An arts administrator and performer from St. John’s, Newfoundland, Robin Whiffen was appointed as Against the Grain Theatre's first Executive Director in September 2019 after spending three seasons with Opera on the Avalon. Inspired by a lifelong love of music, Robin is passionate about creating opportunities for all to see themselves reflected through opera and removing the barriers of entry that make opera inaccessible to many. Robin is a Master of Business Administration candidate at Memorial University of Newfoundland and holds a Bachelor of Music in Voice Performance from The University of Toronto. In April 2021, Robin was selected to participate in the Business/Arts Executive Leadership Program which provides mentorship and career development for those who are interested in leading large arts, culture and heritage institutions. In 2017, she represented the Association for Opera in Canada at the OPERA America Leadership Intensive in New York City and has been invited to speak internationally in her capacity as an arts leader and ambassador. Robin respectfully acknowledges the land where she learned as an artist and administrator as the unceded, traditional territory of the Beothuk and the Mi'kmaq peoples. She currently resides in Toronto which is the traditional territory of many nations including the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnabeg, the Chippewa, the Haudenosaunee and the Wendat peoples and is now home to many diverse First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples.