LADIES IN BLACK - Season 2015

Queensland Theatre Company in association with Queensland Performing Arts Centre presents the world premiere of

Book by Carolyn Burns Music and lyrics by Tim Finn Based on Madeleine St John's novel, The Women in Black

Cast

BY KATE GRENVILLE AN ADAPTATION FOR THE STAGE BY ANDREW BOVELL

30 JAN - 21 FEB

25 FEB - 5 MAR

23 APR - 15 MAY

20 MAY - 26 JUN

14 Nov – 6 Dec Playhouse, QPAC Ladies in Black will run for approximately 2 hours and 30 minutes, including a 20-minute interval.

BY AYAD AKHTAR

Warning: Smoke and haze

9 JUL - 7 AUG

27 AUG - 25 SEP

14 OCT - 6 NOV

12 NOV - 4 DEC

Ladies in Black is supported by the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland

Andrew Broadbent

Frank

Kate Cole

Miss Cartwright/Joy

Carita Farrer Spencer

Mrs Miles

Bobby Fox

Rudi

Kathryn McIntyre

Myra/Dawn

Lucy Maunder

Patty

Sarah Morrison

Lisa

Christen O’Leary

Magda

Naomi Price

Fay

Deidre Rubenstein

Miss Jacobs/Mrs Crown

Greg Stone Mr Miles/Stefan Other parts played by the company Andrew Johnson

Acoustic/Electric Bass

Toby Loveland

Acoustic/Electric Guitar

Kathryn McKee

Cello

Andrew Maddick

Violin

John Parker

Drums/Percussion

Simon Phillips

Director

Isaac Hayward

Musical Director

Guy Simpson

Orchestrations

Andrew Hallsworth

Choreographer

Gabriela Tylesova

Designer

David Walters

Lighting Designer

Matthew Erskine

System Sound Designer

Hanna Sandgren

Associate Designer

Melissa Agnew

Dialect Coach

Jessica Burns

Stage Manager Assistant Director (Secondment)

Dan Sinclair

Deputy Stage Manager

Pip Loth Assistant Stage Manager Additional orchestrations by Isaac Hayward Additional lyrics by Simon Phillips and Carolyn Burns

Follow this play 6 - 16 APRIL

20 - 30 APRIL

SUBSCRIPTIONS NOW ON SALE CALL 1800 355 528 OR VISIT QUEENSLANDTHEATRE.COM.AU

Cover Photography: Stephen Henry

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Welcome Note Sue Donnelly, Executive Director

L-R: Simon Phillips, Isaac Hayward, Lucy Maunder, Naomi Price, Deidre Rubenstein

It gives me great pleasure to welcome you to this performance of Ladies in Black – truly a stand-out moment in the history of our Company. It has been many years since we have presented a musical, especially a completely new one, and I am immensely proud of our achievement.

I read and loved Madeleine St John’s charming novel a few years ago, never imagining that I would one day be part of bringing this work to the stage. My first encounter with the musical version of this story (so skilfully and thoughtfully written by Carolyn Burns) was in 2013 when I was invited by QPAC to see the results of the first creative development for this

L-R: Sarah Morrison, Christen O'Leary

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project. I was immediately captivated, not least by the beautiful songs written

by Tim Finn. Immediately I returned to QTC where I talked with Wesley about how we needed to produce this work. Two years later, under the inspired direction of Simon Phillips, we have this wonderful show. I could not imagine a more dynamic creative triumvirate. The opportunity to have these artists working in Queensland, on such a significant project, has had a positive effect that has rippled out across the artistic community and I sincerely thank the Queensland Government for the support which has made this possible. I also thank our generous sponsors, Griffith University and Virgin Australia, QPAC, and all those who assisted with our recent fundraiser.

Carolyn, Simon and Tim are joined by some of the industry’s finest actors, from both Queensland and interstate, along with the very talented creative team of designers and musicians.

The combination of these 3

extraordinary artists has resulted in the magical and memorable work you are about to experience.

As I write this message, we are delighted to welcome our new Artistic Director, Sam Strong. Sam comes to us from his position as Associate Artistic Director at Melbourne Theatre Company and was formerly Artistic Director of Griffin Theatre Company. I look forward to sharing his exciting new artistic vision for our Company with you in the coming months and to working with him to program the 2017 season.

Finally, if you haven’t already done so, don’t forget to purchase your subscription for 2016.

And if you are looking for a Christmas gift for that difficult person who has everything, what could be better than a QTC gift voucher?

Every best wish for the festive season and the coming year.

E AT

C E L E B R AT E

ENJOY

Message from QPAC

Musical theatre is one of QPAC’s most well-attended and popular genres of live performance. The winning combination of music, dance and theatre is for many people their first experience of attending a live performance and one that entices them back to the theatre time and again.

Over the Centre’s 30 year history, QPAC has collaborated with many artists and producers to develop works for the stage, including new Australian musicals. This world premiere season of Ladies in Black was created by QTC in collaboration with QPAC, and transforms an

q p a c. c o m . a u / r e s t a u r a n t s _ b a r s

Australian classic novel into a sumptuous new show. When the novel on which Ladies in Black (The Women in Black by Madeleine St John) was re-issued in Australia, a review in the Sydney Morning Herald noted the ‘theatrical influence’ in the novel saying: “the whole novel could have been a performance on a revolving stage with basic set changes”.

During the development of this novel from page to stage, a process which QPAC was delighted to be part of, that theatricality was front and centre. Two major creative development workshops were undertaken in collaboration with QPAC alongside QTC’s team of creative luminaries led by Simon Phillips (director) with Carolyn Burns (writer) and Tim Finn (composer).

Seeing and being a part of the journey bringing this work to fruition on stage and blossoming into a fullystaged production has been a wonderful experience.

Vahlrona chocolate and hazelnut terrine with fresh berries Lyrebird, QPAC 4

photo by toby scott

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QTC’s creative team also brings together some of Australia’s best with multiple Helpmann Awardwinning Set and Costume Designer Gabriela Tylesova, Lighting Designer David Walters, and Musical Director Isaac Hayward with orchestrations by Guy Simpson. A cast of Brisbane favourites headed

by Christen O’Leary and Carita Farrer Spencer also features music theatre stars Lucy Maunder and Bobby Fox alongside Sarah Morrison, Naomi Price, Andrew Broadbent, Kate Cole, Kathryn McIntyre, Greg Stone and Deidre Rubenstein; and they will be joined by a six piece band.

On behalf of QPAC, it is our pleasure to welcome you to this world premiere performance, and we hope that you enjoy what you see on stage.

John Kotzas Chief Executive

Message from the Premier Queensland Government funding has also helped deliver workshops for local artists and students to work directly with Tim Finn and Simon Phillips and gain valuable creative development experience.

Welcome to Ladies in Black, a brand new musical making its world premiere at QPAC. I am proud that with support from my Government, QTC in association with QPAC, is able to present this exciting collaboration from legendary musician Tim Finn, writer Carolyn Burns and internationally acclaimed director Simon Phillips, performed by a stellar cast.

L-R: Sarah Morrison, Greg Stone, Bobby Fox Christen O'Leary, Hugh Parker

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Queensland audiences have an exclusive opportunity to see Tim Finn’s musical collaboration with our state theatre company.

It promises to be an extraordinary production.

I commend QTC’s commitment to new work, artistic growth, emerging talent and quality theatre.

The Queensland Government supports QTC with funding through Arts Queensland.

Please enjoy Ladies in Black.

Annastacia Palaszczuk MP Premier and Minister for the Arts

PERFORMING ARTS TRAINING AT ITS BEST Griffith performing arts students receive the very best training in all performance genres — from opera to popular music, musical theatre, jazz, applied theatre and beyond. With world-renowned teachers, invaluable local and international partnerships, and state-of-the-art facilities, including Australia’s most comprehensive conservatorium, Griffith University’s Arts, Education and Law Group is producing tomorrow’s talent.

Griffith University’s Arts, Education and Law Group is proud to be the production sponsor of Ladies in Black.

Singer-songwriter

Australian University Teacher of the Year

ARIA Award nominee

Director, Bleach* Festival

Award-winning DJ

ARIA Award winner

Grammy Award winner

Composer-conductor

8 Metropolitan Opera NYC

Message from our Sponsor Griffith University is, once again, proud to be a Production Sponsor for QTC, for the 2015 production of Ladies in Black.

This world premiere musical theatre production is an ideal fit for the University.

Griffith University has a strong commitment to the creative and performing arts, offering a range of programs in Music, Contemporary and Applied Theatre, and Queensland’s only Bachelor of Musical Theatre.

As part of our commitment to creative and performing arts, the University has been a longstanding supporter of QTC, enjoying a relationship which has flourished over the past 15 years. Through this partnership, Griffith students and staff enjoy valuable opportunities to work with QTC artists and directors and welcome opportunities to support various professional engagement and development opportunities.

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QTC continues to play a major role in informing and shaping the cultural vitality of Queensland, and Griffith University is honoured to support the productions of this iconic Queensland institution.

