Tom Payne
Co Artistic Director @Doppelgangster
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WORK HISTORY
Co Artistic Director @Doppelgangster
Sheffield, GB
I co-lead Doppelgangster, a UK/Australian performance company known for experimental, often digital work on climate and social justice. The role combines artistic direction, company strategy and partnership-building across the UK, Europe and Australia.Key responsibilities and impactArtistic and organisational leadership: Shape the company’s artistic vision, repertoire and risk profile, co-directing projects that use ecological performance to address urgent social and climate questions.Major projects and international profile: Created and toured works in partnership with organisations such as National Theatre Wales, Arts House Victoria and Cape Farewell, with presentations in contexts including COP21 and international festivals.Strategic partnerships and commissioning: Build relationships with theatres, festivals, universities and funders, securing co-commissions and residencies that extend Doppelgangster’s artistic and civic reach.Fundraising and business model: Lead on fundraising strategy, bid-writing and financial planning, ensuring the company’s viability and compliance while supporting ambitious artistic work.Talent development and mentoring: Design and deliver schemes such as the Deep Water mentoring programme, working with emerging artists and students from institutions including Sheffield Hallam and La Trobe to develop new ecological performance practices.My work with Doppelgangster and its civic and ecological focus led to my election as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA).
EDUCATION
Prifysgol Aberystwyth University
Master of Arts (M.A.), Practising Performance
Prifysgol Aberystwyth University
Bachelor of Arts (B.A.), Theatre, Film and Television
University of Wales, College Newport
Post Graduate Certificate of Education (post-compulsory)
Prifysgol Aberystwyth University
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Theatre and Performance
SKILLS
ABOUT TOM PAYNE
I build civic and climate performance programmes through strategic partnerships between universities, cultural institutions and cities. I am Senior Lecturer in Performance and Course Leader for BA Acting & Performance at Sheffield Hallam University and Founder of Moot Works, a studio for arts, ecology and community. My work joins curriculum design, research and public projects, leading the Acting & Performance course and developing city-facing work with partners including Sheffield Theatres and the Future Now Festival of Creativity.As an AdvancedHE Registered External Examiner and Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA), I contribute to sector benchmarks and programme design. I examine at Rose Bruford College and Mountview and served on the QAA Subject Benchmark Statement review group for Dance, Drama and Performance (2024), focusing on environmental and civic responsibility in performance training.Through the Sheffield Creative Industries Institute and Moot Works, I lead projects such as Ark and Storm-Cloud with partners across the UK and internationally, including Sheffield Theatres, Sheffield Museums (Ruskin Collection) and Bradford 2025: UK City of Culture, with support from institutions such as the Sorbonne and Keio University in Tokyo. These programmes use performance, conversation and public gathering to address the climate crisis and social justice in specific places and communities.As Co-Director of Doppelgangster, a UK/Australian company recognised for experimental ecological performance, I have collaborated with organisations such as National Theatre Wales and Arts House Victoria, and presented work and lectures at the Universities of Melbourne and Aberystwyth and the University of Alcalá (Madrid). I also lead the Rapid Response programme with Migration Matters Festival and The Making Room at Sheffield Theatres, supporting artists working at the intersection of climate, migration and justice.Since 2023 I have served on the Board of Forced Entertainment, the International Ibsen Award–winning company, where I act as Environmental Champion and contribute to organisational strategy and sector leadership.I work with universities, festivals, funders and city partners who want to build ecologically engaged performance programmes with civic reach, and am particularly interested in institute-level strategic roles that join teaching, research and public engagement, including Associate Professor and programme or portfolio leadership posts.
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