I have spent my last few days as CEO of the Gate following the daily updates from the Artemis II mission and gazing at the moon, in awe of what can be made possible if enough people work together in service of something larger than themselves. You would think that might be as far as I could stretch the comparison, but I genuinely think that Gate Joy might be my version of Moon Joy. I often find myself looking on in wonderment at what we have achieved together.

My Gate mission started with an ITC conference, stepping in last minute for our Chair on the first panel of the day, before my post had even been announced. In a room of my peers, I was welcomed with words of encouragement and offers of solidarity. I perhaps didn’t realise how much I might need them at the time. I spoke about good governance, crisis management and the value of the arts, leaning on words that were not my own. I now have lots of words of my own, of lessons learned and calls to action. The Gate has taught me how important it is to say these words out loud, repeatedly and with your whole chest: access to the arts is a human right and it should be valued as such – through funding, through infrastructure, through education.

Since that day, we have been through some extreme trials: exiting the NPO, leaving the building behind, team changes and cashflow pressures. It has been hard. Space is at a premium, competition for funds is fierce and need outstrips resource time and time again. We have been fuelled by the belief in the mission; making the world a better place by telling stories. Building communities. Sharing resources. Asking questions. Seeking out joy. We do what we can, with what we have. The theatre we have made has been in turns powerful, heartbreaking, galvanising and hopeful.

Bootycandy was a hell of a way to come out swinging. I have never before (or since) seen a review upgraded to 5 stars (from the original 4) between upload and print, and I will forever be astounded by the generosity and talent of Tatenda Shamiso stepping in to cover, in wig no less.

Wish You Were Here was a celebration of female friendship and agency, bringing together those who have left their home with those who stayed behind. The Middle Eastern Mothers of London came out for us and our audience postcards were filled with heartfelt messages of mourning and memory.

Flashes of Scenes from the Climate Era will stay with me always: the little shrugging of wings from Nathan the Goshawk, the wide-eyed excitement of an illegal cat, the sound of an osprey in the distance, the alternative use for a lentil. It was a show about the whole world. The kind of story you can only tell through theatre.

The Gate has always been held together by belief; far more art than science. We tell international stories to better understand the world, and by doing so, find connections with each other. This incredible team work so hard and the care, the skill and the diligence that the Gate team bring to every project whether full scale production or artist surgery, a masterclass or R&D is clear from every single interaction I’ve had with artist or audience. You should be so lucky to experience Gate Joy. If we could bottle it to sell, the Gate’s future would be a lock.

When the Wright Brothers flew that first plane, they only stayed in the air for 11 seconds. 11 seconds changed the world, birthed the entire aviation industry, made history and eventually led us to the Moon. I got to fly the Gate for three and a half years. What a thing to have done. Amaze, amaze, amaze.