LADIES IN BLACK | 2017

“A great season of theatre is like a great album. It is a series of unique experiences that form a meaningful whole and take you on a journey. Welcome to the next era of your Queensland Theatre”.

Sam Strong, Artistic Director

The journey across our nine shows in 2017 is deliberately varied, but unified by our desire to share the very best with Brisbane. You can see urgent new Australian stories, the finest international plays, the hottest next generation of talent and the country’s most outstanding artists.

Each of the plays in Season 2017 achieves what theatre does best – puts human experience under the microscope. We can see ourselves reeling with chaos in the workplace, enraptured in new romance, navigating the parent-child relationship, celebrating with family and wrestling with a failing marriage.

Theatre is unique in its capacity to change how we feel – about ourselves, about our lives, about our universe. Welcome to the next era of your Queensland Theatre.

Ladies in Black (28 Jan — 19 Feb)

(10 Feb — 5 Mar)

The Flick

Constellations

Our heart-warmingly joyous musical back by popular demand

An exquisitely observed meditation on love and change

A romance wrapped in a science blanket

Once in Royal David’s City

Noises Off (3 — 25 Jun)

(24 Jun — 16 Jul)

The great new Australian play by one of our greatest writers

A shamelessly entertaining farce that guarantees a fun night

An insightful story about the personal side of globalisation

My Name is Jimi

An Octoroon

Scenes from a Marriage

An intimate audience with our most charismatic storyteller

A provocatively hilarious interrogation of identity

A riveting portrait of a marriage performed by a real-life couple

(22 Apr — 14 May)

(22 Jul — 13 Aug)

(16 Sep — 8 Oct)

(9 Mar — 9 Apr)

Rice

(11 Nov — 3 Dec)

THE 2017 SEASON

QUEENSLAND THEATRE IN ASSOCIATION WITH QUEENSLAND PERFORMING ARTS CENTRE PRESENTS

BOOK BY CAROLYN BURNS, MUSIC AND LYRICS BY TIM FINN BASED ON MADELEINE ST JOHN’S NOVEL, THE WOMEN IN BLACK DIRECTED BY SIMON PHILLIPS

28 January – 19 February Playhouse, QPAC

ATTENDANCE INFORMATION

Ladies in Black will run for approximately 2 hours and 30 minutes including a 20-minute interval.

Cast Kate Cole....................................... Miss Cartwright/Joy Carita Farrer Spencer......................................Mrs Miles

Warning: Contains smoke and haze. The use of photographic or recording equipment is not permitted inside the theatre.

Bobby Fox.................................................................. Rudi

Cover Photo: David Kelly

Madeleine Jones..................................................... Patty

Natalie Gamsu......................................................Magda Tamlyn Henderson.................................................. Frank Kathryn McIntyre........................................ Myra/Dawn

RECYCLE THIS PROGRAM

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

Sarah Morrison........................................................... Lisa

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY

Marian Heckenberg..................................................Bass

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 all Aboriginal peoples whichever Aboriginal nation they may come from.

Ladies in Black is proudly supported by: Production Sponsor

Trisha Noble........................... Miss Jacobs/Mrs Crown Ellen Simpson............................................................. Fay Greg Stone............................................ Mr Miles/Stefan Daniel Maher..........................................................Guitar Andrew Maddick.................................................... Violin Nathan Smith............................................................Cello Dave George..................................... Drums/Percussion

Creatives Carolyn Burns.................................................Playwright Tim Finn........................................................... Composer Simon Phillips......................................................Director Guy Simpson........... Orchestrator/Musical Supervisor David Young......................................... Musical Director Gabriela Tylesova.............................................. Designer David Walters.....................................Lighting Designer Andrew Hallsworth............................... Choreographer Michael Waters.....................................Sound Designer Jessica Burns..................................... Assistant Director Bobby Fox.............................................. Dance Captain Eloise Grace................................... Company Manager Will Lewis...............................................Stage Manager

