A New Chapter for Sick+Twisted
Sick + Twisted Theatre's Artistic Director, Debbie Patterson, will be stepping down from her leadership role with the organization after nearly a decade of artistic vision, advocacy, and growth.
Her departure is designed to make room for a new leader. We are not framing this as a search for an Artistic Director or a Managing Director or an Executive Director specifically, but as a search for new leadership. We are less focused on highlighting potential titles, than in finding the right person/team as a strong fit with our mission.
We are open to either one person or a team. We would be satisfied to see one person with all the qualities, skills, expertise and lived experience we are seeking. But we also know that we may see a duo, who combined, have all those attributes or the capacity to develop them.
Since founding Sick + Twisted Theatre in 2016, Patterson has established the company as a national leader in disability-led theatre creation, producing groundbreaking work that has challenged assumptions, expanded access, and amplified the voices of Deaf, disabled, blind and low-vision, and neurodivergent artists. Under her leadership, the company has earned a reputation for artistic excellence, innovation, and a deep commitment to disability justice.
“Building Sick + Twisted Theatre from the ground up has been a labour of love” says Debbie Patterson, “but it's not something I’ve done alone. Everyone who has ever worked with Sick+Twisted in each and every capacity has had a hand in making Sick + Twisted the highly respected and influential organization that it is today. I know, as a leader, that I've taken this organization as far as I can and it needs someone with a new vision to take it to the next level. I can't wait to see where this company goes next!”
Patterson will continue to support the organization through a transition period while the Board of Directors undertakes a national search for new leadership and will remain involved as a board member for one additional year.
“Debbie had a dream and she made it happen” says Sick+Twisted Board Chair, Mary Black. “The S+T Board is deeply grateful to Debbie for her creative artistic vision and her diligent efforts to create a stable organization that will most certainly grow and flourish into the future. Using her well-honed artistic abilities, she created space within the live theatre community for disabled people to showcase their talents and to tell their own stories in their own voice and with their own truths. Debbie is very fond of saying “theatre is for everyone who has a body” and she has pursued this belief with enthusiasm, vigour and joy.”
The Board has initiated a national search process to identify the next leader—or leadership team—to guide Sick + Twisted Theatre into its next chapter. The organization is seeking a dynamic and collaborative individual or team who shares its commitment to artistic excellence, accessibility, disability aesthetics, and community engagement.
Sick + Twisted Theatre remains committed to its mission of creating innovative performance work through a disability lens while fostering equitable opportunities for artists and audiences alike.
