ABOUT STUART
International Festival Producer
Cultural Consultant
Edinburgh Photo
I’ve always felt that my work sits in an unusual space—too commercial to be considered purely arts, yet too creatively driven to be a traditional events business. It’s where creativity, logistics and strategy come together to create memorable public experiences.
For more than 30 years I’ve worked in live entertainment, and for the last 16 years I’ve specialised in producing street theatre, outdoor arts and cultural festivals across the Middle East, Europe, Asia and Africa.
I’ve produced more than 150 festivals and cultural events in 16 countries, worked with over 500 international artists, and overseen more than 10,000 live performances for governments, shopping destinations, festivals and cultural organisations.
Every year I travel extensively, visiting dozens of festivals around the world to discover exceptional new artists and emerging productions. Watching performances in front of a live audience is the best way to identify talent, and it allows me to introduce fresh, original programming to the festivals and destinations I work with.
JAPAN PHOTO
I spend as much time curating artists and developing creative concepts as I do managing budgets, logistics and stakeholder relationships.One week I might be walking the streets of a European fringe festival looking for the next outstanding street performer. The next I could be designing a cultural festival for a government client in the Gulf, advising an international festival, or coordinating hundreds of artists across multiple venues.
Alongside producing festivals, I remain actively involved in the international outdoor arts sector. I curate the Best Street Theatre Awards at the Adelaide Fringe, represent the sector through World Fringe, speak at international conferences, serve on the Advisory Board of the Sharjah Performing Arts Academy, and publish the annual Edinburgh Fringe Street Performers Calendar.
In 2010 I founded Dolphin Creative as the vehicle through which I produce festivals and cultural projects.
Clients don’t work with me simply to book performers. They work with me because they need someone who understands the creative, commercial and logistical realities of producing ambitious public events—and who has built an international network of artists, producers and festival directors capable of bringing those events to life.
JAPAN PHOTO
I spend as much time curating artists and developing creative concepts as I do managing budgets, logistics and stakeholder relationships.One week I might be walking the streets of a European fringe festival looking for the next outstanding street performer. The next I could be designing a cultural festival for a government client in the Gulf, advising an international festival, or coordinating hundreds of artists across multiple venues.
Alongside producing festivals, I remain actively involved in the international outdoor arts sector. I curate the Best Street Theatre Awards at the Adelaide Fringe, represent the sector through World Fringe, speak at international conferences, serve on the Advisory Board of the Sharjah Performing Arts Academy, and publish the annual Edinburgh Fringe Street Performers Calendar.
In 2010 I founded Dolphin Creative as the vehicle through which I produce festivals and cultural projects.
Clients don’t work with me simply to book performers. They work with me because they need someone who understands the creative, commercial and logistical realities of producing ambitious public events—and who has built an international network of artists, producers and festival directors capable of bringing those events to life.