Arts and Culture Trust in SA appoints Jessica Denyschen as CEO

Denyschen served as the interim CEO of the trust from November 2021 to March 2023 when she was officially offered the position of CEO by the board of trustees.

“The ACT board is enormously grateful for Jessica Denyschen’s contribution thus far as the interim CEO,” ACT board chairperson Arthur Nkuna said. “Under Jessica’s stewardship, ACT has managed to overcome some challenging change reforms in the organisation.

“Jessica has a well-rounded knowledge of the creative industry, proven strategic capabilities, strong operational performance, and a clear ability to build and lead teams. The organisation has a lot of work ahead, therefore we as the board have no doubt that ACT is in the right hands with Jessica as its CEO for the next phase of its growth.”

Denyschen is a young, experienced arts administrator, practitioner and entrepreneur who joined ACT as communications and marketing coordinator in 2020. As an active participant in the development of ACT’s strategic plan, which was launched in April 2021, she helped to shape the future of the organisation.

“It’s been an honour serving the trust as interim CEO and I am excited to be continuing the journey as CEO,” she said. “Nurturing young leaders is critical in our society and the confidence and good faith that the board has expressed in my leadership is truly humbling.”

In 2015, Denyschen received an honorary ACT ImpACT Award for her contribution to dance in South Africa, which was a first-of-its-kind accolade in the history of the trust. Fast track to 2021, under the leadership of former ACT CEO Marcus Desando, as communications and marketing coordinator of the trust at the time, Denyschen was entrusted with the responsibility of working closely with Desando to oversee a succession plan of her stepping into the role of interim CEO.

“My journey with the trust started in 2015 and it’s an incredible testament to the important work the trust does in serving and nurturing the arts and culture sector that I now step into this role,” Denyschen said.

“I feel proud to be representing queer woman leadership and take up this role with dedication and determination to continue and grow the good and impactful work the trust does. I am excited to be carving a new vision and path for the trust, one that is dedicated to finding solutions for sustainability and committed to enabling arts and culture practitioners to achieve sustainable livelihoods.”

Besides ACT, Denyschen runs her own non-profit arts organisation, the Ar(t)chive NPC, which was co-founded in 2010 with veteran dance critic Adrienne Sichel. For more than a decade, the Ar(t)chive NPC has pioneered the archiving of South African dance history and produced colloquia and publications for researchers around the world.