Apples & Snakes announces its first Trainee Artistic Director as Poet and playwright Ty’rone Haughton

We are very excited to finally share the news that Leicester based Ty’rone Haughton will be joining us for the next two years as Trainee Artistic Director. Ty’rone was named one of BBC Radio 1Xtra’s Future Figures 2023 for his contributions to the arts and social care. He was selected through a highly competitive recruitment process from 37 excellent candidates. 

Ty’rone stood out to the selection panel as a multi-skilled artist and producer with extensive knowledge of the national spoken word community and social care sector. He has a strong and clear vision for what he wants to achieve as the Trainee Artistic Director at Apples & Snakes.  

This will be the first Trainee Artistic Director post for the company, created to address the shortage of potential artistic directors within arts and culture. This new role provides a direct opportunity for developing skills and experience for those interested in leadership and a new trainee will be appointed every two years.

Recognising that there is no real progression pathway into the cultural leadership roles that many of them seek, Apples & Snakes wanted to create an opportunity and pathway for these poets. It was conceived in response to feedback from the spoken word community, where poets are often innovators and creative entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds who show natural leadership. 

Ty’rone will shadow Apples & Snakes Artistic Director Lisa Mead across all aspects of the Apples & Snakes leadership. This includes creative producing, financial management, fundraising, human resources, partner relationships and communications with an extra budget available for additional training. The trainee programme is designed so that the first year will focus on training and development where Ty’rone will be supported to develop a strategic project to be delivered by the company in year two. 

Lisa Mead, Artistic Director, Apples and Snakes said: “We are delighted Ty’rone is joining us as our first Trainee Artistic Director. Our sector needs the talent and insight that artists like Ty’rone bring but they also need support and training to ensure they can fully realise their leadership potential. We have created this new role to address this gap in provision and help ensure there is equal opportunity at every level. As a small organisation, we can only support one trainee every two years and we call on our peers to replicate our initiative. Together we can create the next generation of leaders who may otherwise not have the resources or connections to break through and sustain senior roles.” 

Ty’rone Haughton said: “I have always held Apples & Snakes in high regard and been grateful for how they pioneered Spoken Word in the UK and believe in its vision and ambition. I think this new role is extremely important because arts and culture are full of artists who feel there is a glass ceiling or a cap to their equity in the sector. For Apples & Snakes to invest in someone like me prepares me for leadership through necessary training which isn’t available elsewhere. I hope this positive step is the start of a trend. 

The work of poets and the role of poetry in society is transformative; it is healing and empowering, which I have directly experienced. The more we can get poets and communities to engage, the more positive an impact we can make in the world. I want to foster a thriving national ecosystem of poetry opportunities and talent development, breaking down borders and siloes so we can begin to connect on a larger scale. Creating purposeful work with communities around the country. What I bring to Apples & Snakes is my ambition and innovation; I am someone who looks at what has already been done to find ways of building upon that. And I am always in search of what is new and exciting. Watch this space, as they say.”