CHANGE is afoot at York Theatre Royal with the announcement that Tom Bird will be leaving Shakespeare's Globe to take over as executive director from December.

One constant, however, is Damian Cruden, who is marking his 20th year as artistic director: a tenure unrivalled among his peers at Britain's regional producing houses.

The Scotsman began with the work of a Yorkshireman: Alan Bennett's Habeas Corpus. "I came here just after Tony Blair was elected. Things Can Only Get Better and all that!" he says, lifting his eyes heavenwards.

And did they get better? "For the theatre world? I hope so," says Damian, whose latest show, Robin Hood: The Arrow Of Destiny, co-directed with Suzann McLean, has just opened in the refurbished main house.

"Within a year of getting here, people asked me, 'so, where are you going next?', but I've never quite understood that. People still say, 'isn't it time you moved on?', but what is this notion that everyone would be better somewhere else?

"The thing that has always interested me is how to create a cultural organisation in this historic theatre that is sustainable and valuable inside the community, addressing the need for culture in the community and how to satisfy what people want.

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Damian Cruden: "What is this notion that everyone would be better somewhere else?"

"That's a very complex thing to construct and something we wrestle with all the time. Who's it for? How do you make it for everyone? How do you define cultural need? What do we mean by audience development?"

Looking back to 1997, Damian says: "Twenty years ago, no-one talked about diversity. When I came here there was hardly anything for young people in the programme or in the building, and we had to change that," he says.

"Still the challenge is to make this theatre sustainable for the long term and we're still to find the answer to that, especially when there has been the gradual process of the local authority withdrawing [project] funding from the arts. We get money from the Arts Council and that's it. The rest comes through trusts, foundations, fundraising and people donating money. I don't think councillors think there's a vote in it, so I don't think they're bothered about funding theatres."

Damian is proud above all else of the Theatre Royal's community productions, be it the 2012 York Mystery Plays in the Museum Gardens in a co-production with Riding Lights; Blood + Chocolate in 2013 on the streets of York in tandem with Pilot Theatre and Leeds company Slung Low; In Fog And Falling Snow at the National Railway Museum in 2015 or this summer's Everything Is Possible: The York Suffragettes with Pilot Theatre at the Theatre Royal.

"I think our community plays and community players have done more for the well-being of culture in our city than any amount of money could do for it. In 20 years, I am proud of many things: proud of our youth theatre; the TakeOver Festival run by young people aged under 26; the community plays; our commitment to the city of York," he says.

"I don't believe we could have embedded York Theatre Royal in the community had I only been here for three years. The commitment I have to this place is through my family, through living here and through the privilege of enjoying being part of this community, and there is nowhere like York.

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Ferdinand Kingsley as God and Jesus in the 2012 York Mystery Plays in Museum Gardens: Damian Cruden's favourite production

"The city gifts us a lot as artists; it doesn't bend to us, we bend to it, and we hope to put on a programme as diverse as possible, as we encourage people to be active in the process of making theatre here."

Looking to the future, in a theatre that has benefited from a £6.1 million redevelopment programme on stage and off, Damian says: "We have to look at what kind of creative space we want to make work in, to serve the broader community, and to bring artists of note to the city too. We also want to make clear that the cultural arts are vital to York and bring so much with them.

"You need to diversify the strands of income and we need to invest in the future. Having young people come to the theatre is an investment and understanding that is really critical. That's why the community plays, with young people involved, are the defining element of the work we do. They're becoming the DNA of the community.

"If I set out to do anything, I've had to learn over the years, I've had to grope my way through things to find out what works, and I know the future must be about improving the theatre's sustainability, not only financially but also in emphasising the need for culture in people's lives. Community plays will absolutely be at the core of what this theatre is about. I'm truly proud to call the Theatre Royal a community theatre: more 'citizen', less 'Royal'."

As for Damian's own position: "I am staying here. I'm committed to this theatre," he says. "My role may change a little; I might direct a little less. We'll look at this once the new executive director arrives, planning the future with new energy and different desires."

Robin Hood: The Arrow Of Destiny runs at York Theatre Royal until September 2. Box office: 01904 623568 or at yorktheatreroyal.co.uk

Did you know?

Damian Cruden's favourite production of his 20 years as York Theatre Royal's artistic director was the 2012 York Mystery Plays “because they encompassed everything about community and theatre”.