Audiences NI Board
Eileen Mullan (Chair)
Eileen Mullan is a Governance Specialist with Strictly Boardroom, a company uniquely specialising in 'building brilliant boards'. Eileen holds an MSc in Management and Corporate Governance, holds GradICSA, and was awarded by the Ulster Business School the First Trust Bank Cup for outstanding achievement. With 14 years experience she is acutely aware of the challenges presented by board membership.
Her current board positions include a Trustee with Age NI, Independent Board Member with the Northern Ireland Environment Agency and Company Secretary with Ormeau Baths Gallery.'Get On Board', the first accredited programme in the UK, was created by Eileen specifically to break down barriers and provide professional preparation for board life. Eileen is the author of 'board appointment or board disappointment' that explored whether the appointment of board members brings added value to the governance of boards in the public and not for profit sectors.
On the 1st April 2011, Eileen became Chair of Audiences NI.
Tony McCance (Vice Chair)
Tony McCance is Manager at the Burnavon Arts & Cultural Centre, which acts as a catalyst for the development of the arts within Mid Ulster. As a community focused arts and cultural resource, the facility caters to the arts and cultural needs and aspirations of the inhabitants of the Cookstown District and the greater Mid Ulster region. He is a Board member of the Association of Regional Theatres Northern Ireland (ART NI) and a member of the Northern Ireland Theatre Association as well as the Arts Marketing Association.
Mary Canny
Mary Canny FCCA is an Associate Lecturer in Accounting at the School of Business and Management for the University of Ulster. She currently also lectures part-time at Queen's University, delivering accounting courses on the MBA and MSc in Management Programmes and is an Examiner on Corporate Reporting for Certified Public Accountants in Ireland.
Mary is experienced in providing accounting and business advice to small and medium sized businesses, and conducting research into governance and regeneration.
Lydia Gamble
Lydia is responsible for overseeing the marketing, development and education and outreach functions at the Ulster Orchestra. Lydia joined the Ulster Orchestra in June 2008 having previously spent seven years in the Economic Development Sector in Northern Ireland. Lydia was a Business Development Manager at Castlereagh Enterprises Ltd (Local Enterprise Agency). Lydia was also instrumental in the set up and growth of the business network Business for Business (B4B) which supports the networking and development of SMEs in Northern Ireland.
Brenda Kent
Brenda runs the Arts and Disability Equality Charter, a quality standard for access to the arts. Prior to this she was Chief Officer of Voluntary Arts Ireland, the charitable body promoting participation in arts and crafts across Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
She has extensive research, marketing, management and fundraising experience, having worked with the Integrated Education Fund, the Prince’s Trust, the Northern Ireland Council for Voluntary Action and the Simon Community.
Brenda has also worked in advertising and PR and, in the arts, has worked with a wide range of organisations, from opera to theatre, visual to community arts and a range of local government arts fora.
Her voluntary and paid roles have covered community development, housing, Music Theatre, Travellers’, opera, homelessness, music promotion, counselling, new businesses and governance.
Áine McVerry
Áine is currently employed by the Old Museum Arts Centre as Director of Marketing and Development for The MAC, Belfast's new purpose-built multi-million pound arts centre in the Cathedral Quarter which opened its doors in April 2012. Áine has been with Old Museum Arts Centre since 2004, when she joined as Marketing Manager, in September 2006 she moved into the role of Deputy Director with the responsibility for programming OMAC's live events.Previous to this, Áine worked in marketing and fundraising for an international charity. She has also been the Chair of the Belfast Arts Marketing Group. Áine is an English Literature graduate with a MSC in Communication, Advertising, and Public Relations.
Walter Rader
Walter Rader has over thirty years experience of working with communities across Northern Ireland in both the public and voluntary & community sectors. Walter is the Director of the recently launched RaderSolutions. During his youth work career Walter successfully introduced many young people and communities to arts activities. He ran his own community production company, was stage manager with Belfast Operatic Company and through Community Service Volunteers worked with BBCNI Youth Programmes Unit. Walter has extensive experience of European and Lottery funding programmes, having established one of the first Intermediary Funding Bodies as part of the EU Peace One programme and then as Director NI of Big Lottery Fund. Walter is an experienced trainer and facilitator having developed and delivered media and communications initiatives for grant recipients and communities projects. In 2010 Walter was awarded the OBE for Services to the Community in Northern Ireland.
Mary Trainor-Nagele
Mary has worked in marketing for the arts and the business sector for over ten years. Arts marketing roles in Northern Ireland have included five years with the Grand Opera House, where she set up and headed the marketing function, marketing for the Arts Theatre heading up the marketing departments of both the Lyric Theatre and Ulster Orchestra. She is currently Northern Ireland Director of Arts & Business.
Sonya Whitefield
As Arts Development Officer with Arts Council of NI, Sonya serves as Observer from the Agency's principal funding body.
