London’s Gate Theatre appoints Shawab Iqbal as executive director

Eclipse Theatre’s Shawab Iqbal has been appointed executive director and joint chief executive of the Gate Theatre in Notting Hill, west London.

Iqbal, currently Eclipse’s executive producer, will replace Lise Bell, who has left the Gate to become executive director of the Director’s Theatre Writer’s Theatre.

As executive director and joint chief executive, Iqbal will work alongside the Gate’s artistic director and joint chief executive Ellen McDougall.

He said: “Having been a huge fan of the Gate over the years, I am thrilled to be appointed as executive director and joint chief executive of this magnificent theatre. We continue to live in unsettling times, making its values of internationalism, representation, community and invention even more urgent and crucial.

“I’m excited to be working with Ellen, the Gate’s dynamic team and its board of trustees as the sector begins to enter the recovery phase from Covid-19 in the upcoming months and years. 2020 has consistently shown that we must radically reimagine how our industry operates for artists, workers and communities in all their complexities, and I look forward to the Gate unapologetically being at the forefront of this work.”

Alongside his current role at Eclipse, Iqbal is a senior artistic associate at the Bush Theatre, and has previously worked with Boy Blue, Theatre Royal Stratford East and Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures. He is also a trustee of Tamasha Theatre.

McDougall praised Iqbal’s “incredibly impressive background” in the performing arts and said: “He brings enormous expertise, vision, and compassion to the role, and I can’t wait to build the next chapter in the Gate’s future with him as our executive director and joint chief executive.”

He takes up the position in January.