Professor Paul Mazerolle Pro Vice Chancellor (Arts, Education and Law) Griffith University

INTRODUCING ‘THE BUSINESS’ A NEW WORLD STANDARD IN DOMESTIC BUSINESS CLASS

Message from our Sponsor 2015 marks Virgin Australia’s first season as the Official Airline Partner of QTC and we are delighted to be associated with the state’s flagship theatre company.

On behalf of Virgin Australia, I hope you enjoy this performance and we look forward to welcoming you on board soon.

Virgin Australia’s extensive domestic and regional flight network will enable QTC to continue to share its storytelling with more people throughout Australia.

Both Virgin Australia and QTC encompass similar values regarding the development of young people through youth and education programs and we look forward to further supporting this important initiative.

John Borghetti

We are also delighted to be a Production Sponsor of QTC’s highlight production of 2015, Ladies in Black.

This is a magical, modern day fairytale marking the triumphant return of musical theatre to QTC’s stage.

Official Airline Partner of Queensland Theatre Company 10

*Business suites available on selected A330 aircraft

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Chief Executive Officer Virgin Australia

Playwright's Note Carolyn Burns

L-R: Isaac Hayward, Jessica Burns, Christen O’Leary, Simon Phillips, Greg Stone, Carita Farrer Spencer, Dan Sinclair, Lucy Maunder, Deidre Rubenstein, Naomi Price, Tenneale Rogers

Adapting a work of literature for the stage always brings its own particular challenges. The comparative leisure with which a novelist can unfold her ideas is not a luxury the playwright can afford and the exposition of a character’s inner world has to be distilled from paragraph to dialogue and circumstance.

Australia’s adolescence. It was a time when everything was closed on Sundays, men were the breadwinners, and young ladies were expected to work for a relatively short time before settling down and having a family. It was a time when nothing much seemed to be happening.

We know now that change was in the air, but Sydney seemed blissfully unaware.

It’s hard to say whether creating a musical makes the job easier or harder.

Songs reduce the space for plot and dialogue but increase the space for interior monologue but, suffice it to say, it was the tempting mix of Tim Finn’s musical genius and Simon Phillips’ theatrical wisdom that gave me the courage to give Madeleine St John’s magical book a go.

Against this backdrop, St John tells the story of young Lisa Miles, an unworldly, shy and bookish girl, employed to work as a Christmas casual in the cocktail frock department of Sydney’s most prestigious department store, while waiting for her school leaving results.

Set in Sydney in the late 1950’s, St John’s novel, The Women in Black, is a deceptively light-hearted examination of a moment in

The women she meets, with their genuine love of style and fashion, combined with some very human frailties and insecurities, begin to affect Lisa’s views on life.

And just like the city itself, she begins to grow up.

L-R: Tenneale Rogers, Hanna Sandgren

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Tim’s and my challenge was to capture this particular moment in time through script and song and to interweave the various individual stories into an exciting and, hopefully, engaging narrative. One of the book’s particular charms is its refusal to be tempted into high drama. It eschews death and devastation in favour of more domestic crises. We have striven to remain true to this, which makes for an unusual theatrical experience but, hopefully, one as curiously heartwarming and rewarding as its source.

It has been a complete team effort, impossible to do without the combination of Tim’s extraordinary ability to create complex characters via music and Simon’s wonderful dramaturgical and visual insights. I feel privileged to be part of the endeavour, and welcome you all to Ladies in Black!

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Director’s Note Simon Phillips

Simon Phillips

I’m trying to work out why I have such an overwhelming affection for this piece. It defies so many of the rules of drama: its conflicts are minimal, the barriers facing the characters are scarcely life-threatening and large sections of it operate on a level of domesticity I’d usually find anathema to my sense of theatricality.

But when Tim Finn gave me the book, which he’d chanced on at Brisbane Airport, I found myself turning the pages like a thriller. I think perhaps it’s the feeling that Merchant Ivory turned their hand to Pulp Fiction that I find so appealing. I love the way all the different story lines interweave, creating a whole so much bigger than the sum of its parts. The parts may be fragile and sweetly suburban, but in combination they make for an euphoric effect.

If one of the designs of drama is to give real life a sense of cohesion and meaning it generally lacks, then Ladies in Black ticks all the boxes. As Magda weaves

L-R: Christen O'Leary, Jessica Burns, Deidre Rubenstein, Kathryn McIntyre, Lucy Maunder, Kate Cole, Isaac Hayward, Sarah Morrison, Carita Farrer Spencer, Naomi Price, Simon Phillips

her spell on Lisa, subtly introducing her to the world of style and sensuality, Fay, Patty, Miss Jacobs, and by implication their friends and families, all get caught up in the web, so a single summer seems to produce a lifetime’s sense of fulfilment.

exclusive between feminism and femininity and she demolishes xenophobia through celebration rather than counter-terrorism. The story sits firmly in its place in time, but it has so much to offer our 21st century world.

The story’s plethora of happy endings may defy the odds, but I’d be surprised if they don’t spark a little warmth in even the hardest of hearts. There’s a sense of wit, a definite knowingness on St John’s part that she’s pushing the envelope of feel-goodism, which saves the work from cloying sentimentality. While at the same time delivering an improbable number of fulfilled wishes. I hope we’ve managed to honour the joy of that in this stage adaption. Personally, I don’t have any problem with an audience leaving the theatre feeling good – every so often you deserve it!

All in all, there’s so much wit and wisdom at the heart of this novel and, armed with both in their own particular fields, Tim Finn and Carolyn Burns have brought it bristlingly and buoyantly to life. To make it into a musical seems to me the perfect way to capture its essential qualities; the inner yearnings of the characters get the most eloquent and poetic expression and the music plays a large part in convincing us that they’re all somehow dancing to the same interplanetary score.

But notice also the deft hand with which St John’s social acuity inveigles its way into the story. She sees nothing mutually

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I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

A huge thank you to everyone who has helped bring it to the stage.

Proud sponsors of Queensland Arts

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Composer’s Note Tim Finn

L-R: Kathryn McIntyre, Kate Cole, Deidre Rubenstein, Lucy Maunder

A novel such as Madeleine St John's The Women in Black is a gift for any songwriter looking for a narrative to explore.

Rich enough to provide satisfying themes, but delivered with a lightness of touch that invites interpretation. I found the book at Brisbane Airport on my way up to Bougainville.

At first reading, songs came straight off the page. After meeting with Madeleine's literary executor, Bruce Beresford, and receiving his blessing, there seemed to be nothing between me and the book's innermost secrets.

The book is set in 1959 but I knew from the start that the songs wouldn't be overtly 50s in flavour. I wrote from the heart and followed the tunes. Somehow it wasn't hard for me to put myself inside the heads of these characters.

I spent a few months writing the first group of songs. The titles included A Nice Australian Girl, I Just Kissed A Continental and Summer Afternoon. I sent them through to director and friend, Simon Phillips, for his appraisal. He and his wife, writer Carolyn Burns, listened to the songs, read the novel and said they'd love to help. Several workshops later, generously funded by QPAC, QTC and MTC, we are here with our first production.

I have long wanted to write songs for a new musical. I can't exactly explain why, but perhaps the desire grew from that moment when a nine-year-old boy from Te Awamutu went to see My Fair Lady with his mum, leaping to his feet in exultation as they sang I'm Getting Married In The Morning.

Tim Finn

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More recently, I was inspired by seeing a Broadway On Tour production of Sweeney Todd. Reading Sondheim's book Finishing the Hat helped me understand the form. But it also reminded me that the bar has been set very high.

I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to Simon and Carolyn for their guidance and inspiration.

They are both brilliant people and dear friends. I would also like to express my profound gratitude to QPAC's John Kotzas, QTC's Sue Donnelly and Wesley Enoch and MTC's Brett Sheehy. And all the many talented and tireless people in their teams with whom it has been my pleasure to work on this brand new Australian musical.

Finally, I want to say a huge thank you to my wife, Marie Azcona, who has always believed in this project. You rock my world!

In January, the curtain will rise for the first show of Season 2016, Quartet.

It tells the story of four aging, retired opera singers struggling to put aside grudges to re-team for one more show-stopping finale. Quartet takes the audience on a heartwarming journey into old age told with tenderness, grace, hope – and above all, no self pity. QTC sat down with director, Andrea Moor to find out what audiences can expect from this devilishly funny play.

What drew you to Quartet?

The play offers four brilliant older actors a chance to strut their stuff. It’s witty, smart, cheeky and deeply moving. I think the subject matter is so relevant to everyone. Who are we when all we have is a room and a few old friends? I just squeeze into the baby boomer era and I know that, for me, and many of my friends, we are suddenly looking at what might be the last few decades of our lives. Most of us are realising we are utterly unprepared, not just financially but emotionally. As artists we think we will always just keep acting, directing and, in the case of Quartet just keep singing.

It’s impossible for us to draw a line under our craft and say ‘that’s it folks!’

What do the cast bring to the play?

