Senior producer - national

Closing date for applications: 1 September 2025

Salary: Total package up to £50k

Location: This role is based in Southampton with occasional travel required. Hours of work will be varied and will include evening and weekends, so flexibility is essential.

Department: Producing

Reporting to: Creative director

Responsible for: Nationally produced and co-produced work

Grade: Leadership team

Take the lead on ambitious national productions and drive the partnerships that bring inspiring theatre to life.

Mayflower Theatre is the largest theatre on the south coast, welcoming more than 500,000 visitors a year. With a trusted reputation for presenting an eclectic artistic programme including the best in musical theatre, dance, opera, live music, drama and comedy our 2,270-seat venue attracts the world’s best touring productions. Mayflower Theatre is an independent charitable trust, working to the vision of ‘Inspiring Experiences’, ensuring theatre is accessible to all and that our 1928 Grade II listed building is maintained for generations to come.

We are seeking a dynamic senior producer to be a key contributor to the creative output of Mayflower Theatre and Mayflower Studios. This is a leadership role that requires a thorough understanding of how to collaborate with innovative artistic teams to create productions and co-productions. Applicants should have demonstrable experience of negotiation and partnership management on a national scale with a track record of producing within the theatre industry.

The purpose of this role is:

• To lead the delivery, development and evaluation of all national producing.
• To develop and deliver co-producing opportunities.
• To ensure that both venues play a full part in the cultural ecology regionally and nationally.
• To contribute to delivering the producing programming objectives.

Responsibilities

Relationships and reputation

• Develop the reputation of the company ensuring that quality is maintained across all produced and co-produced work.
• Attend first nights and company events when required and ensure artists are formally welcomed.
• Represent the organisation at partner, stakeholder and industry meetings as required.
• Keep abreast of industry news, developments and maintain a professional network and use this knowledge and connections to inform producing proposals.
• Manage and maintain excellent relationships with our partners, stakeholders, funders, producers, artists and internal teams to continue to develop the produced and coproduced programme and maximise net revenue for the company.
• Ensure that Mayflower plays an active role in the regional and national arts sector and is seen as a contributor to the cultural ecology.
• Promote the produced programme for advocacy purposes.

Producing

• Manage all aspects of the national, new midscale and large-scale touring produced projects, designing activities and managing events that achieve Mayflower’s business plan and ACE funding objectives.
• Seek and negotiate project/production enhancement and co-production deals.
• Employ excellent communication skills ensuring clarity and timely and efficient responses in all correspondence, keeping creative teams informed and supported throughout projects.
• Manage the production and store supervisor to support in the delivery of all producing projects.
• Manage producing budgets and ensure best value is achieved in all projects.
• Ensure all activity within the producing programmes are delivered to the highest quality and are undertaken safely.
• Collaborate with colleagues and external partners to source new work that fulfils the artistic vision and business plan.
• Plan and manage projects that use arts activity to promote Southampton stories.
• Evaluate all productions to help inform future work.
• Help develop and implement a suitable audience development strategy to support the midscale and some large-scale work.
• Maintain show budgets ensuring that box office income is maximised and artistic costs are controlled.
• Contribute to the collation of statistics for management reports and funders.
• Ensure that systems are in place so that all produced work meets all its Health and Safety requirements.

Leadership team

• Ensure excellent communication to assist in creating a positive working environment for all employees and freelancers and to establish a sense of unity, purpose and engagement.
• Protect the sustainability, income and reputation of Mayflower.
• Manage the operational delivery of organisational objectives.
• Ensure all administrative procedures are in place so that the department meets deadlines and disseminates necessary information efficiently to all internal departments and external stakeholders.
• Contribute to business planning, corporate strategy and annual budgets.
• Attend leadership, senior management and operational meetings, chair and be minute taker as per rota.
• Assist head of department in the preparation of quarterly board reports.
• Take responsibility for the strategic planning of team holidays and days off to ensure adequate operational cover.
• Ensure team appraisals are completed and logged in a timely manner.
• Embrace, promote and ensure the implementation of Diversity and Inclusion policies. Demonstrate a commitment to the broadening of cultural diversity and access across all areas.
• Minimise the company’s environmental impact wherever possible with particular reference to the Environmental Policy and Theatre Green Book 2.
• Take an active role in the Health & Safety activities of our venues.
• Support the delivery of team away days.
• Represent the organisation at a city and national level at appropriate forums.
• Investigate and act upon CSI responses for your department.
• Positively lead, support and develop staff to encourage an effective work force.
• Uphold the Leadership Team Contract of Commitment. Any other duties commensurate with the role and responsibility.

Knowledge, skills and experience

The role requires an excellent communicator with a proactive approach, in particular:

• Experience of delivering ambitious and dynamic professional theatre productions with competing priorities.
• Proven ability to build partnerships and manage effective relationships with other organisations and stakeholders.
• Excellent knowledge of BECTU and Equity guidelines with further knowledge of Society of London Theatre and UK Theatre policies desirable.
• Experience of working in a theatrical producing organisation.
• Strong financial management skills with an understanding of contracting and attention to detail.
• Strong leadership skills.
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to liaise with multiple stakeholders and departments effectively.

We welcome and encourage applications from candidates who are under-represented in the creative industries.

Please state in your application that you found this role through Creative Access.