Our Team

Sarah trained as an Actress specialising in the Classics at Rose Bruford and worked as an actress before undertaking an Arts Management BA (Hons) and embarking on a 20 year career in arts development. She was Arts Development Officer for West Lothian Council specialising in Capital Development, Arts Programming, Community Partnership Projects and Public Art, before moving into CEO position with Edinburgh Printmakers where she provided Artistic and Curatorial leadership focusing on artistic excellence in printmaking, led a £10.5m Capital project, developed all aspects of the organisation including brand awareness, digital innovations, International programming and commercial development.

Her role with Cumbernauld Theatre was initially to develop fundraising and support the organisation’s capital project before taking the broader CEO position with full organisational responsibilities.

My focus and ambition for Cumbernauld Theatre is definitely inspired by the incredible history of the charity as an organisation truly embedded in the community developing socially engaged performances of the highest professional standards, I value the importance of the Theatre to the health and wellbeing of the people of Cumbernauld and have enormous faith in what we can achieve together creatively, culturally to make our society a better place.

During Amanda’s tenure, she has spearheaded the establishment of the operational infrastructure, from setting up the office and implementing robust IT systems to orchestrating recruitment drives, procuring essential operational assets and establishing a licensed bar and kiosk. Such endeavours have culminated in the elevation of her role to include the position of Depute CEO.

Hobbies include Chairing Newyearfield Farm Community Centre Management Committee for over 25 years, starting and developing local youth/junior clubs, arranging annual open days. As an active member of Livingston Rotary Club, Amanda served 3 years as District RYLA Officer, a Youth Leadership Award scheme offered to Local children. Amanda is also a First Responder for West Lothian Council.

Matt’s career began 25 years ago in live music. He studied Sound Engineering at North Glasgow College and went on to work in recording studios, radio and audio post-production. He returned to live sound and theatre in 2013 as Technician at the Regal Community Theatre in Bathgate. In 2017 he joined the team at Platform as Technical Production Lead, before moving to Cumbernauld Theatre in the summer of 2019 as Technical and Production Manager in the final season in the Cottage Theatre. Matt had the task of overseeing the loose technical fit out at Lanternhouse across all 4 spaces, he picked thousands of pieces of equipment and claims to know exactly where they all are.

Every day is just the right amount of different to keep me excited. It’s great to see familiar faces come back through our doors, be it technicians, designers, or cast. When you boil it down my role is about helping people, giving them the things they need to perform or participate, the result is usually something special, it’s nice to help make those things happen.

Lindsay studied for an NC in Technical Theatre at Telford College followed by a BA in Drama and Theatre Arts at Queen Margaret University, where she specialised in Playwriting. She worked at Cumbernauld Theatre’s previous home at the Cottage where she worked across Front of House, Box Office and the Café-bar.

Upon moving to Lanternhouse, Lindsay has been responsible for establishing and managing the box office department. More recently, she has taken on the role of Cinema Manager, curating and organising the cinema programme. Lindsay is enthusiastic about enhancing the cinema experience and is continuing this work  incorporating a wider array of films and fostering greater community engagement opportunities. She previously worked at the Festival and Kings Theatres in Edinburgh for seven years, and held various posts including café and bar staff, box office and eventually Group Sales Supervisor.

Mark joined Cumbernauld Theatre Trust with over 22 years of diverse community engagement experience in the arts and cultural sector. Mark has worked as freelance Community Artist, Youth Participation Worker, Drama Artist, Out of Schools Arts Coordinator, Arts Development Officer, Performing Arts Development Officer, Family Support Worker, Senior Arts Officer and Development Manager. He has developed his community engagement practise working with organisations including Glasgow City Council, Citizens Theatre, East Ayrshire Youth Theatre, East Renfrewshire Council, Gorbals Youth and Community Theatre, Renfrewshire Arts, South Lanarkshire Council, South Lanarkshire Leisure and Culture and West Lothian Council. Mark has BA Hons Degree in Community Arts from University of Strathclyde and undertook an MA in Arts, Festivals and Cultural Management at Queen Margaret University.