I adore this cast and am so excited that I get to work with each of them. I’ve acted with both Andrew McFarlane and Trevor Stewart but not with Kate and Christine. Andrew and I had an intense and exciting time working together on Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? as the highly dysfunctional Martha and George, and, in fact, I’ve played his drunk wife in two other projects as well – one in film and another on stage – and always Americans!

Trevor and I were in Design for Living together and I was quite in awe of his craft, skill and timing and he’s just so much fun to work with. Christine was a household name through the beginning of

my career through her television work, and has such poise and intelligence as an actor. And I am so happy to finally get to work with Kate whom I grew up watching on stage in the old SGIO theatre. She was a big part of me wanting to act and has been a friend and mentor to me since I moved back to Brisbane.

How does Quartet make audiences feel?

The audience will be uplifted by this story. It’s heartwarming, wicked and reflective. I think couples might feel a little closer after the play. Children might be a little more understanding of their older parents and those looking closer to the final curtain might see how much life is still to be lived!

What can audiences expect to see on stage?

I am so very excited to be working with my old friend Bruce McKinven. Audiences will remember him from his brilliant Hamlet set and the gorgeous pressed metal interiors of Vincent in Brixton. The audience will be transported to a lush though slightly decaying grand English country house and garden with just a twist of theatricality! And, of course, it will be beautifully lit by David Walters, and the score will be compiled by Tony Brumpton.

It’s terrific to work with creatives that I know and trust and with whom I have such a strong working relationship. We have a kind of shorthand and seem to be

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able to read each other's minds – it’s a great team.

Who would enjoy Quartet?

Whilst many might think it’s a play about old people I would insist that it’s much more. The themes are universal and the production will be realised by a talented and experienced cast. The production will offer a masterclass in acting and will appeal to all through the universal themes of love, compassion, identity and art! Come and see it and enjoy!

Brisbane Season 30 January - 21 February Playhouse, QPAC

Tour Dates 25 February | Toowoomba: Empire Theatre 27 February | Sunshine Coast: Lake Kawana Community Centre

QUEENSLAND THEATRE COMPANY PRESENTS

1 March | Rockhampton: Pilbeam Theatre 4 March | Mackay: Mackay Entertainment and Convention Centre 8 – 9 March | Cairns: Centre of Contemporary Arts 12 March | Townsville: Townsville Civic Theatre 16 March | Gladstone: Gladstone Entertainment Centre 19 March | Ipswich: Ipswich Civic Centre

BY RONALD HARWOOD 30 JANUARY – 21 FEBRUARY PLAYHOUSE, QPAC Tickets 136 246 or visit queenslandtheatre.com.au

22 – 23 March | Bundall: The Arts Centre Gold Coast For more information visit queenslandtheatre.com.au

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Biographies Carolyn Burns PLAYWRIGHT

Tim Finn COMPOSER

Carolyn Burns began her career in New Zealand, devising and writing The Retrievers, an eighteen-part TV comedy-thriller for children.

Her first play for adults, Objection Overruled, was performed in all major New Zealand theatres.

After moving to Australia, she worked as a journalist with SBS, before attending the screenwriting course at AFTRS and writing for ABC children’s television. In Adelaide, she wrote four plays, including adapting both Haxby’s Circus and High Society for the stage. High Society later toured Australia and the UK. Since then, Burns has worked as a dramaturg and script editor, and is currently collaborating on a number of new works for the stage. Burns' latest plays include the adaptation of North by Northwest (MTC, June 2015).

Regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of his generation, New Zealand native Tim Finn continues to embrace the true definition of a Renaissance man while fuelling an all-inclusive, creative fire that constantly drives him onwards and upwards.

Having established himself in the early 1970s as a founding member of art-pop-rock pioneers Split Enz and later as a member of the internationally successful band Crowded House (alongside brother Neil), Finn has penned some of the most treasured songs in contemporary music. The likes of I See Red, Poor Boy, My Mistake, Dirty Creature, I Hope I Never and Six Months In A Leaky Boat immediately come to mind. His time in Crowded House, established around the recording of the acclaimed Woodface album, was mostly co-written with his brother and included the timeless classics Weather With You, It’s Only Natural and Chocolate Cake. Add to this, an incredibly successful solo career that continues to mature and has delivered songs such as Fraction Too Much Friction, Made My Day, Persuasion and Not Even Close. Finn has toured the world and worked with some of the industry’s most accomplished artists and producers.

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In recent years Finn’s attention has focused on theatre projects, based on his own songs and music. Aside from Ladies in Black, Finn is currently working on White Cloud, a one-man observation of his family heritage and culture, The Fiery Maze, a raw and provocative piece based on songs he wrote with the late Dorothy Porter, which will open in Melbourne in 2016 as well as Star Navigator, an ambitious work he is developing with Western Australian Opera, Victorian Opera and New Zealand Opera. Who knows what is next for Tim Finn? One thing is for certain. He is showing no signs of slowing and the desire to create, write and perform is as strong as it ever was.

Simon Phillips DIRECTOR

Queensland Theatre Company: The Blue Room, The Tempest, Amy’s View, Julius Caesar, High Society. Other Credits: Opera Australia: Mer de Glace, Falstaff, L’elisir d’amore, Lulu, Merry Widow, La bohème, Il Turco in Italia; New Zealand Opera: Magic Flute, Don Giovanni; Hamburg State Opera: Midsummer Night’s Dream, Billy Budd; Cape Town Opera/West Australian Opera/Opera Queensland/Opera of South Australia/Victorian Opera/New Zealand Opera: Otello; Recent theatre productions include: Sydney Theatre Company: Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead; Dainty Productions: Eat Pray Laugh! Barry Humphries Farewell Tour (Australia, UK, USA); Nullarbor: Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, the Musical (Australia, UK, USA, various international); Really Useful Group: Love Never Dies, Australia, Japan, Germany; Gordon Frost Organisation: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum; Melbourne Theatre Company: North by Northwest, Pennsylvania Avenue, The Importance of Being Earnest, Hamlet, Songs for Nobodies, All About My Mother, The Drowsy Chaperone Positions: Associate Director, Melbourne Theatre Company 1987-1989; Artistic Director, State Theatre of South Australia, 1990-1993; Artistic Director, Melbourne Theatre Company, 2000-2012. Awards: Green Room Awards - Best Director Company (2000), Bombshells (2001), Proof (2002), Lulu (2003), August: Osage County (2009), Richard III (2010).

Helpmann Awards - Best Director: Inheritance (2004), The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (2006), Richard III (2010). Training: NZ Drama School.

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Isaac Hayward MUSICAL DIRECTOR

Guy Simpson ORCHESTRATIONS

Queensland Theatre Company: Debut. Other Credits: As Music Director – for Artists: Rhonda Burchmore, Todd McKenney, Jon English, Lucy Maunder, Michael Falzon, Bobby Fox, Queenie van de Zandt, Luke Kennedy, Martin Crewes, Verity Hunt-Ballard. As Music Director: Opera Australia: The Rabbits, Hayes Theatre: Dogfight, Good Egg Creative: Painted From Memory. As Associate Musical Director: The Production Company Nice Work If You Can Get It. As Arranger: Teddy Tahu Rhodes, Idea of North, Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, ABC TV. As pianist: Mary Poppins, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, The Addams Family, Les Miserables, Passion, Grease, Guys & Dolls, Showboat. Awards: ARIA Artisan Award Nomination: The Rock Show, Mo Award: The Rock Show, Rob Guest Endowment Musician Award.

Queensland Theatre Company: Debut. Other Credits: As Musical Supervisor: The Really Useful Group; Cats, The Phantom of the Opera, Love Never Dies; Cameron Mackintosh: Miss Saigon: Gordon Frost Organisation: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. As Musical Director: IMG: Cabaret, Chicago; Queen Theatrical Productions: We Will Rock You; The Production Company/Orchestra Victoria: Funny Girl, Call Me Madam, Mack and Mabel, The Music Man, They’re Playing Our Song, Carousel, Oklahoma!, Camelot, Little Me, Follies, Promises Promises, Gypsy, Guys and Dolls, West Side Story; Life Like Company: Passion; Various productions: Dirty Rotten Scoundrels; Company, Into the Woods, Little Shop of Horrors, Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Pirates of Penzance, Snoopy, Seesaw, Zorba. As Orchestrator: Gordon Frost Organisation: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Dream Lover. Awards: Several Green Room and Helpmann Awards and Nominations. Positions: Judge for the Rob Guest Endowment and the Musician Award.

