We are pleased to announce Beau Hopkins as our new Director of Performing Arts.

Mr Hopkins studied modern languages at Oxford University, before obtaining an MA and later a PhD in Poetry and Creative Writing from the University of East Anglia. For the last few years, he has worked as a professional playwright, director and artistic director, developing innovative and daring theatre projects across the UK. In 2022, he founded his own theatre company based in Great Yarmouth, Contemporary Ritual Theatre, which has spent the last 18 months touring SALT, which he wrote and directed, giving 60 performances at over 20 venues across the UK, from the Isle of Wight to the Shetland Islands. In 2026, the play came to the Riverside Studios in London, where it received an Assessors’ Choice Award from the Off West End Awards body.

Speaking about his new appointment, Mr Hopkins commented,

“I am extremely excited to bring my passion and experience to the role of Director of Performing Arts, and cannot wait to begin nurturing our pupils’ creativity, developing their skills and confidence, and fostering their passion for performing arts.

My aim is to develop Gresham’s into a regional powerhouse for performing arts, centred on the values of daring, inventiveness, rigor, collaboration and excellence. I want to help all our pupils realise what they are capable of, and, for those who wish to pursue their studies and training, to create pathways into careers in the performing arts and creative industries.“

We are very excited to welcome Mr Hopkins on board and to see the Drama Department enhance further under his leadership.