Black is the New White

Queensland Theatre presents a Sydney Theatre Company production

By Nakkiah Lui

1 — 17 February

The 2018 Season transports us to places we wouldn’t otherwise encounter (or even imagine). The eight plays traverse centuries of time, the breadth of our country, the expanse of the globe, and the inner workings of diverse and brilliant minds.

In the coming year, you can be at the centre of a food fight at the Christmas dinner from Hell, evade pursuers across the Scottish Highlands, wrestle with a Kafkaesque bureaucracy in Tehran, help solve a 1960s murder mystery in the Western Australian Wheatbelt, become entangled in a 17th Century scientific feud, or sing melancholy love songs to the exotic Duke of a mythical realm.

Be part of the magic of theatre. Be part of the 2018 Season at Queensland Theatre.

Sam Strong Artistic Director

1 — 17 Feb

24 Feb — 24 Mar

A razor sharp rom-com that blends Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner with Meet the Fockers

Tongue-in-cheek noir thrills as four actors deliver hundreds of characters and thousands of laughs

In-law Xmas

Food Fight

Prada

Riotous

Skulduggery

Farce

Ways to book Call us Order by calling us 9:30am-5pm, Mon to Fri Freecall 1800 355 528

Drop in Queensland Theatre Administration 78 Montague Road, South Brisbane

Jump online Book online at queenslandtheatre.com.au Or email us mail@queenslandtheatre.com.au

Mail us Queensland Theatre Season Ticketing Team PO Box 3310, South Brisbane, QLD 4101

28 Apr — 19 May

26 May — 23 Jun

Tim Finn writes new songs for Shakespeare’s dark comedy

One football club, one family, and one unforgettable NRL grand final

Autumnal

Classic

Gender Bender

Queenslander

JT

Take the team

12 — 28 Jul

28 Jul — 18 Aug

An irreverent but tender memoir of a father, a son and a question of faith

The smash-hit stage adaptation of the classic Australian coming-of-age mystery

Not PC

Quarter-life Crisis

True Story

Australiana

Normie Rowe

Whodunnit

6 Oct — 3 Nov

10 Nov — 8 Dec

David Williamson meets Isaac Newton on the verge of his greatest scientific discovery

Ibsen’s fiercest leading lady lands poolside on the Gold Coast

Egos

Legends

Alchemy

Pistols

Glitter Strip

Underbelly

Synopsis This is a story of two Australian families – the Gibsons and the Smiths – brought together by love and money.

Charlotte Gibson is an Aboriginal lawyer with a growing media profile. Her father, Ray, was a prominent activist-turned-politician who has now retired, together with his wife Joan, to a comfortably upper middle class life. Their other daughter, Rose, is a successful fashion designer with her own brand and is married to former footballer, now banker, Sonny Jones.

Francis Smith is Charlotte Gibson’s fiancé and is an experimental classical composer. His father, Dennison, was a prominent conservative politician who has now retired, together with his wife Marie, to a comfortably upper middle class life.

It’s Christmas and the two families are about to meet at the Gibson family’s holiday home.

Nothing goes smoothly.

Black is the New White

By Nakkiah Lui

Directed by Paige Rattray VENUE

CAST

1 – 17 February Playhouse, QPAC

Tony Briggs....................................................... Ray Gibson Luke Carroll ........................................................... Narrator Vanessa Downing ........................................... Marie Smith

ATTENDANCE INFORMATION

Geoff Morrell ............................................ Dennison Smith

Black is the New White will run for approximately 2 hours 30 minutes, including a 20 minute interval.

Melodie Reynolds-Diarra .............................. Joan Gibson Shari Sebbens ........................................ Charlotte Gibson Tom Stokes ................................................... Francis Smith Miranda Tapsell ................................................ Rose Jones Anthony Taufa ................................................ Sonny Jones CREATIVES

WARNINGS This production contains coarse language, use of herbal cigarettes, brief nudity and drug use. The use of photographic or recording equipment is not permitted inside the theatre.

Cover Photo: Tim Jones

Paige Rattray ......................................................... Director

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY

Renée Mulder....................................................... Designer Ben Hughes ........................................... Lighting Designer Steve Toulmin...................... Composer & Sound Designer Charmian Gradwell............................ Voice & Text Coach CREW

Queensland Theatre would like to acknowledge the Jagera and Turrbal people who are the Traditional Custodians of this land. We would like to pay our respects to their Elders both past and present, and to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Todd Eichorn ............................................ Stage Manager

RECYCLE THIS PROGRAM

Vanessa Martin......................... Assistant Stage Manager

Support Greening Queensland Theatre and recycle this program after the performance in the recycling bins provided in the foyer.

Read the program before the show at queenslandtheatre.com.au

Black is the New White was originally commissioned by Sydney Theatre Company with the support of the Malcolm Robertson Foundation. Original production supported by the STC Donor Syndicate.

Production Sponsor

Queensland Theatre 78 Montague Road, South Brisbane, Queensland, 4101 Tel: 07 3010 7600 Fax: 07 3010 7699 Ticketing: 1800 355 528 mail@queenslandtheatre.com.au

Family Feud

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In-law Xmas

#leadingfromqld

Peter Andre

Food Fight

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Biggest audience ever - 190K 20 year subscriber high Highest selling show ever 55 theatres around world 12 regional QLD venues First Torres Strait Island show Gender parity writers directors 9631 young people 50 young actors in Logan 53% increase in donations 24,268 paid hours for actors

Welcome

Sam Strong Artistic Director

In 2017, I was lucky enough to see Black is the New White in its world premiere season at the Sydney Theatre Company. One moment in particular sticks in my memory.

At one point, Luke Carroll’s ridiculously charming narrator asked an audience member up to dance with him. It just so happened that the person he asked up was an actor who was watching the show that night, Miranda Tapsell.

This moment has endured because it embodies so much of what makes Black is the New White special. First, it is performed by a cast with charisma to burn - the sort of people you just want to be in a room with. Second, it is directed (by Queensland Theatre’s own Paige Rattray) with a sense of play and joy that makes it permissible to get up and dance. Finally, as well as being about a family, the show has been created by a family.

Anyone who has listened to their hit podcast, Pretty for An Aboriginal, will know that Miranda Tapsell and the writer of Black is the New White Nakkiah Lui are good friends. Not only that, they sit at the centre of a network of frequent collaborators. To cite but one example, this production has an overlap of at least five artists with last year’s hit, An Octoroon - Director Nakkiah Lui, Designers Renée Mulder and Ben Hughes, and Actors Melodie Reynolds-Diarra, Anthony Taufa and Shari Sebbens.

Why is this significant? Quite simply, it makes for better nights in the theatre for our audience.

The shorthand, freedom and safety that these artists have from working together frequently means they can be bolder, riskier and most

importantly, in the case of this perfectly pitched rom-com, funnier. As a theatre company the assembly of teams is one of the most important ways you can affect the quality of the art you create. We’re delighted to welcome so many artists in this production back together and back to Queensland Theatre.

And speaking of teams, you will be glad to know that Black is the New White has become even more of a family. In an amazing turn of events, Miranda Tapsell has now joined the cast in her own right, taking over from one of the original cast members who was unavailable for this season. Her joining this already hilarious team will no doubt make Black is the New White stick in the memories of a lot more people.

And finally a thank you. While the Brisbane Airport Corporation (BAC) Courtyard at our home theatre is under renovation, our long term supporters at the BAC have come on board as a Production Sponsor of Black is the New White. Bringing Brisbane audiences interstate hits like this show would not be possible without this sponsorship. So thank you to BAC for supporting the production (and all the artists who will make their way through your terminal to bring it to us).

Enjoy Sam

Shari Sebbens, Luke Caroll, Melodie Reynolds-Diarra, Tony Briggs and Tom Stokes

From our Production Sponsor Brisbane Airport Corporation is proud to support and celebrate flagship arts organisations across our city.

Since 2004, BAC has partnered with Queensland Theatre and many other arts organisations in a collaborative effort to promote and elevate culture, providing opportunities for the arts and artists to prosper.

Our Airport is the gateway to our city and our state, connecting millions of people each year. Queensland Theatre too connects people by engaging with renowned actors and nurturing local talent through a love of theatre.

As a proud partner of Queensland Theatre, Brisbane Airport Corporation is honoured to present Black is the New White.

This Nakkiah Lui production, directed by Paige Rattray, highlights Queensland Theater’s commitment to bringing excellent works of art to the community.

We hope you enjoy the show.

Julieanne Alroe, CEO & MD Brisbane Airport Corporation

Melodie Reynolds-Diarra, Tony Briggs, Miranda Tapsell, Tom Stokes, Shari Sebbens, Geoff Morrell and Anthony Taufa

Playwright’s Note “I wanted to write something for Aboriginal actors that didn’t have death in it … something instead that had hope and happiness in it.”

Nakkiah Lui Playwright

What inspired Black is the New White?

Black is the New White started for me as two separate conversations.

First, I had a conversation with a cousin of mine who is this fabulous, gorgeous young Aboriginal woman with her own business. She’s the epitome of an ‘Insta-mummy’. We were having a conversation one day and she started talking about her racial/political beliefs which were kind of akin to black separatism. I thought that was very interesting. I didn’t agree with her but I thought it was a really interesting conversation to be having with someone who is part of a new emerging Aboriginal middle-class, which is another thing I am very interested in. Within my own family, my Mum grew up in a tent and my Dad didn’t even use a proper toilet until he was ten. However, my sister and I are both universityeducated, we both live in inner-Sydney. Within just two generations in my family, there’s been a shift in those markers of class.

The second part came around the same time, when I looked at census results. Of Aboriginal people who were married, 74% were married to a non-Aboriginal person. I found this really interesting because compared to the United States and the United Kingdom, we don’t actually have high rates of interracial marriage. That statistic might also be inflated because people from lower socio-economic backgrounds don’t get married (weddings cost money). But it did intrigue me – who makes up this 74%?

So, I was interested in exploring modern Australia, in particular the Aboriginal community – how we identify ourselves in terms of our racial cultural background and then the intersection of that with class. What is it to be ‘successful’ as an Aboriginal person when you come from a community that

is so often politicised? Look at Aboriginal people like Adam Goodes, Nova Peris and Stan Grant who have risen to prominence in their field and become, inadvertently, political.

What then led you to turn it into a romantic comedy?

I really wanted to write something funny and warm. I have had two plays on since 2013 that have been quite intense tragedies. I wanted to create something that was just really warm and fun to write.

And when I’m writing a play, I usually hear the characters in my head. In this case, I had these two characters talking to me: Charlotte Gibson and Francis Smith. So I wrote the first scene, pretty much as it is now, about two lovers who met in London having a moment together before all hell breaks loose. For them, talking about race and class is almost like an aphrodisiac. And I just love a love story.

I also wanted to present a family of Aboriginal people that hasn’t been seen before in the Australian canon – not just in theatre, but in any form. That is, an Aboriginal family who have money, who are not oppressed but who are culturally quite strong. For me, that is quite similar to what I grew up with – a regular family which was political and culturally connected to their community. In the past ten years, my parents have started to become foodies and are into wine – just the idea of seeing Aboriginal people drink on stage in a way that isn’t politicised can become a statement in itself. So I wanted to put that forward – here is a family that is like yours. An Aboriginal family which I think would probably go to the theatre and go see this play.

What I love about theatre is that it’s a living organism. That aliveness is there in performance

but it’s also present and powerful in the creation of the work. I wanted to write something for Aboriginal actors that didn’t have death in it.

I’m guilty of that myself, most of what I have written has had death. This time, I wanted to write something that didn’t come from a place of sorrow or from oppression where the actors would have to rehash that intergenerational trauma all through rehearsals, relive their own experiences of oppression every single day. This was about something instead that had hope and happiness in it.

You’re an actor as well and you’ve performed in some of your work. Here, the character Charlotte Gibson bears a certain resemblance – after all, your dad’s name is Ray Gibson. Are these characters avatars or are they based on fragments of real people?

I’d say they’re fragments of people. I’m actually terrible at naming characters, so I tend to use names of people who are around me, and who have some kind of connection to that story.

I guess for me that must be organic and it’s actually really hard to make a name organic as a writer and it’s just part of the process, but I’ve not really thought of that before.

You would think that Charlotte is probably some kind of representation of me. I do write a lot about young, female lawyers (I studied Law). Having a character like that gives me freedom to write with that critical thinking and questioning that you acquire as a lawyer.

Tom Stokes

For Charlotte in Black is the New White, a lot of the things she believed about her father have been pulled out from under her and her sense of her identity, her privilege and her family history are challenged. She has to navigate and find out who she wants to be in this world without all of that. And find who she is as an Aboriginal woman with a non-Aboriginal partner. What does that mean for her culturally?

I’m very clear about the themes and the questions I want to address when starting a new work. I think that is probably the strongest representation of my voice. Sometimes it feels incredibly selfish to explore the questions you have about the world in such a public way but if I’m thinking about it, someone else must be too.

There are little traces of me, my family and the people I know in every character. The actors are in it too. If you get the casting right, the actors bring their characters to life in a way that you just want to keep writing for them. It’s actually really hard to stop. I wanted to keep

Miranda Tapsell

Melodie Reynolds-Diarra, Geoff Morrell, Tony Briggs

Melodie Reynolds-Diarra, Anthony Taufa, Tony Briggs

Shari Sebbens

writing dialogue because the characters and the actors were so great to work with.

Ray Gibson has my Dad’s name but is incredibly different to my Dad. They probably have the same sense of humour and the same grumpiness but my Dad’s an incredibly humble and intellectual man. The Joan character is named after my Mum and my grandmother and she actually reminds me of my Mum a lot.

While it is a play about race and class and the idea of how a community changes, it’s also very much a story about people who are in flux and have to accept change in their life and, unfortunately, we often seem to do that around Christmas time in front of everyone.

Alongside the examination of class and race there is also a generational gender divide in the play. For the younger generation, the women are very independent. But in the generation above, the women have played support act to their husbands.

Yes, I am very interested in talking about the male privilege that Aboriginal women haven’t been allowed access to. I think there are a lot of Aboriginal women who have done so much, who are the backbone of so many families and communities, who are never positioned as leaders. But I think there’s a new wave of feminism. Within my family, it’s very new. My Mother moved to Sydney when she was 16 to be a Nursing Assistant. She’s very smart but she was told that there’s no point in finishing Year 11 and 12 because she is Aboriginal. So she moved to Sydney to become a Nursing Assistant and then on to become a Nurse and continued her education as an adult. She’s even been nominated for an Australian of the Year Award. To me, she’s a feminist. But she never identified as a feminist. I do see a lot of older Aboriginal women doing that now, and I don’t think that’s exclusive to the Aboriginal community. I like the idea of women, and especially black women like my Mother, identifying as feminist and taking a very proactive step to politicise their gender identity.

To have agency and be political about who they are. It’s already there for a lot of younger Aboriginal women. We definitely have a different agency and probably more self-determination in how we make ourselves politically heard than our mothers did.

Luke Carroll

Director’s Note “I have to say, it’s been one of the best experiences that I’ve had working in theatre.”

Paige Rattray Director

What first struck you about this play?

I was most struck by how, as an Aboriginal woman writing about middle-class Aboriginal people, Nakkiah is checking her privilege. I was really impressed and excited by that bravery.

She’s really putting herself out there and I think all great artists do that.

Nakkiah does it with such charm, openheartedness and humour. She examines her thoughts so thoroughly, leaving nothing unturned, and she uses each character to explore different ideas and points of view. Also, the way she writes about cultural identity and then destabilises it at each turn means that we’re constantly questioning what it means to be a middle-class Aboriginal person. She has a gift for self-analysis.

And her ability to follow a path of logic and then turn it on its head and interrogate it at each juncture is remarkable.

Exactly. They’re such complex ideas. There’s a great scene in the play when Rose Gibson comes home and her Christmas tradition, with her sister Charlotte, is to smoke a joint and have a chat. But things are different this time, because of the information Charlotte has discovered about her father and because she’s brought a white man home. They have the most complex conversation about cultural identity but, because Nakkiah has it happen while they’re smoking a joint, we can really slow it down and let the characters take their time. If they weren’t stoned it could absolutely fly over our heads, but because they’re slowed down we can sit with it and take it in. Each word, each idea is placed very carefully. That is genius.

You’ve been asking the cast to improvise in rehearsals at times. How does that work?

It’s a structured improvisation where we break the play down into different main events and then mini events within that. That gives the actors a framework in which to improvise. For this production, I used the improvisations as a way to let the actors figure out the space and find opportunities for comedic moments, like a surprise entrance, for example. It lets me see how the actors might move through the space and how we could tell the story spatially as well as through the dialogue.

Does that improvisation extend to the script?

You had Nakkiah in the room reworking the dialogue. Are the actors taking on those characters and modulating them to their own voice?

That actually happened already through the development phase of the play at STC. We had a workshop in December 2016 on the second draft of the script. Most of the cast were assembled, so what the actors did in that development helped inform the characters as they were refined.

In these rehearsals, after we’d broken the script down carefully, we noticed that there were little gaps in character journeys, so, along with other tweaks here and there, Nakkiah rewrote the last scene of the play to fill in those holes. Keeping track of eight characters is quite difficult in a rom-com setting. Their ideas around identity, race and sexuality change quite drastically over the course of the play. It’s really important to tie all of those things up because Nakkiah is so spot on with her examination of those issues.

We needed to make sure that every character was either purposefully left unchanged or their

realisations about themselves and each other were clear.

In terms of the improvisations, they perform a number of functions. They can help clarify a lot of the subtext for a character, as well as help determine where they are spatially.

Are there locations in the set that start to belong to certain characters?

Yes, absolutely. There are so many great playing spaces for everyone thanks to our designer Renée Mulder.

There’s ‘Dad’s Chair’ which is a bit of a throne in this play. When he feels threatened, Ray Gibson heads to this part of the house. It takes quite a bit to get him out of that place, actually. He’s a bit like a cat, he likes to be at the highest point.

Then there’s the window seat where Joan Gibson likes to sit and smoke a little joint or a cigarette. And a particular spot on the stairs where Sonny Jones can hear the voice of the Lord.

The narrator is an interesting inclusion in the play. It’s such a familiar conceit but it seems almost passé as a concept now. What can the narrator be and what can’t it be for it to work well here?

The improvisations were useful. We pushed that character to see how far he could be involved in the world of the other characters.

We found a few little moments of overlap, but it’s actually much better if he is outside the reality, observing. He’s more connected to the audience than he is to the characters.

You’ve talked about the play being Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner meets The Family Stone meets Meet the Fockers meets Grand Designs. So, is the narrator Kevin McCloud? Is he our reality show host?

No, we originally did think of him like that but it’s evolved since. When Nakkiah was first writing the play, she was thinking of Ray Martin in First Contact crossed with David Attenborough.

And then we started talking more about Alec Baldwin in The Royal Tenenbaums because the documentary style wasn’t working in this rom-com context. It needed more of a fairytale element with a storytelling style rather than giving factual information about Aboriginal people. As the story progresses and we fall further down the rabbit hole, the narrator becomes more casual and loosens up and I think, in a way, that is what happens to all of us watching.

What have you taken away from working on this play?

I have to say, it’s been one of the best experiences that I’ve had working in theatre.

Within all the laughs it has been a huge learning experience. Nakkiah is incredibly generous with her knowledge and lived experience, as are the other performers in the production.

The cast have talked a lot about their experiences working in theatre and film, and about the incredible toll it takes on Indigenous Australian actors being killed night after night onstage. Although knowing the telling of those stories is important, Nakkiah has filled this play with so much joy, it feels like our day is about 60% work, 40% laughter. It’s brilliant.

Tony Briggs, Melodie Reynolds-Diarra

Responding Artist note 'Romantic comedy' is the whitest movie genre of all time. Come on. Name one rom-com where the main romantic interests aren’t exclusively white*.

Benjamin Law Responding Artist

To help us along, here are some of the most popular rom-coms of all time: When Harry Met Sally (white), Bridget Jones’s Diary (white), Sleepless in Seattle (white), Pretty Woman (white), Notting Hill (white), You’ve Got Mail (white), The Wedding Singer (white), Four Weddings and a Funeral (white).

Even when there’s someone black – say, Chiwetel Ejiofor’s character in Love, Actually – they’re one in an ensemble of roughly 49,708 white cast members, absent from most of the cast photos and don’t appear on the DVD cover at all (despite the fact Ejiofor’s now an Oscar nominee). Ejiofor’s plotline? To be utterly oblivious that his marriage with Keira Knightly is being undermined by his white best friend. And here’s the clincher: we’re supposed to barrack for his creepy white best friend and his stalker-ish behaviour. It really is a garbage film.

“Well look, I didn’t notice those films were all white until you pointed it out,” some of you are thinking. “You did. So if you’re so obsessed with race, then, uh … maybe you’re the racist? Because, at the end of the day, aren’t we all part of the same race? The human race?”

What a luxury and privilege it must be to never have to think about race, or to consider yourself as not even having one – an exclusively white pastime, when you think about it. But here’s the thing: race matters, especially when yours is excluded from civic life, politics and the arts. And yes, that includes romantic comedies. How lucky we are, then, that Black is the New White is such a damn good one. *Here are some: My Fat Greek Wedding, Hitch, Bend It Like Beckham, How Stella Got Her Groove Back, Coming to America. Bonus points if you got ‘em.

Queensland Theatre wants to make your experience of every show unique.

To give you fresh insights into our productions, we have invited a notable artist from another discipline to respond to each play – what it means to them, and how they see it in a broader artistic or societal context. For Black is the New White we engaged Benjamin Law, journalist, columnist, TV screenwriter and author of two books – The Family Law (2010) and Gaysia: Adventures in the Queer East (2012). Both were nominated for Australian Book Industry Awards. The Family Law is now an AACTAnominated TV series for SBS.

Proud sponsors of Queensland Arts

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Nakkiah Lui

Paige Rattray

PLAYWRIGHT

DIRECTOR

Nakkiah Lui is a writer/actor and Gamillaroi/Torres Strait Islander woman.

She is a co-writer/star of Black Comedy, creator/writer/star of Kiki and Kitty (ABC), creator/co-host of the podcast Pretty for an Aboriginal (Buzzfeed), and regular panellist on Screentime (ABC). She has been an artist in residence at Griffin Theatre Company (2013), playwright in residence at Belvoir from 2012 - 2014 and a member of Queensland Theatre’s National Artistic Team (2015-2017). In 2012, Nakkiah was the first recipient of The Dreaming Award from The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island Arts Board of the Australia Council.

Queensland Theatre: Scenes from a

The same year, Nakkiah was also the inaugural recipient of the Balnaves Foundation Indigenous Playwright award.

Nakkiah’s previous works include; This Heaven Playwright, Belvoir 2013 and Finborough Theatre 2015; Sovereign Wife Dramaturg, Melbourne Theatre Company 2013; Black Comedy Writer/Actor, ABC, 2014; Blak Cabaret Playwright, Sydney Festival/Malthouse Theatre Company 2015; Kill the Messenger Actor/Playwright, Belvoir 2015; Blaque Showgirls, Malthouse Theatre Company 2016; Lilith the Jungle Girl, Dramaturg, Melbourne Theatre Company, 2016; Kill All Men, Playwright, NIDA, 2016; An Octoroon, Director, Queensland Theatre, 2017; and Black is the New White, Sydney Theatre Company, 2017. Nakkiah is also an active social commentator, with contributions to The Guardian, The Saturday Paper and Junkee. She has appeared on Q&A, The Drum and The Project.

Paige Rattray, Nakkiah Lui

Marriage, Switzerland. Other Credits: Sydney Theatre Company: As Director: Australian Graffiti, Black is the New White (2017), Power Plays, Boys will be boys, Rough Draft #13: Underland. As Dramaturg: The Golden Age. As Assistant Director: Speed the Plow, Arms and the Man, Battle of Waterloo, Travelling North; Arthur: Bright World (with Theatre Works), The Sea Project, Return to Earth (with Griffin Independent), The Myth Project: Twin (with Melbourne Theatre Company NEON), The Mesh (with Red Stitch Actors’ Theatre) The Midlands, The Sea Project (with Mudlark), Dirtyland (with The Spare Room), Cut Snake, Waltzing Woolloomooloo: The Tale of Frankie Jones; Griffin Theatre: Heartbreak Hotel; Milk Crate Theatre: This House is Mine; ATYP: Out of Place, Bronte; Carriageworks/Serenity Productions: Bill W and Dr Bob; NIDA: The Lieutenant of Inishmore, Blessed Are The Wild. Positions: Associate Artistic Director, Queensland Theatre; 2015 & 2016 Richard Wherrett Fellow, Sydney Theatre Company; Co-founder, ARTHUR; 2011 Resident Director, Griffin Theatre; 2010 Affiliate Director, Griffin Theatre. Awards: Matilda Award – Best Production Switzerland; Drama Victoria – Best Performance by a Theatre Company – VCE Drama Cut Snake; Gloria’s Fellowship; Mike Walsh Fellowship. Training: NIDA.

Renée Mulder DESIGNER

Queensland Theatre: An Octoroon, Rice (with Griffin Theatre Company), The Effect (with Sydney Theatre Company), Sacre Bleu, Fat Pig. Other Credits: As Designer: Sydney Theatre Company: Black is the New White (2017), Orlando, Battle of Waterloo, Perplex, The Long Way Home, Dance Better At Parties, Mrs Warren’s Profession, The Splinter, Edward Gant’s Amazing Feats of Loneliness, In A Heart Beat, Actor on a Box - The Luck Child; Griffin Theatre Company: The Bleeding Tree, A Hoax, The Boys; Griffin Independent: The Pigeons; Bell Shakespeare: Romeo & Juliet (Education); La Boite Theatre Company: As You Like It, Ruben Guthrie, I Love You Bro; Theatre Forward: The Sneeze; New Theatre: The Herbal Bed; Sydney Young Actors Studio: The Hypochondriac, La Dispute. As Costume Design: Sydney Theatre Company: Top Girls, Chimerica, Endgame, Children of the Sun, Vere (Faith), Mariage Blanc. As Associate Designer: Sydney Theatre Company: Cyrano De Bergerac; As Design Assistant: Sydney Theatre Company: The Mysteries; Token Events: Good Evening. As Part of Costume Art Department: Bell Shakespeare: Pericles. Film: As Designer: A Parachute Falling in Siberia (short). As part of Art Department: The Distance Between (short). As part of Art Department Armour: Narnia – Voyage of the Dawn Treader. Positions: National Artistic Team, Queensland Theatre (2015-2017); Resident Designer, Sydney Theatre Company (2012-2014). Training: NIDA, Queensland College of Art.

Ben Hughes LIGHTING DESIGNER

Queensland Theatre: Scenes from a Marriage, An Octoroon, Noises Off (with Melbourne Theatre Company), Constellations, Switzerland, Much Ado About Nothing, The Seagull, Happy Days, Grounded, HOME, The Button Event, The Effect (with Sydney Theatre Company), The Mountaintop, Black Diggers (with Sydney Festival), Design For Living, 1001 Nights, The Lost Property Rules, Orbit, Mother Courage and Her Children, The Pitch & The China Incident, Kelly, Head Full of Love, Fractions (with Hothouse Theatre), Orphans, An Oak Tree, Sacre Bleu, Fat Pig, The Crucible, 25 Down, Stones in His Pockets, I Am My Own Wife, John Gabriel Borkman, The Estimator, Private Fears in Public Places, Man Equals Man, Waiting for Godot, Eating Ice Cream with Your Eyes Closed, The Exception and The Rule, Ruby Moon. As Associate Lighting Designer: Toy Symphony, Heroes. As Co-Director/Designer: Trollop. Other Credits: Sydney Theatre Company: Black is the New White (2017); Melbourne Theatre Company: Let The Sunshine (with Queensland Theatre); The Danger Ensemble: Macbeth, Caligula, The Wizard of Oz (with La Boite & Brisbane Festival), Sons of Sin, Children of War, Loco Maricon Amor, The Hamlet Apocalypse; La Boite: A Streetcar Named Desire, Snow White (with Opera

Queensland & Brisbane Festival), Medea, A Doll’s House, Cosi, Kitchen Diva, Statespeare; State Theatre Company South Australia: Straight White Men (with La Boite); Belvoir: Samson (with La Boite); Zen Zen Zo Physical Theatre: Vikram and the Vampire, Cabaret, Dracula, Zeitgeist, My Sublime Shadow; Stella Electrika: The New Dead: Medea Material; Expressions Dance Company: Mozart Airborne (with Opera Queensland), The Host, Carmen Sweet, Propel, Where The Heart Is; Queensland Ballet: Flourish, Giselle, A Classical Celebration, ...with Attitude; Phluxus2 Dance Collective: The Paratrooper Project. As Associate Lighting Designer: Elision Ensemble: The Navigator; Meryl Tankard: The Oracle; Opera Queensland: Aida. Positions: Affiliate Artist, Queensland Theatre (2011 & 2014); Resident Lighting Designer, Queensland Theatre (2013); Associate Artistic Director - The Danger Ensemble; Emerging Artist, Queensland Theatre (2007); Professional Member, Association of Lighting Designers; Accredited Member, Australian Production Design Guild. Awards: 2011 Groundling Award – Outstanding Contribution to Lighting Design.

Steve Toulmin COMPOSER & SOUND DESIGNER

Queensland Theatre: Switzerland, That Face. Other Credits: Sydney Theatre Company: Black is the New White (2017), The Bleeding Tree (with Griffin Theatre), A Flea in Her Ear, Power Plays, Little Mercy, Edward Gant’s Amazing Feats Of Loneliness (with La Boite Theatre Company); Belvoir: Barbara and the Camp Dogs, HIR, The Rover, The Blind Giant Is Dancing, Jasper Jones, Ivanov, La Traviata, Blue Wizard, Is This Thing On?, 20 Questions, The Seed; Bell Shakespeare: Richard III, Othello; Griffin Theatre: The Homosexuals or ‘Faggots’, Gloria, The Bleeding Tree, Beached, A Hoax (with La Boite Theatre Company); Ensemble: Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Great Falls, Liberty Equality Fraternity, Circle Mirror Transformation; La Boite Theatre Company: Tender Napalm, Julius Caesar, Hamlet, Attack of the Attacking Attackers; Malthouse: Testament of Mary; Strut & Fret: Blanc De Blanc, Love Riot, Fun House; Sydney Festival: All The Sex I’ve Ever Had. Events: Papua New Guinea’s 40th Year of Independence Celebrations, EKKA Arena Spectacular (2013-2015). Music: Music Director for Ricki-Lee Coulter (2012-2014). As a songwriter and music producer Steve has worked with artists including Megan Washington, Ricki-Lee Coulter and Samantha Jade. Training: NIDA.

Charmian Gradwell

Vanessa Martin

VOICE & TEXT COACH

ASSISTANT STAGE MANAGER

Queensland Theatre: Debut. Other Credits: Sydney Theatre Company: Muriel's Wedding the Musical, Black is the New White (2017), Cloud 9,

Queensland Theatre: Debut. Other Credits: Sydney Theatre Company:

Dinner, Talk, Chimerica, A Flea in Her Ear, All My Sons, Disgraced, Hay Fever, Arcadia, The Golden Age, King Lear, Orlando, Arms and the Man, The Present, Suddenly Last Summer, After Dinner, Cyrano de Bergerac, Children of the Sun, Macbeth, M.Rock (with ATYP), Mojo, Perplex, Noises Off, The Long Way Home, Travelling North, Machinal, Waiting for Godot, Romeo and Juliet, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, Storm Boy (with Barking Gecko Theatre), The Maids, Mrs Warren’s Profession, Sex with Strangers, Under Milk Wood, Gross und Klein, Bloodland, Elling, Blood Wedding, The White Guard, In the Next Room (or The Vibrator Play), Uncle Vanya, Travesties, A Streetcar Named Desire, The War of the Roses, Tot Mom; Royal Shakespeare Company: The Taming of the Shrew, Julius Caesar, The Tempest, The Canterbury Tales (tour), A Winter’s Tale, Pericles, Days of Significance, Macbeth, Macbett, The Penelopiad, Noughts and Crosses, The Comedies London Season, Twelfth Night, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The London Gunpowder Season, Romeo and Juliet, Comedy of Errors. As Dialect Coach: The Lion King, Mary Poppins, The Tap Brothers, Xanadu the Musical. As Director: Sydney Theatre Company: The Comedy of Errors. As Director/ Trainer: A year with Space 2000 in Kaduna, Nigeria. Film: As Dialect Coach: Pirates of the Caribbean, Thor, Reaching for the Moon, Truth, Ginger & Rosa. Positions: Voice trainer for London School of Puppetry; Member of London Shakespeare Workout, which brings Shakespeare into UK prisons. Training: Central School of Speech and Drama, Bristol Old Vic Theatre School.