Mark aspires to embed the communities of Cumbernauld into the heart of the new Cumbernauld Theatre and Cumbernauld Theatre into the heart of the communities of Cumbernauld, contributing to the process to develop Cumbernauld Theatre as an exciting and relevant arts and cultural hub for Cumbernauld and North Lanarkshire.

Rachel leads on all core marketing, sales and audience development strategies relating to the full range of live events, cinema and community activities.

She previously worked for NYCOS, Scotland’s youth singing organisation, where she led marketing campaigns for choir recruitment, concerts and education conferences, and played a key role in delivering digital projects throughout the pandemic. Her earlier roles include positions with Out of the Darkness Theatre Company, Aberdeen Box Office (His Majesty’s Theatre, Music Hall, and the Lemon Tree), Northern Ireland Opera and the Queen’s Film Theatre, Belfast. She holds an MA in Arts Management from Queen’s University Belfast.

Rachel is also a pianist and Music graduate from the University of Aberdeen. She plays clarinet and saxophone in Glasgow-based bands including Glasgow Community Concert Band and the boisterous SambaYaBamba.

Laura has a BA Honours Degree in Festival, Events and Hospitality management and brings a wealth of first-class customer service experience gained from twelve years’ experience working at The Gleneagles Hotel and Hilton Hotels in Front of House and Guest Experience Management roles.

Laura is also an Associate member with the Scottish Dance Teachers Alliance. Dancing has always been a passion of hers from the age of three years old. Laura trained in Highland, Tap, Ballet and Jazz. She has had many amazing opportunities through dancing. She was a performer in the opening ceremony of the Glasgow Commonwealth games in 2014 and has travelled all over including the St Gallen Tattoo in Switzerland.

Being from Cumbernauld Laura is looking forward to her role in leading the Front of House Team here at Lanternhouse.

Joanna brings a wide range of experience in finance to her role as Senior Finance Officer, where she meticulously oversees financial operations with an organised and methodical approach. A qualified Bookkeeper, Joanna’s background in finance spans the visual arts, social enterprises and charities. She has a passion for the arts, holding a BA Honours degree in Fine Art: Painting and Printmaking from The Glasgow School of Art. She cultivated a love for moving image and performance during an exchange at the Alberta College of Art and Design, Canada.

Joanna has also worked extensively in the rape crisis network in central Scotland, delivering crisis and ongoing support, and organising community events. She specialised in supporting survivors navigating the criminal justice system, and the asylum system, and she remains dedicated to anti-discrimination and mental health awareness. As the manager of our finance team, she is committed to socially engaged practice, and using her experience to support organisations to thrive.

Karen works part-time as Finance Officer alongside Joanna and Jeanette. Her main role includes assisting with processing purchase and sales invoices, reconciling all theatre income, bank reconciliations and helping with other quarterly and annual accounting procedures.

Karen has a BA in Accounting from University of The West of Scotland and has over thirty years experience in various finance roles, mainly in the Financial Services sector. She also spent seven years at a Chartered Accountants until April 2022, when, post-covid, she decided to take the plunge and set up her own business as a self-employed bookkeeper. Karen became a fully qualified member of ICB (Institute of Certified Bookkeepers) in January 2022. In addition to working at Cumbernauld Theatre, she currently takes on bookkeeping work from a wide range of industries – including IT, Haulage, Estate Agents and many local charity organisations.

Karen enjoys live music and loves coming to the Theatre to see a variety of shows.

Jeanette started at our previous home in the Cottage Theatre in 1997, initially working in the box office where she enjoyed the fast pace of the busy show schedule and getting to know customers. Thereafter, Jeanette moved into finance and administration and has enjoyed learning some new skills. Over the years Jeanette has made a lot of happy memories and good friends working at Cumbernauld Theatre.

Isabelle joined the Lanternhouse team in 2022 as a Venue Assistant and has since progressed through roles as Admin Assistant, Duty Supervisor, and now serves as Management Assistant in a newly created position.

In her current role, Isabelle provides essential support to the management team across Programming, Finance, HR, Marketing, Front of House, and Community Engagement. Before working in the arts, she gained experience across various sectors, including retail, hospitality and hotels.

Outside of work, Isabelle is an enthusiastic hillwalker with a strong interest in fitness. She also enjoys attending Lanternhouse Cinema to experience live theatre and ballet from around the world.