Vanessa is a curator, producer and facilitator who specialises in collaborating with young people to develop ways of using art as a force for good in their lives. As Participation Manager at Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts, she guides Mountview’s work with and for young people and community and teaches on two of the MA degree programmes. As an Ambassador at Theatre Peckham, Vanessa has co-curated the last two Peckham Fringe festivals and, most recently, produced the engagement elements of a project about Theatre Peckham’s rich community heritage. As part of the 24/25 Space for Change cohort at A New Direction, Vanessa is committed to collaborating with other participatory arts leaders to establish actionable routes into developing equitable creative career pathways for the next generation.
Vanessa has a BA degree in English and Philosophy and an MA degree in Anglo-Irish Literature and Drama from University College Dublin. In 2023 she graduated with a distinction from the MA in Theatre for Community and Education at Mountview. Her dissertation research centred around the use of forum theatre and co-creation to deconstruct and examine concepts like influence with young people, thereby co-creating space for them to rehearse for life.