Todd Eichorn STAGE MANAGER

Queensland Theatre: As Assistant Stage Manager: The Secret River (with Sydney Theatre Company). Other Credits: Sydney Theatre Company: As Stage Manager: Black is the New White (2017). As Deputy Stage Manager: Three Sisters, The Secret River (with Adelaide Festival), King Lear, Suddenly Last Summer, Macbeth. As Assistant Stage Manager: Speed the Plow, Disgraced, The Present, Cyrano de Bergerac, Noises Off, Waiting for Godot, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, The Maids, Mrs Warren’s Profession, Sex with Strangers, Gross und Klein, The White Guard, Hamlet, Before and After, Uncle Vanya, Leviathon, Like a Fishbone (with Griffin Theatre Company), Vs Macbeth; Bell Shakespeare: As Stage Manager: Macbeth, A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Training: Bachelor of Dramatic Art (Technical Production), NIDA.

As Assistant Stage Manager: Black is the New White (2017), Dinner, Arcadia, Orlando, Switzerland, Jumpy (with Melbourne Theatre Company), Macbeth, Travelling North; Belvoir: Jasper Jones (Tour), The Events, Seventeen, The Government Inspector, Mr Burns: a post-electric play (with State Theatre Company of South Australia); Andrew Kay & Management for BBC: Doctor Who Symphonic Spectacular: Australian Tour – Sydney ; Tweed Theatre Company: Hello Dolly; Metro Arts/ Three Sisters Productions: Brontë; Nash Theatre Company: Black Swan; La Boite Theatre Company: Hamlet, I Love You Bro, The Chairs, The White Earth. Training: Bachelor of Dramatic Art (Technical Production), NIDA.

Tony Briggs RAY GIBSON

Queensland Theatre: Debut. Other Credits: Sydney Theatre Company: Black is the New White (2017), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (with Festival of the Dreaming); Ilbijerri: Which Way Home, Stolen; Melbourne Theatre Company: Twelfth Night; State Theatre Company South Australia: The Memory of Water, The Female of the Species; Black Swan State Theatre Company: The Female of the Species, Jandamarra; Melbourne Workers Theatre: Yanagai Yanagai, Fever, Who’s Afraid of the Working Class?, Up the Ladder; Playbox: Burning Time. As Writer: The Sapphires (seasons include Belvoir, Melbourne Theatre Company). Film: As Creator/Writer: The Sapphires. As Actor: Bran Nue Dae, Joey, Healing, Australian Rules, On the Nose, The Life of Harry Dare. Short Film: The Oysterman, The Djarn Djarns. Television: As Creator/Writer: The Warriors.

As Actor: Seven Types of Ambiguity, The Slap, The Broken Shore, Cleverman, Nowhere Boys, Ready for This, Redfern Now. Awards: 2005 Helpmann Awards – Best Play and Best New Australian Work The Sapphires; 2012 AWGIE Awards – Most Outstanding Script and Best Feature Film Adaptation The Sapphires; 2012 AACTA Award – Best Adaptation The Sapphires; 2013 NAIDOC Artist of the Year; 2012 Jimmy Little Award winner.

Luke Carroll

Geoff Morrell

NARRATOR

DENNISON SMITH

Queensland Theatre: Black Diggers, Mother Courage and her Children.

Other Credits: Sydney Theatre

Queensland Theatre: A Cheery Soul. Other Credits: Sydney Theatre

Company: Black is the New White

(2017), Vere (Faith) (with State

(2017), The Hanging, Battle of Waterloo, The Cherry Pickers; La Boite Theatre Company: The Wind in the Willows; Belvoir: The Cake Man, Capricornia, Conversations with the Dead, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Dreamers, No Sugar; Windmill Theatre: Riverland; Legs on the Wall: Eora Crossing; Bell Shakespeare: My Girragundji; Kooemba Jdarra: Purple Dreams. Film: Strangerland, Australian Rules, Needle, Stone Bros, Subdivision, The Tender Hook, Dallas Doll. Television: Black Comedy, Play School, Redfern Now, The Gods of Wheat Street, Remote Area Nurse (R.A.N), Heartbeat, Home and Away, Going Bush, The Alice, Stingers, All Saints, Water Rats, Heartbreak High, The Man from Snowy River, The Flying Doctors, Ocean Girl, Lift Off, Skytrackers. Awards: 2009, 2013 Deadly Awards, Male Actor of the Year; 2008 Bob Maza Fellowship recipient.

Theatre Company South Australia), Australia Day (with Melbourne Theatre Company), Rabbit, The Madras House, Big & Little, A Cheery Soul, Life After George, A Month in the Country, Pentecost, Oleanna, Away, Death and the Maiden, Time and the Room, Racing Demon, The Revenger’s Tragedy, Hot Fudge and Ice Cream, Tom and Viv, Blood Relations, The Seagull; Melbourne Theatre Company: God of Carnage, Blithe Spirit; Gordon Frost: Man of La Mancha, Art; Griffin Theatre: Speaking in Tongues; Belvoir: Ruben Guthrie, Scenes from an Execution, The Tempest. Film: Blackrock, Heaven’s Burning, Oscar and Lucinda, Looking for Alibrandi, Mirror, Ned Kelly, Right Here Right Now, Rogue, Lucky Miles, Ten Empty, The View from Greenhaven Drive, Coffin Rock.

Television: Deep Water, The Code, Top of the Lake, Winners & Losers, Home & Away, Cloudstreet, Rake, Small Time Gangster, Packed to the Rafters, Sea Patrol, Blue Murder, Murder Call, Grass Roots, My Husband My Killer, Changi, The Secret Life of Us, Farscape, Marking Time, Stingers, Blue Heelers, All Saints, Curtin, Bastard Boys, The Falls, Rogue Nation, Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries, Serangoon Rd. Awards: 2000 AFI Award – Best Actor in a Leading Role (TV Drama) Grass Roots.

