International Women's Day with our CEO
On International Women’s Day last year, we sat down with Rachel Lythe and Amy Sanderson in their time as Interim Co-Executive Directors. This year, our new Chief Executive Officer Vicky Cheetham is in post, so we’re marking the occasion by asking her about her time at Leeds Heritage Theatres so far, her career, and the experience of women in the industry.
Written by Vicky Cheetham
You’re now six months into your role as Chief Executive Officer at Leeds Heritage Theatres – how has the role been so far?
I have thoroughly enjoyed it! It’s been great to be back in Leeds. There is so much passion, talent and commitment in all the teams across our venues and it’s a privilege to work alongside everyone.
What does International Women’s Day mean to you?
We should all celebrate International Women’s Day. It is a moment to recognise women’s achievements locally and globally – be they social, economic, cultural or political. These are women who have made a difference, who have striven for gender parity. Today raises awareness and education. It is a call to action on our collective journey to equality.
Are there any inspirational women that come to mind to you in this industry?
Many women have inspired me. Two specific examples might be:
Clara Schumann, the wife of Robert, who was a virtuosic pianist and a relatively unknown composer, brought up eight children, surviving three of them, managed the household and finances, supported her husband’s career and later decline, dealt with the ongoing infatuation of Johannes Brahms — and continued to play throughout her life, giving concerts and teaching to support her family.
Leeds Heritage Theatres' new CEO, Vicky Cheetham.
Jude Kelly, former Artistic Director at Southbank Centre and founder of the WOW Foundation, was the best boss I’ve ever had. She is the most visionary individual I have ever met, but also so inspirational. She could see people’s capability and capacity and pushed them to be the very best they could be. She allowed me to be a wife and mother too – and was happy for me to leave early to go to parents’ evenings and was delighted that I brought my children to shows and performances.
But many, many others have inspired me or inspire me: Maggie Smith, Cate Blanchett, Mitsuko Uchida, Ariana Grande, Yayoi Kusama, Frances Morris… the list is endless. But most of all, it was my mum.
My mum was not in the industry, although she was an amateur artist. She always supported my love of music and the arts. She took me to lessons and competitions; she was always in the audience whether I was acting, playing or singing, and believed in me. She encouraged me when I got my place at Cambridge University and supported my entry into the sector and the fact that I wanted a career in the arts. She was always there when I was juggling the craziness of being a wife, mother and professional, and gave me the confidence that I could do it. She wanted me to have an education and the opportunity to do whatever I wanted. She was great.
Vicky and Head of Cinema Wendy Cook at a Heritage Fund-organised celebration of heritage in the north of England
How would you say the experience of being a woman in the industry has changed since you started?
Today’s workplace is very different. When I started in my first venue, I was producing and production managing all genres of music with a lot of evening, weekend and Bank Holiday work. My boss was a man, and my technical colleagues were all men. They were all fantastic people, I learnt a lot from them and I’m still in touch with many of them, but it was not culturally acceptable or easy to be a working mother. If my baby daughter was ill and I had to stay home, then I would phone in and say I was ill; if my daughter was ill at nursery and needed collecting, I would have a headache; if later on I wanted to take a day’s leave to attend Sports Day, I would just want a day off for myself.
And when I was pregnant with my second daughter, I was advised not to tell anyone until I was five months pregnant as it would destabilise the department! I just didn’t bring the fact I was a mother into the workplace – men never took time off for their families, so why should women? And I saw the impacts, with fellow female colleagues being overlooked for opportunities and their commitment being questioned. But now, 25 years later, it’s very different and I am proud of being a working mother – both at work, at the school gate and home.
It’s a massive juggle and not always easy. Some weeks are smooth and others are not with too many competing priorities! But my husband and I are a team. We know that each other’s work is important, but our priority is looking after our three beautiful girls so that they are happy and safe, with time for fun. So yes, I will answer their calls during a working day as I never know what their call is about – sometimes their calls are truly urgent and other times not urgent at all – and yes, I will take a day’s leave telling everyone it’s for Sports Day!
Where do you feel the industry is moving for women? What do you think the next steps are?
Over the next decade, I believe we will see more C-Suite* women. The new flexibility that the workplace offers enables more opportunities to juggle home life and the workplace. We will also see more parity in creative representation – on stage and in written texts, songwriting, broadcasting, directing and behind the scenes. Just watch this space!
*C-Suite refers to employees in leadership/senior positions, with the ‘C’ referring to the word ‘Chief’
What’s been your biggest achievement in your time in the industry?
I’ve had many moments of joy in the industry. But my favourite gig of all time was a tribute to Billie Holiday, called Billie & Me. I loved working on it. We had an incredible lineup of Dee Dee Bridgwater, Amy Winehouse, Chrissie Hynde, Fontella Bass, Angelique Kidjo, Meshell Ndegeocello, Yolande Bavan, Susheela Ramen, Carleen Anderson with Nenah Cherry as MC. The band was led by the American drummer, Terri Lynne Carrington and the visual montage was put together by BBC Producer, Sarah Cropper. It was an incredible celebration of Billie Holiday’s life that we rehearsed and designed from scratch to five-star reviews. It certainly was one of my career highlights. It later went on to tour the States.
Barbican Centre, where Vicky spent time as Executive Producer
The Tate, where Vicky spent time as Managing Director
And what’s been the biggest challenge you’ve faced?
Like many other people, my biggest challenge was COVID-19. I was Managing Director of Tate and had only been in post four months when the galleries had to close. We had shipments of multi-million-pound artwork on their way to Pudong in China for an inaugural exhibition; Andy Warhol, Steve McQueen, Zanele Muholi and Rodin exhibitions about to be opened at Tate Modern; Turner, Aubrey Beardsley and Heather Phillipson at Tate Britain; Naum Gabo and Haegue Wang at St Ives, and Theaster Gates and Candice Breitz at Liverpool. As with everywhere, we did not know when we would be able to reopen. Our cost base was huge and we had very little income coming in.
My team of Directors were quite brilliant though and their commitment, creativity and entrepreneurial endeavours were inspiring: we went online and the number of visitors to Tate Kids rocketed with millions of followers worldwide; our membership scheme was supported by digital content and previews of upcoming exhibitions; our shops expanded online, and the many curators worked tirelessly to re-schedule exhibitions and loans of artwork from international collections.
We halved operating budgets; we argued for and gratefully received Government support; we cut Executive Group salaries; we restructured our retail and catering business to save it from closure; and we used as much from our emergency reserves as we were allowed. But even with all this activity, we were not going to solve the financial challenges we were facing.
Towards the end of 2020, we were expecting to lose £56 million in self-generated income overall. This hit us hard as a large proportion of our funds was self-generated. We knew the road to recovery was going to be a long one, with tourism not expected to return to previous levels for a few years and the wider economy facing the long-term effects of the pandemic. We then had to do what so many others in our sector were doing — we had to reduce the overall size of Tate Gallery’s workforce. We needed to make a 12% reduction (equivalent to around 120 full-time roles) to save £4.8 million to allow us to survive. We reluctantly launched a voluntary redundancy scheme, open to colleagues in all departments and at all levels, to express an interest in taking voluntary redundancy or early retirement. We achieved this, but it was a very difficult time and certainly the largest challenge I have faced professionally.
Final thoughts: Do you have any advice for young women and girls looking to come into this industry?
Know that you can. Have a go. Find your inner confidence. Speak to industry professionals and ask for their thoughts and guidance. Listen, learn and be purposeful!
