About us

Our staff

Youth Arts Leicestershire is led on behalf of the Management Committee by Robert Staunton (Artistic Director), Jim Dutton (Technical Director), and Rachael Morton Riley (Administrator).

Robert Staunton - Artistic Director of Youth Arts - has a career that spans teaching within the secondary phase of education, at a boy’s secondary and a comprehensive school as a Drama specialist. A second stage was as an Advisory Teacher and Curriculum Adviser for Drama and Dance to Leicestershire Education Committee before establishing Youth Arts as an independent yet educationally focused provision.

During that career Robert, has been a member of the Schools Council Drama Panel, a member of the East midlands Examining Board and the Midlands Examination Group as well as setting up the framework for the original Mode 111 G.C.S.E. Drama examination which many of the City and County Schools used as their preferred drama examination.

Over the years Robert has directed productions with young people that have been seen from Bulgaria to St. Petersburg, from Kiev to Stuttgart and many places between as well as in Leicestershire at the Haymarket Theatre, The Phoenix Arts Centre, the 'Y' Theatre and the Charnwood Theatre.

Over time Robert has worked across the age range, with both professionals and amateurs – on bringing an ensemble and inclusive perspective when working on existing and devised scripts. He has also been able to use the skills of the drama practitioner in the service of young people in workshop situations as they grapple with the social, art form and content skills and learning that have to be achieved when working in an open and creative manner.

As a writer he has provided original scripts for the Schools Theatre Company as well as for Youth Theatres, some of which have been published. Robert has a belief in young people and a steadfast commitment to drama as a route to them growing. For many a sustained drama experience at Youth Theatre level is an experience that will not be forgotten and could be said to have been part of transforming their lives.