institutions on fundraising,
public arts development, organisational and programme development, before
launching Magnetic Events with Jon Linstrum in 2006.
He has previously acted as an advisor on policy and programme to the Arts Council England, National Office on Street Arts, Carnival and Circus development.
He is an executive board member of the Independent Street Arts Network (ISAN) and the National Outdoor Events Association (NOEA)
Website photography credits
Colin Davidson
David Gray
Louise Strickland
Magnetic Events
Peter Atkinson
Ray Gibson
Roy Riley