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Andrew Hallsworth CHOREOGRAPHER

Queensland Theatre Company: Debut. Other Credits: As Choreographer: Opera Australia/ John Frost: Anything Goes; Luckiest Productions/Neil Gooding/ Tinderbox: Sweet Charity; Daniel Sparrow Productions: Rupert; The Production Company: La Cage Aux Folles, Pirates of Penzance, Gypsy, The Producers (co-director/ choreographer), Anything Goes (codirector/choreographer), The Boy From Oz, The Boy Friend, Mame, Carousel; Melbourne Theatre Company: Private Lives, Hamlet, Next To Normal, The Drowsy Chaperone; Arts Centre Melbourne & Adelaide Cabaret Festival: Shane Warne The Musical; Gordon Frost Organisation: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, An Officer and a Gentleman; Entertainment Consulting: Todd McKenney – Songs and Stories of Peter Allen; Bold Jack Productions: Doris Day - So Much More Than The Girl Next Door; Gary Ginivan Productions: Wombat Stew The Musical; Adelaide Cabaret Festival: Newly Discovered; Adelaide Festival Centre: Tegrity; McPherson Touring: Sideshow Alley, Menopause the Musical; Melbourne City Opera: The Merry Widow; Glynn Nicholas Group: Eurobeat – Almost Eurovision (and Edinburgh Festival); Crown and New Theatricals: Leader of the Pack - The Ellie Greenwich Musical; Jacobsen Ent/Really Useful Co: Shout! Under the Big Top (resident director/choreographer). As Associate Director/ Choreographer: Tim Lawson Enterprises: Fiddler On The Roof.

As Associate Choreographer: Priscilla On Stage/Really Useful Group: Priscilla Queen of the Desert; Jacobsen Entertainment: Shout! The Legend of the Wild One. As Co-Choreographer: SOM Produce, Göta Lejon Produktion and NAMCO, Broadway: Priscilla Queen of the Desert; The Production Company: Bye Bye Birdie, The Music Man. Awards: Helpmann Award – Best Choreography Sweet Charity; Helpmann Award Nomination – Best Choreography An Officer and a Gentleman, The Drowsy Chaperone, Leader of the Pack, Menopause the Musical; Green Room Award Nomination – Best Choreography The Producers, A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to the Forum, The Boy from Oz, The Boy Friend, Eurobeat Almost Eurovision, Bye Bye Birdie, The Music Man; Green Room Betty Pounder Award – Choreography Leader of the Pack.

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Gabriela Tylesova DESIGNER

David Walters LIGHTING DESIGNER

Queensland Theatre Company: Debut. Other Credits: Melbourne Theatre Company: The Pillowman, Tomfoolery, Urinetown, Cyrano De Bergerac; Opera Australia: Il Turco in Italia, L’Elisir d’Amore; Lyric Theatre, Chicago: First Wives Club; Gordon Frost Organization: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum; Barking Gecko/ Australian Opera: The Rabbits; The Australian Ballet: Sleeping Beauty, Scheherazade; Monkey Baa Productions/Siren Theatre Company: Fox. As Costume Designer: Bangarra Dance Theatre: Boomerang, Of Earth and Sky; Sydney Theatre Company: This Little Piggy, Volpone, Macbeth, Fireface, Attempts on Her Life; Belvoir: King Ubu, Our Lady of Sligo; Brink Productions/Windmill Performing Arts/ Adelaide Fringe/Sydney Theatre Compay: Clockwork Forest; Eureka Productions: Eureka the Musical; Kookaburra Theatre Company: Pippin; Carousel Theater, Berlin: Low; Griffin Theatre Company: What a Piece of Work; DV8 Physical Theatre: Can We Afford This/The Cost of Living; ATYP: Kinderspiel; B Sharp: My Head Was a Sledgehammer; Kitchen Sink Productions: Kitchen Sink, Close Your Little Eyes. Awards: Helpmann Awards – Best Scenic Design Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, Love Never Dies; Best Costume Design Love Never Dies, Cosi fan tutte; Best Presentation for Children Clockwork Forest; Helpmann Award Nomination – Best Costume Design L’Elisir d’Amore; Green Room Award – Best Design Love Never Dies, The Visit; Best Costume Design Sweeney Todd. Training: Bachelor of Dramatic Arts (Design), NIDA. Queensland Theatre Company: Brisbane, Boston Marriage, Gloria, Macbeth, Australia Day, Venus in Fur, End of the Rainbow, Romeo & Juliet, Pygmalion, Grimm Tales, The August Moon, Rabbit Hole, The Glass Menagerie, The Memory of Water, A Day in the Death of Joe Egg, Molly Sweeney, Chilling and Killing, My Annabel Lee, The Skin of Our Teeth, Vertigo and the Virginia, Long Day’s Journey into Night, Amy’s View, Master Class, After the Ball, Summer Rain, Arcadia, The Hope of the World, Money and Friends, Gilgamesh, The Man from Mukinupin, A Different Drummer, Fuente Ovejuna, Salonika, The Venetian Twins.

Other Credits: Melbourne Theatre Company, Sydney Theatre

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Company, State Theatre Company of South Australia, Bell Shakespeare Company, QUT, QPAC, Jute, Handspan, Playbox, La Boite Theatre Company, Rock‘n’Roll Circus, Nimrod, Company B, Expressions Dance Company, Queensland Ballet, Australian Ballet, Opera Queensland and Zen Zen Zo. In Iceland he has lit for the National Theatre, the National Opera and the Reykjavik City Theatre. Positions: Adjunct Associate Professor in Drama at QUT. Awards: Matilda Awards/ Commendations in 1988, 1990, 1992, 1993, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2007, 2008 and 2012.

Matthew Erskine SYSTEM SOUND DESIGNER

Hanna Sandgren ASSOCIATE DESIGNER

Queensland Theatre Company: As Sound Designer: Country Song.

As Head of Sound: Black Diggers (national tour), Gloria, End of the Rainbow, Faust. As Technician: Oedipus Doesn’t Live Here Anymore.

Other Credits: As Sound Designer: MAD Squad; Australiana, Furry Tails Gone Wrong, Spring into MAD – A Festival of Short Original Musicals. Queensland University of Technology: Who’s Afraid of the Working Class? As Head of Sound: Easter Jazz 2015, Boundary St. As Sound Engineer: Songs for Nobodies (national tour). As System Engineer/ Designer: Eric Bibb: Live at the Brisbane Powerhouse, Eddie Perfect and the ANAM students: Live at the Brisbane Powerhouse; Eddie Perfect, ANAM and the Brodsky Quartet: Songs from the Middle Live at the Brisbane Powerhouse.

Album Credit: Vieux Farka Toure Live (Maiga – Live at the Brisbane Powerhouse). Positions: Technical and Operations Director of MAD Squad.

Queensland Theatre Company: Debut. Other Credits: As Designer: Sydney Chamber Opera: Mayakovsky; NIDA Open: Attempts on Her Life; Canberra Youth Theatre Company: Wickfield Wonderland; Red Stitch Actors Theatre: About Tommy; Stella Electrica: This Trick; Canberra Youth Theatre Company: 4.48 Psychosis; Stella Electrica: Under the Rainbow Spectacular!

Spectacular!; Sydney Grammar School: As You Like It; Australian Theatre for Young People: Sweet Bird andsoforth; Sydney Chamber Opera: The Cunning Little Vixen; Gustave Stage Productions: Love Never Dies. As Set Designer: She Said 29

Productions: Breaking; Fixate Productions and Brisbane Festival: The Things I’d Say to You; Metro Arts Freerange 2012: This Trick; As Design Assistant: Marian Street Theatre: Sleeping Beauty and the Golden Fish; Sydney Theatre Company and La Boite Theatre Company: Edward Gant’s Amazing Feats of Loneliness.

As Costume Designer: NIDA: Flight. Training: Master of Cultural Materials Conservation, University of Melbourne; Bachelor of Dramatic Art (Design), NIDA; Certificate of Fine Art, Gotland’s School of Fine Art (Sweden).

Melissa Agnew DIALECT COACH

Andrew Broadbent FRANK

Queensland Theatre Company: Around 50 productions including The Odd Couple, Boston Marriage, Black Diggers, The Mountaintop, Venus in Fur, The Glass Menagerie, The Goat or Who is Sylvia?, The Prisoner of Second Avenue. Other Credits: Black Swan State Theatre Company: A Streetcar Named Desire; Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (co-production with QTC).

Film: The Proposition. Television: The Pacific. Voice coaching for TV and radio news presenters across Australia. Qualifications: PhD from the University of Sydney.

Teaching Positions: Voice, Speech and Dialect teacher/coach; Queensland Conservatorium (Musical Theatre).

Queensland Theatre Company: Debut. Other Credits: Melbourne Theatre Company/Gordon Frost Organisation: Once; The Production Company: Show Boat, Guys and Dolls, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Sugar, South Pacific, Damn Yankees, Camelot; The Hayloft Project: Delectable Shelter; Newtheatricals: The Addams Family, Jersey Boys; Opera Australia: South Pacific; The Really Useful Company: Love Never Dies; BackRow Productions: Priscilla Queen of the Desert; Jacobsen - Entertainment Ltd: Dirty Dancing – The Classic Story on Stage; Seabiscuit Productions; South Pacific; Magnormous Productions: Saturday Night; Black Swan State Theatre Company: The Merry-Go-Round in the Sea, Rendezvous – an Opera Noir; Capitol, Bendigo: NED – A New Australian Musical; Chapel off Chapel: The Songs of Mackenzie-Spencer and Strano. Television: The Dr Blake Mysteries, It’s A Date.

