Central is pleased to announce appointments to its Independent Equity Committee, an independent membership body formed of Black and Global Majority industry professional and academics with experience and expertise in anti-racist leadership in arts and/ or education.

The Committee will provide expertise and oversight of Central’s anti-racist commitments as set out in its Anti-Racism Action Plan, will be independent and accountable, will meet termly and will report to the School’s Governing Body.

The newly appointed members of Central’s Independent Equity Committee are:

Tracy Ifeachor – International working Actor, Founder of Simulate Roleplay, Central Alumna, Visiting Lecturer and Audition Panelist

Alby James OBE – Writer, Director, CEO& Creative Producer of Dramatic Encounters, Consultant for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion in the Arts and Media and former Artistic Director of Temba Theatre Company

Dr Sharrell D. Luckett – Associate Professor of Drama and Performance Studies at the University of Cincinnati, Executive Director of the Black Acting Methods Studio, Director of the Helen Weinberger Center for Drama and Playwriting at UC, Faculty Collaborator at the College-Conservatory of Music, and Affiliate Faculty of Africana Studies and Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies.

Prema Mehta – Theatre Lighting Designer, Young Vic Artistic Associate, Freelancers Make Theatre Work, Executive team at ALD and Founder of Stage Sight

Kerry Kyriacos Michael MBE – Founder of independent production house Kyriacos And Company.  Diversity Consultant and former Artistic Director and CEO of the Theatre Royal Stratford East.

Dr Royona Mitra – Associate Dean of Equality and Diversity in the College of Business, Arts and Social Sciences, and Reader in Dance and Performance Cultures at Brunel University London

Prof. David Román– Professor in the Department of English and the Department of American Studies and Ethnicity at the University of Southern California

Nazli Tabatabai-Khatambakhsh – Multi Award-Winning Interdisciplinary Auteur, Scholar and Advisor and International Society for the Performing Arts Fellow

Matthew Xia – Artistic Director of Actors Touring Company, an Associate Artist at the Nottingham Playhouse, Founding member of Act For Change, Trustee at Cardboard Citizen and Artistic Directors of the Future, and Honorary Doctorate recipient from the University of the Arts London.

Applications to the Committee were reviewed by a panel consisting of Parker Hollants(Student Union President, The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama), Dr Zainab Khan(Pro Vice-Chancellor Outcomes and Inclusion, London Metropolitan University), Anne Mensah (Chair of the Central Governing Body Diversity and Inclusion Committee & Vice President, Original Series at Netflix), Monica Rose (Student Union Black and Minority Ethnic Officer/Race Equality Student Ambassador, The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama), and Professor Harvey Young (Dean, College of Fine Arts, Boston University).