Ruth McGowan

Artistic director & CEO

Ruth joined the Dublin Fringe Festival team as Programme Manager in 2015, supporting hundreds of artists and ideas annually through FRINGE LAB workshops, artist development initiatives and one-on-one consultations. She took on the role of Artistic Director & CEO in 2018.

As a dramaturg, programmer and producer, Ruth has been building creative partnerships, leading talent development programmes and championing new work across performance disciplines since 2009. She has produced world premieres in festival fields, above pubs, and in historic theatres from Letterkenny to the Lower East Side.

In her early career, Ruth worked in new play development at Atlantic Theatre Company and The Public Theatre (New York), before joining the Abbey Theatre Literary Department in 2011 supporting the development of new work for the Abbey and Peacock stages and facilitating engagement opportunities for emerging voices.

She was awarded the Lennox Robinson Bursary in 2013 to research innovative production models for the presentation of new work at Steppenwolf (Chicago). She holds a B.Ed with English from St Patrick's College, Drumcondra and an M.Phil in Theatre and Performance from Trinity College Dublin. 

ruth[at]fringefest.com
@ruthmcgowan