Vanessa Downing MARIE SMITH

Queensland Theatre: Faustus (with Bell Shakespeare), Composing Venus, Season’s Greetings. Other Credits: Sydney Theatre Company: Black is the New White (2017), Power Plays, Pygmalion, Influence, Howard Katz, The Lady in the Van, Morning Sacrifice, A Cheery Soul, Macbeth, Chasing The Dragon, The Madras House, Measure for Measure, Falling from Grace (with Playbox); Griffin Independent: Thomas Murray and the Upside Down River; Old Fitz: God of Hell; Sport for Jove: Much Ado About Nothing, Cyrano de Bergerac; B Sharp: The Sweetest Thing; Bell Shakespeare: The Taming of the Shrew; Ensemble: The Glass Menagerie, The Busy World is Hushed, Afterplay; Parramatta Riverside: Parramatta Girls, King Lear; Ride On: Bone; East Coast Theatre Company: Mother and Child; The Production Company: Hello Dolly; State Theatre Company South Australia: Equus, Three Birds Alighting on a Field, Ring Round the Moon, Private Lives, Upside Down at the Bottom of the World, As You Like It, Traitors, Pericles, A Month in the Country, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?; Griffin Theatre: Live Acts on Stage, Away; Marian St: How the Other Half Loves, The Heiress, Absurd Person Singular. Belvoir: The Increased Difficulty of Concentration, The Madrigirls. Q Theatre: Good Works (with Playbox), Wet and Dry, Daylight Saving, St James Infirmary; New Moon Theatre Company: Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Key Largo, Don’s Party, Beach Blanket Tempest; Wilton Morley Productions: Steaming. Film: Stationery, Mary, The Boy Who Had Everything, Two Hands, Hey Hey It’s Esther Blueberger. Television: The Checkout, Rake, Home and Away, Water Rats, All Saints, Big Sky, G.P., A Country Practice, Bullpitt!, Funeral Going, Double Skulls, Melba, Packed to the Rafters. Positions: Member, Sydney Philharmonia Symphony Chorus.

Company: Black is the New White

Melodie Reynolds-Diarra JOAN GIBSON

Queensland Theatre: An Octoroon.

Other Credits: Sydney Theatre Company: Black is the New White (2017), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (with The Dreaming Festival); Ilbijerri Theatre Company: Coranderrk –We Will Show the Country (with Sydney Opera House), The Dirty Mile, Chopped Liver, Black Sheep, Glorious Baastards (with Melbourne International Comedy Festival), Headhunter (with Polyglot Theatre), Wild Cat Falling, Honey Spot, King For This Place; Bell Shakespeare: Actors At Work; Playbox: Holy Day; Black Swan State Theatre Company: Stolen, Shrunken Iris, Master Builder, Quilting the Armour, Yandy; Company B: Yibiyung; Melbourne Theatre Company: The Man from Mukinupin; Redstitch Actors’ Theatre: Jackie by Elfriede Jelinek; Belvoir: No Sugar. As Associate Director: Malthouse Theatre: The Shadow King. As Writer: Skylab. Television: Natural Justice, Broken Shore, Hard Rock Medical and Redfern Now. Audio Book: My Place. Training: Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts.

Shari Sebbens

Miranda Tapsell

CHARLOTTE GIBSON

ROSE JONES

Queensland Theatre: An Octoroon.

Other Credits: Sydney Theatre

Queensland Theatre: Debut. Other Credits: Sydney Theatre Company: The Secret River; Griffin Theatre/Bell Shakespeare: The Literati; Belvoir: Radiance, A Christmas Carol, Yibiyung (with Malthouse Theatre); Riverside Theatre: Rainbow’s End; Yirra Yakin: Mother’s Tongue; Darwin Theatre Company: A Midsummer Night’s Dream; Bell Shakespeare: Actors At Work; Sydney Festival: I Am Eora. Film: The Sapphires, Words With God. Short Film: The Kindness of Strangers, Vote Yes. Television: Squinters, Get Krack!n, Love Child, Joey’s Big Adventure, Newton’s Law, Little J & Big Cuz, Maurice’s Big Adventure, Wolf Creek, Julia Zemiro’s Home Delivery, Play School, Secret City, Clever Man, Who We Are, Redfern Now, Mabo, Magical Tales. Awards: 2015 Logie Awards – Most Outstanding Newcomer and Most Popular New Talent Love Child. Training: NIDA.

Company: Black is the New White (2017), The Bleeding Tree (with Griffin Theatre), The Battle of Waterloo; Belvoir: Back At The Dojo, Radiance; Griffin Theatre Company: Return to Earth, A Hoax (with La Boite); Malthouse: Shadow King (with Darwin Festival); Tap Gallery: Lobby Hero; Darwin Festival: Wulamanayui and the Seven Pamanui; Film: Australia Day, Teenage Kicks, The Darkside, The Sapphires. Short Film: OnO, Alone, You Wanna Order Pizza? Television: Little J and Big Cuz, Soul Mates, 8MMM Aboriginal Radio, The Gods of Wheat Street, Redfern Now. Training: WAAPA (Aboriginal Theatre); NIDA. Awards: Graham Kennedy Award – Most Outstanding New Talent.

Tom Stokes FRANCIS SMITH

Queensland Theatre: Debut. Other Credits: Sydney Theatre Company: Pygmalion; Bell Shakespeare: Romeo & Juliet; Ensemble Theatre: Blood Bank and The Glass Menagerie; Sport for Jove: Of Mice and Men; Griffin Independent: Music and The Pigeons; Tamarama Rock Surfers: I Want to Sleep With Tom Stoppard, Capture the Flag; Cry Havoc: Julius Cesar; Riverside: Shakespeare’s R&J (National Tour). Film: Destination Maitland, Newness, Equals, The Railway Man, Wasted on the Young. Short Film: Let it Rain, Photocopier, Hunger. Television: Australia: The Story of Us. Training: Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, Acting.

Vanessa Downing, Shari Sebbens

Anthony Taufa SONNY JONES

Queensland Theatre: An Octoroon.

Other Credits: Sydney Theatre Company: Black is the New White (2017), Cloud Nine, The Golden Age, Orlando, Love & Information; Theatre of Image: Monkey-Journey to the West; Serious Boys: Glengarry Glenross; Bell Shakespeare: Merchant of Venice, Comedy of Errors, The Players; Ion Nobiru: Birthday Boys; Cry Havoc: Titus Andronicus; Sydney Shakespeare Company: Othello; Darlinghurst Theatre: 10,000 Beers, Man with Five Children; Griffin Theatre Company: Brothers Size; King’s Men: Othello; Optic Verve-Band of Creatures: Manbeth; Hoppla Festival Darling Harbour: Moliere in 30 minutes; Q Theatre: Mash Up. Film: Down Under, Super Awesome!, Before the Rain; Short Film: The Polygamist, NOVR, Let It Rain, The Tongans, Father’s Way, Cheap Rent, Make Me, Getting In. Training: NIDA; Bachelor of Arts, La Trobe University.