Training: Bachelor of Arts (Music Theatre), WAAPA; Bachelor of Education (Music Education), Melbourne University.

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Kate Cole MISS CARTWRIGHT/ JOY

Carita Farrer Spencer MRS MILES

Queensland Theatre Company: Debut. Other Credits: Red Stitch Actors Theatre: Grounded, Out of the Water, Jumpers for Goalposts, About Tommy, Day One. A Hotel, Evening, The Laramie Project: 10 Years Later, The Shape of Things, Tejas Verdes, Hellbent, Harvest, Pugilist Specialist, The Night Season, Loyal Women, The Night Heron, Jesus Hopped the A Train, Where’s My Money?, Push Up, Psychopathia Sexualis, Brilliant Traces, Unidentified Human Remains, Extremities; Luckiest/Neil Gooding/Tinderbox: Sweet Charity (tour); Victorian State Opera/IMG: West Side Story, My Fair Lady; Helen Montague Productions: 42nd Street; Melbourne Theatre Company: His Girl Friday, Circle Mirror Transformation. Television: The Divorce, Frontier, Final Sale, Borderline Murder, Endurance Island, Neighbours, Dogwoman – A Grrrl’s Best Friend, Blue Heelers, Stingers, Crashburn. Awards: Green Room Award Nomination – Best Actress Grounded.

Queensland Theatre Company: The Venetian Twins, Proof, A Conversation. Other Credits: Hothouse Theatre Company: The Messiah, The Fabulous Dame Farrar’s Dazzling Display of Stupendous Acts for the Stage!!!; Melbourne Theatre Company: Cyrano de Bergerac; La Boite Theatre Company: A Paper House, The Popular Mechanicals, Speaking in Tongues, The John Wayne Principle; Downstairs Belvoir St/La Boite Theatre Company: X Cess Baggage; The Grin and Tonic Troupe: Monkey … and his magic journey to the west, Seasons; Schnapper Head: Zoo-illogical; Matrix: 1347; Green Theatre Co: The Vagina Monologues, Cheapside, Jerusalem; La Mama/Metro Arts: Trampoline. As Director: National Institute of Circus Arts: Pescado – a cabaret circus fusion; Metro Arts: Little Hitler’s Ode to an Austrian Bentwood. As Cabaret Artist/Musician: Larry Paradiseo & The Fabulous Dame Farrar, Women in Voice, The Fabulous Dame Farrar Goes Brazilian Nuts, Too Much is Never Enough, Diva De Janeiro, Mutha of All Divas, There Was an Old Lady, The Flanelettes, The Mint Patties, The Super Supremes, Todd McKenney Live. Film: Cubby House. Television: Fat 31

Cow Motel, Mortified, Medivac. As Writer/Director: Australia

by Numbers Documentary – Rockhampton 4700 (SBS).

Awards: Matilda Award – Best Supporting Female Actor Proof, The Venetian Twins, Lord Mayor’s Performing Arts Fellowship.

Bobby Fox RUDI

Kathryn McIntyre MYRA/DAWN

Lucy Maunder PATTY

Queensland Theatre Company: Debut. Other Credits: Luckiest Productions: High Society; Enda Markey Productions: Blood Brothers; David Atkins: Hot Shoe Shuffle; Atomic: Atomic; The Production Company: Guys and Dolls, Sweet Charity; Dodger/ Dainty: Jersey Boys the Musical; Dusty Productions: Dusty the Musical; Louise Withers & Assoc: We Will Rock You, Mamma Mia, Spamalot the Musical; Working Management: The Fantastic Mr Fox. Film: The Cup. Television: It’s A Date, House Husbands, Tricky Business.

Awards: Sydney Theatre Critic Award Jersey Boys; Helpmann Award Nomination Jersey Boys; Greenroom Award Nomination Jersey Boys; Greenroom Award Nomination Hot Shoe Shuffle. Training: Ed5 International.

Queensland Theatre Company: One in Seven (QPDA Shortlist Play Reading). Other Credits: Joymas Creative: Recall, Handle with Care; An Old Fashioned Production Company: Bendigo to Broadway, Becoming Bill; Kathryn McIntyre/Judith Wright Centre: Gimme Gimme - Tales of an Eternal Optimist; Dianne Gough Productions: Macbeth the Contemporary Rock Opera; The Arts Centre, Gold Coast: Boy From Oz; Queensland Conservatorium student productions: Our Turn 2013, Miss Saigon, And the World Goes Round, Elegies For Angels, Punks and Raging Queens, Con 2 the Cabaret, Fiddler on the Roof, Summer of the Aliens. Training: Bachelor of Music (Musical Theatre), Queensland Conservatorium of Music, Diploma of Performing Arts (Musical Theatre and Commercial Dance), Davidia Lind Dance Centre.

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Sarah Morrison LISA

Queensland Theatre Company: Debut. Other Credits: Hayes Theatre/Showqueen Productions: Heathers: The Musical; Gordon Frost Organisation: Grease, Doctor Zhivago; Victorian Opera: Into The Woods; Melbourne Recital Centre/ Manilla St Productions: Sondheim On Sondheim; CDP Theatre Producers: Noel and Gertie; Sydney Theatre Company/Malthouse/ Victorian Opera: The Threepenny Opera; TML Enterprises: The Rocky Horror Show, Jekyll and Hyde; Opera Australia: A Little Night Music; Adelaide Cabaret Festival; Songs In The Key Of Black, Love, War, Death, BREL; Neglected Musicals: Lucky Stiff, It’s a Bird, it’s a Plane, It’s Superman!; Hayes Theatre/Gooding Productions: Irving Berlin Songs In The Key Of Black; Newtheatricals: Gale Edwards’ New Rocky Horror Show; Enda Markey Productions: Side By Side By Sondheim; Paul Holmes Productions/Sydney Mardi Gras: Elegies for Angels, Punks and Raging Queens; Malcolm Cooke and Associates: Harp on the Willow; Meredith Shaw: Elegies, A Song Cycle by William Finn. Film: Identical; Channel 4 UK/ABC: The Eternity Man. Awards/ Nominations: Glugs Award – Best Actress in a Musical: Noel and Gertie. Helpmann Nominations – Best Actress in a Musical Doctor Zhivago; Best Supporting Actress in a Musical Into The Woods, Grease. Training: WAAPA. Queensland Theatre Company: Debut. Other Credits: Hubcap Productions: Dust; Pen 2 Stage Productions: Company Member including Nickleodeon’s Meet the Nicktoons; Opera Queensland: Hansel and Gretel, La bohème; The Arts Centre, Gold Coast: Pyjamas in Paradise Launch. Television: The Dr Blake Mysteries, Making Dust.

Training: Bachelor of Arts (Music Theatre), University of Ballarat.

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Christen O’Leary MAGDA

Queensland Theatre Company: The Seagull, Gloria, End of the Rainbow, Bombshells, The Marriage of Figaro, The Game of Love and Chance, The Crucible, Seven Little Australians, The Cherry Orchard, A Month in the Country, Gilgamesh, The Woman Before, The Sunshine Club, Threepenny Opera, The Beaux Stratagem, Fuente Ovejuna.

Other Credits: La Boite Theatre Company: Medea, A Midsummer Night’s Dream; Melbourne Theatre Company: Assassins, The Rover, Cosi, Wednesday to Come, Gift of Gorgon, Ruby Moon, Don Juan in Soho, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, The World’s Wife, Urinetown, Hinterland, Laughter on the 23rd Floor, Man the Balloon, Company, The Comedy of Errors, A Little Night Music; The Production Company: The Boy From Oz, High Society, Hello Dolly; Malthouse Theatre: Ruby Moon, Tear From a Glass Eye, The Goldberg Variations, Porn Cake, Goodbye Vaudeville Charlie Mudd; Sydney Theatre Company: The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Urinetown, Threepenny Opera. Film: Pinch Me. Television: Wentworth, Rush, Neighbours, Blue Heelers, MDA, Worst Best Friends, Crashburn, Seachange, State Coroner, Raw FM. Awards: Gold Matilda Award – End of the Rainbow; Matilda Award Nomination – Best Female Actor in a Featured Role Gloria, Bombshells; Helpmann Award – Best Female Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Helpmann Award Nominations - Best Female in a Leading Role End of the Rainbow; Best Female Actor in a Supporting Role in a Play Goodbye Vaudeville Charlie Mudd; Best Female Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical Urinetown; Green Room Award – Best Female Actor in a Featured Role Company, A Little Night Music. Green Room Award Nominations – Best Female Actor in a Musical The Boy from Oz, Best Female Actor in a Supporting Role Goodbye Vaudeville Charlie Mudd, Best Female Actor in a Featured Role The Eskimo, Best Actress Ruby Moon, Best Supporting Actress in a Musical Assassins. Training: Diploma of Arts (Creative), USQ.

