The Arts Club Theatre Company has announced its new executive director is Peter Cathie White, after a five-month, Canada-wide search process to replace the outgoing Howard Jang.

Cathie White has spent 12 years with the Arts Club, most recently as director of sales and marketing. Under his leadership, the company has seen unprecedented subscription growth, and the cementing of the Arts Club as one of Canada’s healthiest, most enduring arts organizations.

“The Arts Club has always been a place of great vision, with over 50 years of creating great locally-produced theatre for this community. So it is with great pride that I accept the Executive Director role of this not-for-profit theatre company that has motivated and inspired me for over a decade,”  Cathie White said in a press statement today. “I’m excited for the challenges and rewards this role will bring as we expand our vision to ensure our viability and stability for the next 50 years, and continue our legacy as a home for local artists.”

Cathie White will lead the company as it moves into its new facilities on Southeast False Creek. It and Bard on the Beach are new tenants in a "theatrical hub" slated for the first and second levels of two condo towers at 162 West 1st Avenue.

“Peter brings to the position a fierce commitment as well as a fresh perspective as we go forward into our sixth decade,” said Bill Millerd, artistic managing director, said in the statement.

Jang has accepted a position at Simon Fraser University as the director of the SFU Woodward’s Cultural Unit and a professor of professional practice in the School of Contemporary Arts.