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Vanessa Downing, Shari Sebbens, Tony Briggs, Tom Stokes, Miranda Tapsell

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Board of Directors Ian Narev (Chair) Ann Johnson (Deputy Chair) The Hon Bruce Baird am Toni Cody John Connolly Mark Lazberger Patrick McIntyre Gretel Packer Daniel Petre ao Kip Williams

In 1980, Sydney Theatre Company’s first Artistic Director, Richard Wherrett, defined STC’s mission as to provide “first class theatrical entertainment for the people of Sydney – theatre that is grand, vulgar, intelligent, challenging and fun.” Years later, that ethos still rings true.

Artistic Director Kip Williams Executive Director Patrick McIntyre Director, Finance & Administration Francisca Peña Director, Marketing & Customer Services Nicole McPeake Director, Private Support Danielle Heidbrink Director, Partnerships Rebecca Cuschieri Director, Technical, Production & Wharf Renewal Jono Perry

STC has a proud heritage as a creative hub and incubator for Australian theatre and theatre makers, developing and producing eclectic Australian works, interpretations of classic repertoire and great international writing. STC strives to create theatre experiences that reflect Sydney’s distinctive personality and engage audiences.

STC offers a diverse program of distinctive theatre of vision and scale at its harbourside home venue, The Wharf; Roslyn Packer Theatre Walsh Bay; and Sydney Opera House, as its resident theatre company.

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PATRON His Excellency the Honourable Paul de Jersey AC, Governor of Queensland MEMBERS OF THE BOARD Elizabeth Jameson (Chair) Rachel Crowley (Deputy Chair) Prof Richard Fotheringham Peter Hudson Nathan Jarro Susan Learmonth Dr Andrea Moor David Williamson ARTISTIC DIRECTOR Sam Strong ACTING EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Amanda Jolly ASSOCIATE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR Paige Rattray RESIDENT DRAMATURG Isaac Drandic EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT Tammy Sleeth DEVELOPMENT, FINANCE & OPERATIONS CORPORATE PARTNERSHIPS MANAGER Nikki Porter PHILANTHROPY MANAGER Liz Prior DEVELOPMENT COORDINATOR Edwin Parra CAMPAIGN COORDINATOR Georgia Lynas FINANCE MANAGER Valerie Cole ASSISTANT ACCOUNTANT Georgia Knight FINANCE OFFICER Sarra Lamb VENUE & OPERATIONS SUPERVISOR Julian Messer

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Colleen Reeks, Corrective Services NSW Museum, Cooma Music performed by CELLOIST: Peter Hollo CELLO TUITION: Nick Coyle REHEARSAL PHOTOGRAPHY: Grant Sparkes-Carroll PRODUCTION PHOTOGRAPHY: Prudence Upton

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MARKETING & TICKETING MARKETING & AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT MANAGER Tracey Webster HEAD OF CAMPAIGNS Jane Hunterland MARKETING COORDINATOR Louisa Sankey DIGITAL CONTENT COORDINATOR David D’Arcy MARKETING ASSISTANT (DIGITAL ENGAGEMENT) Thomas Manton–Williams GRAPHIC DESIGNER Aleesha Cuffe PUBLICIST Kath Rose and Associates DATABASE TRAINER / SUPERVISOR Rory Killen ASSISTANT TICKETING SUPERVISOR Madison Bell SENIOR TICKETING OFFICER Donna Fields-Brown TICKETING OFFICER Rosie Hazell SEASON TICKETING Chantelle Giles, Dan Sinclair, Ashley Webster, Tim Woods PRODUCTION PRODUCTION MANAGER Toni Glynn TECHNICAL COORDINATOR Daniel Maddison PRODUCTION COORDINATOR Pip Loth TECHNICAL COORDINATOR Lachlan Cross TOURING COORDINATOR Candice Schmidt HEAD OF WORKSHOP Peter Sands COMPANY CARPENTER/HEAD MECHANIST John Pierce COSTUME SUPERVISOR Nathalie Ryner WARDROBE COORDINATOR Barbara Kerr

PROGRAMMING SENIOR PRODUCER Sophia Hall ARTISTIC COORDINATOR Samantha French PRODUCER (NEW WORK) Shari Irwin RESIDENT DESIGNER Vilma Mattila ARTISTIC ADMINISTRATOR Hana Tow EDUCATION AND REGIONAL ENGAGEMENT ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR Travis Dowling PRODUCER, YOUTH AND REGIONAL ENGAGEMENT Laurel Collins EDUCATION COORDINATOR Naomi Murphy INDIGENOUS REFERENCE GROUP Nathan Jarro (Chair), Jimi Bani, Dr Valerie Cooms, Isaac Drandic.

FOUNDING DIRECTOR AIan Edwards, AM, MBE (1925-2003) SYDNEY THEATRE COMPANY PRODUCTION STAFF PRODUCTION MANAGER

Whitney Eglington TOUR HEAD MECHANIST Eric Duffy TOUR HEAD ELECTRICIAN Corinne Fish TOUR SOUND SUPERVISOR Luke Davis TOUR HEAD CARPENTER Boaz Shemesh FIGHT CONSULTANT Nigel Poulton QUEENSLAND THEATRE PRODUCTION STAFF DRESSER Hanna Moroney WARDROBE MAINTENANCE

Bianca Bulley HAIR Rebecca Anthony RESPONDING ARTIST Benjamin Law

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Chair Professor Peter Coaldrake AO Deputy Chair Leigh Tabrett PSM Chief Executive John Kotzas Trust Members Charles Berry, Dare Power, Susan Rix AM, Professor Chris Sarra, Leanne de Souza, Leigh Tabrett PSM The Honourable Leeanne Enoch MP, Minister for Environment and the Great Barrier Reef, Minister for Science and Minister for the Arts Director-General, Department of Environment and Science Jamie Merrick

QPAC respectfully acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the Lands across Queensland and pays respect to their ancestors who came before them and to Elders past, present and emerging.

Patrons are advised that the Performing Arts Centre has EMERGENCY EVACUATION PROCEDURES, a FIRE ALARM system and EXIT passageways. In case of an alert, patrons should remain calm, look for the closest EXIT sign in GREEN, listen to and comply with directions given by the inhouse trained attendants and move in an orderly fashion to the open spaces outside the Centre.

Information correct at time of printing