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Naomi Price FAY

Deidre Rubenstein MISS JACOBS/ MRS CROWN

Queensland Theatre Company: Gloria, Rumour Has It (with the little red company). Other Credits: the little red company: Wrecking Ball, Rumour Has It: Sixty Minutes Inside Adele, A Time For Us; Queensland Music Festival: One Hundred and One Years; RedChair/ Judith Wright Centre: Women In Voice 20; La Boite Theatre Company/Matrix Theatre: The Wishing Well; Harbour Agency/QLive: The Class of 69; shake & stir theatre company: Macbeth, Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, Bard to the Bone, Chop Logic, Tragic Magic, Vacant, Say It To My Facebook; Queensland Pops Orchestra: Chartbusters 2; Echelon Productions: Jungle Bungle; Alstar Productions: Elvis To the Max; Oscar Theatre Company: The Last Five Years; Harvest Rain Theatre Company: Jesus Christ Superstar, Still Hurting, Songs For a New World, Scott Alan: Live in Melbourne, The Awfully Big Adventures of Peter Pan, Divas, Alice, Children of Eden, Into the Woods, Little Shop of Horrors, Big Black Box; Schonell Productions: Rent, Tell Me On a Sunday; Brisbane Powerhouse/QUT: Tashi Stories. Television: The Voice Australia 2015, Creative Generation, Carols in the City, NRA Fashion Awards. Awards: Matilda Award – Best Musical or Cabaret Rumour Has It: Sixty Minutes Inside Adele. Training: Bachelor of Creative Industries (Drama), Queensland University of Technology.

Queensland Theatre Company: Debut. Other Credits: Vic Theatre Company: Loving Repeating; Commercial Productions: A Murder is Announced; Brink/ English Touring Theatre: Thursday; Melbourne Theatre Company: North by Northwest, His Girl Friday, Circle Mirror Transformation, Richard III, Life Without Me, August Osage County, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, The History Boys, The Clean House, The World’s Wife, Birth Rights, Life x 3, The Seagull; State Theatre Company of South Australia: The Glass Menagerie, Night Letters, Absurd Person Singular; Playbox: Confidentially Yours, What’s a Girl To Do, Falling From Grace, Head of Mary; Sydney Theatre Company: Broken Glass, Once in a Lifetime; Bell Shakespeare: The Winter’s Tale; Nimrod at Belvoir: You and the Night and the House Wine, Three Sisters, Cloud Nine,

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Top Girls, As You Like It, Variations; Nimrod at Seymour Centre: Wild Honey, She Stoops to Conquer, Merchant of Venice, Les Liaisons Dangereuses. Film: Hey, Hey It’s Esther Blueberger, Force of Destiny, Salvation, Siam Sunset.

Television: MDA, Secret Life of Us, Blue Heelers, Kick, City Homicide, Neighbours, Palace of Dreams, Breaking Through, Mercury. Awards: AFI – Best Actress Palace of Dreams; Helpmann Award Nomination – Best Female Actor in a Supporting Role Night Letters; Training: NIDA.

Greg Stone MR MILES/STEFAN

Queensland Theatre Company: Debut. Other Credits: Gordon Frost Organisation: Once; Melbourne Theatre Company: The Weir, The Waiting Room, Glengarry Glen Ross, The Crucible, Queen Lear, Clybourne Park, Life Without Me, Poor Boy, Blackbird, Love Song, Madwoman of Chaillot, The Pillowman, Cloud Nine, The Seagull, Trelawny of the Wells, Born Yesterday, Lady Windermere's Fan, A Little Night Music, Angels in America. Sydney Theatre Company: The Beauty of Queen Leenane, Stones In His Pockets, Merrily We Roll Along; Belvoir St Theatre: Hamlet, Babyteeth; Malthouse Theatre: The Government Inspector (a co-production with Belvoir), POMPEII LA, A Golem Story; State Theatre Company of South Australia: Don’s Party; Playbox Theatre Company: Julia 3, Myth Propaganda and Disaster in Nazi Germany And Contemporary America, Rapture, A Return to the Brink, Miracles, Good Works; Black Swan Theatre Company: Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Life x 3; Griffin Theatre: All The Black Dogs, McNeil; Hothouse Theatre: The Berry Man. Film: L.A.D., The Sunset Six, Swerve, Oranges and Sunshine, Van Diemen’s Land, Boytown, The Bank.

Television: The Ex-PM, Glitch, Offspring, Better Man, Devil’s Dust, Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries, Lowdown, Underbelly Telemovie; Tell Them Lucifer Was Here, Winners and Losers, City Homicide, Bed of Roses, Librarians, Blue Heelers, MDA, Stingers, Marshall Law, Shock Jock, Halifax FP, State Coroner, Seachange, Good Guys Bad Guys, Janus, Neighbours, The Man From Snowy River, A Country Practice, Boys From The Bush, Skirts, SP, E Street, Shout! Awards: 2015 Green Room Award - Best Ensemble Cast in a Musical Once; 2012 Indie Gems Film Festival Award - Best Male Actor The Sunset Six; Helpmann Award - Best Male Actor in a Play Stuff Happens; Green Room Award - Best Male Performer Stuff Happens.

Training: Bachelor of Drama, NIDA.

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Andrew Johnson ACOUSTIC AND ELECTRIC BASS

Toby Loveland ACOUSTIC AND ELECTRIC GUITAR

Queensland Theatre Company: Rumour Has It. Other Credits: the little red company: Rumour Has It, Wrecking Ball. Musicals: The Lion King, Wicked, Mary Poppins, Avenue Q, Miss Saigon, Legally Blonde, Mamma Mia, Dirty Dancing, Anything Goes, Grease, Annie, Dusty, The Mikado, Glamalot.

Cabaret: the little red company: Rumour Has It: Sixty Minutes Inside Adele, Wrecking Ball; Rhonda Burchmore: Vinyl Viagra; Melinda Schneider: Doris Day; Debbie Byrne; Bob Downe; The Rat Pack’s Back. Live: Luke Kennedy, James Morrison Funk and Soul Band, Kate Ceberano, Doug Parkinson, David Campbell, Blackwood and the Queensland Ballet – Cloudland, Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Queensland Philharmonic Orchestra, Queensland Pops Orchestra, Glen Shorrock, Donny Ray Evins, Bobby Rydell, The View From Madeleine’s Couch, Shannon Marshall, Calabash, Melissa Western, Josh Boyd. Studio: Mark Sholtez, Luke Kennedy, Steven Jaymes, Steve Irwin, Bindi Irwin, Josh Lovegrove, Blackwood, Francesca De Valence, Adam Lopez, Yves Klein Blue, Stacey Broughton, Brad Butcher, Shifter, Shutterspeed, Jambezi, Amanda Halloran, Lance Friend, Nightingale Floor for forests4orangutans.org. Various commercial work for Toyota, Suncorp, Gold Lotto, Seaworld & Movieworld, Revitive and more. Training: Bachelor of Music (Hons), University of Qld. Queensland Theatre Company: Debut. Other Credits: As Performer: For Artists: Anthony Callea, Rob Mills, Todd McKenney, Bert Newton, Lucy Durack, Jemma Rix, Caroline O’Connor, David Atkins, Simon Gallaher, James Morrison, Erika Heynatz, Silvie Paladino. Played with: Dave Skelton, Stephen Amos, Kellie Dickerson, Peter Casey, Tim Smith, David Young, Richard Montgomery, Jazz Flowers, Suzie Mathers, Normie Rowe, Little Patti, Paulini, Jack Vidgen.

For Stage: Mamma Mia, Legally Blonde, Hot Shoe Shuffle, Grease, The Lion King, Wicked, Dirty Dancing, Anything Goes. Positions: Lecturer - TAFE Queensland, Teacher St Joseph’s College.

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Kathryn McKee CELLO

Andrew Maddick VIOLIN

John Parker DRUMS/PERCUSSION

Queensland Theatre Company: Debut. Other Credits: As Performer: For Artists: Kanye West, Il Divo, Patrizio, Guy Sebastian, Archie Roach, Alfio, Played with: Doch Gypsy Orchestra, Opera Queensland, Musica Viva Countrywide, Deep Blue Orchestra, Woodford Folk Festival, Melbourne Fringe Festival, Gympie Music Muster, TEDx Talk, Abba Mania, David Bridie, William Barton, Shellie Morris, Jamie Dunn, Michael Fix, John Rowles, Rhonda Burchmore, Alyce Platt, Silvia Colloca, Ana Marina, Katie Noonan, Kanen Breen, Ben Hakalitz (Yothu Yindi), Marty Wilson-Piper (The Church), James Cruickshank (The Cruel Sea). For Stage: Johnno, Behind the Cane (Queensland Music Festival). Positions: Director of Angel Strings, private cello tutor.

Queensland Theatre Company: Debut. Other Credits: As Performer: Sting, Paolo Nutini, Smokey Robinson, Missy Higgins, Katie Noonan, George Benson, Kathryn Jenkins, English Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra of The Swan, Bootleg Beatles. For Stage: Opera Australia: The King & I; Old Vic, London: The Cherry Orchard: NT, London: Revengers Tragedy; Hofesh Shechter Dance Co: In Your Rooms & Political Mother, Annie, Magic Flute, Erwin und Elmire.

