Stage shakeup: Artistic director has held post for seven years. Pic: © Tom Brogan/flickr
The artistic director of Glasgow's Citizens Theatre has quit his post.
Jeremy Raison, who has held the post at the theatre for the past seven years, left the building on Friday.
It is expected that Guy Hollands, his co-artistic director, will also revert to his former post as artistic director of TAG, the community based theatre company that operates out of the Citizens. He is currently acting artistic director.
TAG lost its separate identity in 2006 when the two companies were joined together but the move has not helped the identity of either organisation.
The chairman of the theatre board, Roderick McPherson, is also standing down.
The move represents effectively a boardroom coup reflecting dissatisfaction with the output of the theatre and widespread unease in the theatre business that the Citizens was a shadow of the powerhouse it once was under the directorship of Giles Havergal, Philip Prowse and Robert David MacDonald.
However, in an e-mail message, Mr Raison defended his record, staunchly pointing out that the Citizens was "about to celebrate its first West End transfer in nearly 20 years ... and that the theatre has just made its highest ever box office income and reached a decade high audience after a steady build during my directorship". He also cited a number of awards and nominations the theatre had won under his directorship.
He blamed his move on a funding standstill and the threat of yet another review from the new Creative Scotland, which would affect all theatres in Scotland. Mr Raison said he was looking forward to "resuming my film and television work, and my writing".
He will return to direct a new production of A Clockwork Orange scheduled for the theatre's autumn season.
