49. Stuart Griffiths, Birmingham Hippodrome

After taking a degree in Philosophy at Leicester University, Stuart Griffiths began his career in theatre management at the Beck Theatre in West London.

In 1992 he took over the brand new Swan Theatre in High Wycombe, a large-scale venue with a broad and mixed programme of drama, dance and music which, over the following 10 years, developed a national and international reputation for its ambitious dance programme.

Moving to the Hippodrome in 2002, he took over a theatre which had just emerged from a £40 million redevelopment as one of the best-equipped theatre complexes in Europe, but with financial problems arising from the unexpectedly protracted period of closure.

As well as successfully repairing the Hippodrome's finances and rebuilding its audience, he has gone on to build on his previous work at the Swan to develop an international contemporary dance programme.

Alongside the Birmingham Royal Ballet and the activities of the DanceXChange, which is housed within the Hippodrome complex, this has helped to develop the Hippodrome's reputation as one of the country's strongest dance venues.

This moved on to a new level earlier this year with the launch of the first International Dance Festival, which he jointly directed with David Massingham, artistic director of the DanceXchange. The first festival was regarded as a success and it is planned to become a biennial event.

Stuart Griffiths is also a founder member and chair of the Dance Touring Consortium, an alliance of 20 leading UK theatres dedicated to the presentation of international dance.

He is a board member of a number of other arts organisations, including Birmingham's contemporary live art festival Fierce! and One from the Heart Productions.