Queensland Theatre Company: Debut. Other Credits: For Artists: Katie Noonan, Vince Jones, James Morrison, Anthony Warlow, Megan Washington, John Rodgers, Mike Nock, Gyan, Michael Leunig, Mark Sholtez, Carita Farrer, Carl Riseley, Sean O'Boyle, Adam Lopez, Topology, Collusion, Southern Cross Soloists, Lunaire Collective, DVA, Loops, Elixir, Expressions Dance Company, Isorhythmos, Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, Women in Voice 10-21, Queensland Arts Council, Opera Queensland. For Festivals/Touring: UK, China, South America and Canada 38

with Trichotomy. Banff International Workshop, JazzAhead (Germany) and MIDEM (France), Takasuki Street Jazz Festival – (Japan), Tokyo International Jazz Festival (Japan), Kutchan Jazz Festival (Japan), Calgary International Jazz Festival, Adelaide Festival, Wangaratta Festival of Jazz, Melbourne International Jazz Festival, Apollo Bay Music Festival, Darling Harbour Jazz Festival, Canberra Jazz Festival, Castlemaine Festival of the Arts, Queensland Music Festival and Biennial, Stradbroke Island Chamber Music Festival, Brisbane International Jazz Festival, Out of the Box Children's Festival, Woodford Folk Festival. Awards: 3rd place – Audio Technology Remix Competition (2014), 3rd place – Percussive Arts Society Composition Contest (2012), Finalist Freedman Jazz Fellowship (2011), Bell Award – Best Jazz Album Night Light (mixing). Positions: Queensland Conservatorium - Jazz Drums, Marist College Ashgrove, Co-founder of publisher Prepared Sounds, Composer for Percussion Ensemble and Video Games.

Jessica Burns STAGE MANAGER ASSISTANT DIRECTOR (SECONDMENT)

Queensland Theatre Company: Red. Other Credits: Melbourne Theatre Company: North by Northwest, Jumpy, Pennsylvania Avenue, Glengarry Glen Ross, The Crucible, Red, Constellations, Queen Lear, Music, The Importance of Being Earnest, Hamlet, Next to Normal, A Behanding in Spokane, All About My Mother, The Grenade, Rockabye, Moonlight and Magnolias, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, The Hypocrite, Love Song, The Madwoman of Chaillot, The Ghost Writer, The Female of the Species, Hitchcock Blonde, Two Brothers, Coup d’Etat and Life x 3; Disney Productions: The Lion King; Gordon Frost Organisation: The Producers; Malcolm C. Cooke & Associates: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe; Malthouse Theatre: Minefields and Miniskirts, The Elocution of Benjamin Franklin.

Queensland Theatre Company: As Stage Manager: The Seagull, Brisbane, Stradbroke Dreamtime, Fractions (co-production with HotHouse Theatre Company), Macbeth, Fat Pig, A Property of the Clan. As Assistant Stage Manager: Managing Carmen, I Feel Awful, Betrayal, Anatomy Titus – Fall of Rome (co-production with Bell

Dan Sinclair DEPUTY STAGE MANAGER

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Shakespeare Company). Other Credits: As Production Stage Manager/Tour Manager: shake & stir theatre co: 1984 (national tour), Animal Farm (regional/national tour); Breast Wishes – An Uplifting Musical supporting the National Breast Cancer Foundation. As Production Stage Manager: shake & stir theatre co: Wuthering Heights, 1984, Roald Dahl’s Revolting Rhymes & Dirty Beasts, Tequila Mockingbird, Animal Farm, Out Damn Snot. La Boite Theatre Company: A Hoax, Hamlet, Walking By Apple Tree Creek (regional/ national tour), Summer of the Seventeenth Doll, plus many more since 2003. Stage Management: QPAC, Brisbane Festival & Great Big Events for the Doha Asian Games. As Show Caller: Creative Generation: State Schools Onstage 2010, 2012-2015. Positions: Production Touring Coordinator, QTC; Tour Manager, La Boite Theatre Company; Training: Bachelor of Fine Arts (Technical Production), QUT. Awards: Drover Award Tour of the Year 2013 - shake & stir theatre co: Animal Farm, Drover Award Tour of the Year 2014 shake & stir theatre co: 1984.

Pip Loth ASSISTANT STAGE MANAGER

Queensland Theatre Company: As Stage Manager: Gloria. As Assistant Stage Manager: Country Song. As Set Builder: Macbeth.

Other Credits: As Stage Manager: La Boite Theatre Company: A Midsummer Night’s Dream; Motherboard Productions: Shimchong, Daughter Overboard!; EMS Entertainment: Barbie Live!

The Musical (East Pacific Tour); Life Like Touring: Elmo’s World Tour, Dora the Explorer’s Pirate Adventure. As Assistant Stage Manager: Gordon Frost Organisation: Driving Miss Daisy; Dreamworks & Global Creatures: How to Train your Dragon – Arena Spectacular (North American Tour). As Site Manager and Assistant Production Manager: Midsumma Festival, Melbourne. Film: As Electrics Rigger: Nim’s Island, Terra Nova. Positions: AV Technician, Avcom. Training: Bachelor of Fine Arts (Technical Production), Queensland University of Technology (Honours); Certificate II – Furniture Making & Finishing, Yeronga Institute of TAFE; Diploma of Live Production; Theatre & Events, Southbank Institute of TAFE.

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Chief Financial Officer: Michael Cullinan Systems Accountant: Roxane Eden Assistant Accountant: Jolene Wright MEMBERS OF THE BOARD Venue and Operations Supervisor: Richard Fotheringham (Chair) Elizabeth Jameson (Deputy Chair) Julian Messer Front of House and Events Officer: Kirstin Ferguson Leisha Du Bois Erin Feros Simon Gallaher Marketing and Audience Peter Hudson Development Manager: Nathan Jarro Yvonne Whittington Head of Campaigns: ARTISTIC DIRECTOR Jane Hunterland Sam Strong Marketing Coordinator: Amanda Solomons EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Marketing Assistant: Sue Donnelly Yuverina Shewpersad Digital Marketing Officer: Executive Assistant: David D’Arcy Tammy Sleeth Graphic Designer: Aleesha Cuffe Artistic Associate: Andrea Moor Database Trainer and Resident Director: Supervisor: Jason Klarwein Dale Ric-Hansen Programming Manager/ Publicist: Senior Producer: Kath Rose and Associates Sophia Hall Ticketing Coordinator: Artistic Coordinator: Maggie Holmes Samantha French Ticketing Officer: Donna Fields-Brown Producer (New Work and Development): Season 2016 Customer Shari Irwin Service Team Members: Touring and Regional Maneka Singh (Team Leader) Program Coordinator: Madison Bell Christine Johnstone Nathan Hollingworth Producer (Education and Tanya Leadbetter Youth Programs): Sally Lewis Heidi Irvine PATRON His Excellency the Honourable Paul de Jersey AC Governor of Queensland

Programming Project Officer: Laurel Collins

Philanthropy Manager: Amanda Jolly Corporate Partnerships Manager: Nikki Porter Development Coordinator: Dee Morris

To ensure that patrons enjoy the performance, management asks you to note: • Cameras, tape recorders and paging devices should not be used inside the auditorium.

• Switch off alarms and mobile phones prior to the performance.

• A single cough measures approximately 65 decibels of sound. The use of a handkerchief helps greatly to soften the sound.

The management reserves the right to refuse admission, also to make any alterations to the cast which may be rendered necessary by illness or other unavoidable causes.

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.

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Production Manager: Toni Glynn Technical Coordinator: Daniel Maddison Head of Workshop: Peter Sands Company Carpenter/ Head Mechanist: John Pierce Head of Wardrobe: Vicki Martin Indigenous Reference Group: Nathan Jarro (Chair) Adam James Angela Leitch Paula Nazarski Todd Phillips Michael Tuahine Associate Artists: Rod Ainsworth Candy Bowers Carol Burns Katherine Lyall-Watson David Morton Gayle MacGregor Paula Nazarski Ngoc Phan Lucas Stibbard Front of House (The GreenHouse): Anita Hughes Madison Bell Sally Lewis FOUNDING DIRECTOR Alan Edwards, AM, MBE (1925 – 2003) Queensland Theatre Company is a member of Live Performance Australia.

