Shereener was recruited to the board via an open recruitment process and Chiquita and Sarah were elected to our board at this year’s AGM by our membership.
Shereener is a barrister, actor and the founder and director of Orísun Productions, a not-for-profit theatre production company based in New Cross, South London. Shereener founded Orísun as a platform for black creatives to produce theatre that challenges stereotypes and promotes diversity. She is also a former chair of the New Cross Gate Trust, a trustee at One World Media and chair of Friends of Eckington Gardens.
As well as being a tireless grass-roots campaigner she has also acted in several productions in London and nationally and her screen credits include the multi-award winning short, BAiL and soon to be released Dead on the Vine.
Shereener is also a barrister and associate tenant of Garden Court chambers. She won the Sidney Elland Goldsmith Bar Pro Bono Award for her unpaid work in employment & discrimination law. She is a night lawyer with a national newspaper.
Shereener said:
“I am excited to join the board at the Albany as they have a proud history of championing diversity stretching back decades. They share my desire to create theatre that benefits and reflects the diverse local community in South East London.”
Earlier this year Chiquita Delisser and Sarah Bedi were also elected to the board at this year’s AGM.
Chiquita is an actor, facilitator and an associate artist with Sounds Like Chaos and an Albany Young Leader:
“I joined the board to be a representative of local young creators and ensure there is always a space for us to build professional careers. I also want to challenge and expand how we represent and encourage people of all abilities, ensuring we all have an equal stance in our space.”
Sarah is a director and writer, having initially trained as an actor at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. She was co-artistic director of BAZ Productions from 2012-2020 and has directed productions for venues nationally including Shakespeare’s Globe, The Bunker, Brighton Theatre Royal, Oval House, Arcola, Gilded Balloon and the Pleasance. Her development work has been seen at HighTide festival, Finborough, Pleasance, Soho Theatre, Dartington Hall, Wilton’s Music Hall, The Globe and the V&A museum and her writing credits include The Process, dreamplay, Prophesy (BAZ productions); Memories of the Pot Bank Workers (V&A museum):
“The Albany is a space I have repeatedly returned to throughout my life – from coming to playgroups here at 5 years old, to working in the cafe in my 20s, to being an audience member. I stood to serve as a trustee at the Albany because this building and its community mean the world to me; growing up I had access to amazing arts spaces like the Albany, and I want to safeguard those opportunities I had for future generations.”
[Image L – R Shereener Browne, Chiquita Delisser and Sarah Bedi]