Gabrielle Martin’s position now permanent as Tom Arthur Davis steps in as Interim Director of Programming

July 19, 2022

Please join us in congratulating Gabrielle Martin on her permanent appointment as Director of Programming with the Festival! This means she’ll be coming back to us in 2023, after taking some time to welcome her new bébé! Gabrielle’s position is part of the Collaborative Leadership Team with the newly appointed Keltie Forsyth Director of Operations, and Dr. Margo Kane, Director of Indigenous Initiatives.

“I was inspired by what can be achieved within community, as our partners were fundamental in
connecting Festival artists to new and returning audiences,” Martin says of her time with PuSh over the
past year. “We returned to our mandate of facilitating transformative experiences through live performance and, buoyed by this experience, it has been an honour to curate the 2023 Festival. We are
prioritizing innovative works that have a sense of necessity; that wake us up or offer new dreams for the
disenchanted. Delivering a festival takes a community, and PuSh continues to centre collaboration. I
couldn’t be more confident in the creative individuals that will be leading PuSh while I’m on leave, and
look forward to rejoining the team in 2023!

Theatre producer Tom Arthur Davis has been announced as Interim Director of Programming,
supporting Martin during her maternity leave. “The goal of the hiring committee was to pick a candidate that can best support Gabrielle as she embarks on a new journey into motherhood. We were not only looking for a person who had the capabilities to tackle the responsibilities of Gabrielle’s role, but also someone who synchronized with Gabrielle sufficiently to bring her curatorial vision to fruition,” explains Johnny Wu, Vice- President of the PuSh Board of Directors. “We are fortunate that after conducting an extensive search we were introduced to Tom Arthur Davis. With a stellar resume, there was no doubt that
Tom will excel in the role; however, what truly made Tom the perfect fit for the position, and had
us excited about collaborating with him, was his enthusiasm for supporting Gabrielle and the
institution as a whole – as we continue our organizational development. We are thrilled for
Gabrielle as she takes the time to navigate a new stage in life, and we are delighted to welcome
Tom to support us during the process.”

PuSh is committed to a leadership model and approach that amplifies practices of care – for the
organization, its staff, the artists it works with, the audiences it serves, and the stakeholders that
enable artistic work to thrive. The Collaborative Leadership Team was selected to cultivate a
collaborative vision that prepares PuSh to be resilient, and to remain an impactful leader, not
just in presenting cutting-edge, world-class art, but in modelling right relations, and in progressive operational and administration practices. This new model brings collaboration and shared responsibility to the overall vision and management of the organization, amplifying consultation and mutual accountability, and leading the organization in practicing its values in the achievement of both short and long-term goals.