Sam Bain


Hello. I’m a theatre producer, programmer, and arts leader with over 20 years’ experience working across venues, festivals, touring, and artist-facing programming in the UK.

I currently work as Head of Programming & Producing at Norwich Theatre, leading artistic programming and producing across its three venues. Across my career I’ve worked in venue operations, marketing and PR, programming, producing, and festival curation, holding senior roles across the UK including public-facing leadership of some of the country’s busiest touring venues.

I’ve worked at and with the Edinburgh Festival Fringe since 2010 as a venue programmer, producer, and artist support lead. After moving to Edinburgh in 2014, I joined the Fringe Society, working across programme and participant support before going on to run Fringe Central, the festival’s artist and industry hub. This gave me a detailed, ground-level understanding of the Edinburgh Fringe ecology, how artists, venues, industry, and media navigate the Fringe, and how work builds visibility and momentum within the festival.

Alongside programming and producing for Norwich Theatre, I support the development of small- and mid-scale theatre that is playful, emotionally resonant work with strong audience connection and the potential to develop beyond the Fringe.

My work combines artistic judgement, strategic thinking, and practical delivery, with a focus on helping ambitious work find its audience and grow beyond its starting point.