Acknowledgements Atomic Martini Chameleon Touring Systems Darb Bridal Couture Millinery Department TAFE QLD Brisbane Norwest Productions Piano Accompanist: Benedict Braxton-Smith Rehearsal Photography: Stephen Henry Retro Metro Robyn Smallhorn The Bushing Family

Ladies in Black Production Staff Carpenters Jamie Bowman Deyne Keegan Aleksis Waaralinna Prop Makers Michelle Betts Pip Loth Aleksis Waaralinna Workshop Assistants Tom Ash Lillith Tremmery Revolve Operator Samuel Maher Scenic Artist Leo Herreygers Costume Supervisor Nathalie Ryner Principle Cutters/Costume Makers Leigh Buchanan Michelle Wiki Cutters/Costume Makers Bianca Bulley Saffron Firkins Costume Makers Kiara Bulley Angela Gearing Barbara Kerr Gaye Lee Frances Pyper Costume Assistant Jessica Ross Milliner Vicki Martin Wardrobe Dresser Hahnie Goldfinch Wardrobe Maintenance Frances Pyper Wig and Hair Stylist /Dresser Michael Green Front of House Engineer Matthew Erskine Production Electrician Matt Golder Radio Mic Technician John Taylor Brady Watkins Sound Consultant Will Moore Repetiteur Benedict Braxton-Smith QTC Mechanist Kane Ernst QTC Floor Technician Lilith Tremmery Stage Management Secondment QUT Tenneale Rogers QPAC Production Staff Head Electrician Kristen Emery/Matthews Head Mechanist Richard Aishford

30

C E L E B R AT I N G

PO Box 3567, South Bank, Queensland 4101 Tel: (07) 3840 7444 www.qpac.com.au Chair Chris Freeman AM Deputy Chair Rhonda White AO Trustees Kylie Blucher Simon Gallaher Sophie Mitchell Mick Power AM Executive Staff Chief Executive: John Kotzas Director – Presenter Services: Ross Cunningham Director – Marketing: Roxanne Hopkins Director – Corporate Services: Kieron Roost Director – Patron Services: Jackie Branch ACKNOWLEDGMENT The Queensland Performing Arts Trust is a Statutory body of the State of Queensland and is partially funded by the Queensland Government The Honourable Annastacia Palaszczuk MP Premier and Minister for the Arts Director-General, Department of Premier and Cabinet: David Stewart Ladies in Black QPAC Staff Associate Director – Arts Programming: Kirsten Siddle Associate Director – Presenter Services: Bill Jessop Associate Director – Ticketing: Chris Holder Program Development Manager: Janelle Christofis Producer: Paul Dellit Manager – Production Services: Chris Philippi Ticketing and Client Services Manager: Robyn Gander Qtix Account Manager: Craig Watkins Senior Subscriptions Coordinator: Maria De Gregorio Senior Groups Sales Coordinator: Jan Murphy Manager – Patron Services: Kim Davis Front of House Services Manager: Tracey Nicklin Front of House Operations Manager: Greg Altenhof Campaigns Manager, Marketing: Eleanor Price Digital Marketing Manager: Kim Harper Senior Online Marketing Coordinator: Katrin Potthast Digital Marketing Coordinator: Nadia Razzhigaeva Digital Content Editor: Jasmine Ellem Database Administrator: Ruby Hall Strategic Communications Manager: Angela Slater Marketing Manager: Alex Holloway Senior Advertising Coordinator: Judy Worsfold Manager – Staging: Tony Maher Manager – Lighting and Electrical Services: Marcel Micola Von Furstenrecht Manager – Audio/Visual: John Kelly

43

What a great performance!

ALS Limited is a proud sponsor of

Queensland Theatre Company

A PERFECTLY MATCHED ENSEMBLE As proud sponsors, we’re delighted to support the Queensland Theatre Company’s production that brings life to Madeleine St John’s glamorous 1993 novel – The Women in Black.

HERBERTSMITHFREEHILLS.COM

We hope you enjoy the show.

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support act

Australia’s most awarded venue Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre Perfect for your next event

As a law firm with a history going back more than 190 years, Allens understands what it takes to run a successful show. That is why we are proud to once again support the Queensland Theatre Company and its 2015 season.

Visit www.allens.com.au

• Stunning, sophisticated and exciting selection of unique function spaces • From intimate boardrooms to Brisbane’s finest function room, The Skyroom & Terrace • World class cuisine • 44 unique meeting and event spaces - for 8 to 8,000 guests • Conveniently located in Brisbane’s cultural, entertainment and transport hub

What makes us so different? Visit bcec.com.au For your next event email sales@bcec.com.au or phone our friendly Corporate Sales Team on 3308 3063

Allens is an independent partnership operating in alliance with Linklaters LLP.

Thank You To Our Current Donors We thank all our generous donors for their contribution to our work.

Your assistance makes it possible for us to enrich the cultural life of our community.

Donations over $250 are acknowledged for 12 months from the date of donation. Visit queenslandtheatre.com.au or phone our Philanthropy Manager on 07 3010 7621 to find out how you can support our work.

TRUST & FOUNDATIONS

$10,000+

$5,000-$9,999

Creative Partnerships Australia

1 Anonymous

John & Lynnly Chalk

Pamela M Marx

Wesley Enoch

Cathryn Mittelheuser AM

Richard Fotheringham & Roslyn Atkinson AO

The Ian Potter Foundation

Bruce & Sue Shepherd

RACQ Foundation Tim Fairfax Family Foundation

$2,000-$4,999

$1,000-$1,999

2 Anonymous

4 Anonymous Anne & Peter Allen Julieanne Alroe Lisa & William Bruce Mathieu & Anastasia Ellerby Erin Feros Merrilyn Goos Ian & Ruth Gough Geoffrey Hirst & Sally Wilde Hudson Family Tempe Keune David & Katrina King Susan Learmonth &

William Ash & Margi Brown Ash John H Casey Sue Donnelly Kirstin & Glen Ferguson Alan Galwey William & Claire Glasson Bruce & Alexandra Grove E M Jameson & A L Anderson

$500-$999

John & Gabrielle Hull

Production Sponsors Bernard Curran Dean & Kath Merlo Karl & Louise Morris Nicklin Medical Service Donal & Una O’Sullivan Geoffrey Rush Marianna Serghi Cecily Stevenson Damien Thompson & Glenise Berry Sandy Vigar & Martin Pearson Plate Marketing R & M William

Building Enhancement Program

Denise O'Boyle

Melissa Agnew

Greg & Wendy O’Meara

Madeleine Brennan

Paddington Clinic

Stephen & Jennifer Boyd

Diane & Robert Parcell

Julian Buckley & Bec Langdon

Blayne & Helen Pitts

Ian & Richard Bunzli

Bruce Richardson & Taninnuch Stone

7 Anonymous Leanne Austin Phil Barker Melissa Bennett Louisa Bewley & Geoff Harris Virginia Bishop Chris Bourke Ethna Brown Joan Brown Judith Carrey Rodd Chignell Michael & Margaret Clancy Ralph Collins Christine Comans June Craw OAM Michael Cullinan Judi Ewings William & Lenore Ferguson Kate Foy Peter & Gay Gibson Anita Green Ian & Ruth Gough Andrea & Malcolm Hall-Brown

Angela Ramsay

John Richardson & Kirsty Taylor

Toni Glynn

Gary Sawyer

Pamela Greet & Nicholas Beaton

Wendy Tonkes Margaret & Norman Wicks

Amanda Jolly

David Wilson

Ross & Sophia Lamont

Ian Yeo & Sylvia Alexander

Joan M. Lawrence AM

Sharon York & Mark Smith

Fred & Margaret Leditschke Andrew & Kate Lister Susan Mabin Brad Mammino Ian & Rhyl McLeod Rob & Barbara Murray

Daryl Hanly David Hardidge Fotini Hardy Rob & Zelle Hodge Tammy S Linde B Lloyd Mad Dance House Sandra McCullagh Carolyn McIlvenny Angie & Peter McPhee Sandra McVeigh Hon. Tom McVeigh Dee Morris & Reny Rennie Darryl Nisbet Kartina Oei Catherine Quinn People Resourcing Lyn & Joanne Scott Karen Smith-Pomeroy Bronwyn Springer Coralie Van Straaten-Peretz Amy Walduck Michael & Coleen Wilson D & J Woodward

Regional Sponsors

WorkPac Group

Season Sponsors

Season Supporters

Media Supporters

Promotional Partners: Coev Haircutters; Morton Hire

48

Official Airline Partner

solar

$250-$499

10 Anonymous

Alan & Annette Davie

Presenting Sponsors

Thomas Wright

The Prior Family

Bob Cleland

Government Partners

Tim & Kym Reid

Noela & Colin Kratzing

Rita Carter-Brown

Thanks to our Sponsors

Queensland Theatre Company in association with Queensland Performing Arts Centre presents the world premiere of

78 Montague Rd, South Brisbane PO Box 3310 South Brisbane BC QLD 4101 Tel 07 3010 7600 Fax 07 3010 7699 Ticketing 1800 355 528 queenslandtheatre.com.au mail@queenslandtheatre.com.au facebook.com/qldtheatreco twitter.com/qldtheatreco

Š The State of Queensland (Queensland Theatre Company) 2015 Disclaimer: Every endeavour has been made to ensure that the contents of this brochure are correct at the time of printing.

However, things can change. Queensland Theatre Company reserves the right to vary advertised programs and to add, withdraw or substitute artists as necessary.

Recycle this program Support Greening QTC 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

Ladies in Black is based on Madeleine St John’s bestselling novel, The Women in Black.

www.textpublishing.com.au