78 Montague Road, South Brisbane, Queensland, 4101

Dan Sinclair..............................Deputy Stage Manager Margaret Burrows................Assistant Stage Manager

Tel: 07 3010 7600 Fax: 07 3010 7699 Ticketing: 1800 355 528

Additional lyrics by Simon Phillips and Carolyn Burns

Follow us on:    

mail@queenslandtheatre.com.au COMING-OF-AGE

FEEL GOOD

FASHIONISTA

COMEDY

ROCK STAR

SMASH HIT

MADE IN QLD

Pictured opposite L-R: Trisha Noble, Kate Cole, Kathryn McIntyre, Ellen Simpson, Natalie Gamsu, Sarah Morrison.

Ladies in Black represents everything we aspire to at Queensland Theatre.

It’s a world-class, original Australian work that combines the best local talent with the country’s most acclaimed artists. It’s one of our stories, brought to the stage with heart and flair. Most importantly, it’s a chance for you, our audience, to step outside of the everyday and experience something remarkable.

— Sue Donnelly

Sarah Morrison

Welcome

Sue Donnelly Executive Director

A few years ago I read and loved Madeleine St John’s delightful novel, The Women in Black, never imagining that one day our Company would bring 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 to see the results of the first creative development for this project.

I was instantly captivated by the engaging script as well as the beautiful, catchy songs written by Tim Finn. I even cried at the end. Upon returning to the Company I passionately advocated that we should produce this exciting new work. The Board of Queensland Theatre boldly embraced the idea, along with assistance from the Queensland Government and Queensland Performing Arts Centre, and in late 2015 the dream became a reality - Ladies in Black opened in Brisbane to enraptured audiences and critical acclaim.

In 2016 Melbourne Theatre Company began their season with this joyously open-hearted musical that became a sold-out sensation. A few months later Tim Finn, Simon Phillips and Carolyn Burns accepted the prestigious Helpmann Award for Best New Australian work.

Now in 2017, the elegant ladies of Goode’s cocktail frocks department are back in Brisbane, with a new energy and commitment to making this work as fresh and delightful for audiences today as it was upon its premiere. And it isn’t just Brisbane who can share in the magic – Ladies in Black is in the midst of a national tour. Just back from an exciting Sydney season and primed for audiences in Canberra and a return season in Melbourne, this quintessentially Australian

musical is deservedly reaching more and more of its family across the country.

We can’t think of a better way to open our 2017 Season, the first curated by our Artistic Director, Sam Strong. Ladies in Black represents everything we aspire to at Queensland Theatre. It’s a world-class, original Australian work that combines the best local talent with the country’s most acclaimed artists. It’s one of our stories, brought to the stage with heart and flair. Most importantly, it’s a chance for you, our audience, to step outside of the everyday and experience something remarkable.

We’re grateful to the original cast members who first brought this show to life in 2015 and to our current cast who have taken it to further heights, perfectly directed by the ever-charming, Simon Philips. We also thank the tireless production crew and the very talented creatives who have come up with inspired ideas to solve difficult logistical problems.

We are thrilled to welcome you to the theatre tonight. Thank you for being a part of the next chapter in the life of Ladies in Black and Queensland Theatre.

Best wishes Sue

L-R: Ellen Simpson, Carita Farrer Spencer, Kate Cole, Sarah Morrison, Madeleine Jones, Trisha Noble.

The lives of the women (and men) in this story who work the counter at Goode's is as charming as it is relevant for audiences today. — John Kotzas

Bobby Fox

L-R: Madeleine Jones, Tamlyn Henderson.

Message from QPAC’s Chief Executive It’s my great pleasure to welcome Ladies in Black back to QPAC. Ladies in Black a homegrown success story – based on a novel by Madeleine St John and adapted for the stage

by Carolyn Burns, directed by Simon Phillips, with the music of Tim Finn and a creative team including Gabriela Tylesova and David Walters, Ladies in Black demonstrates the strength of Australia’s artistic prowess. Creating new works is a big undertaking and is often risky; striking the right chord of what appeals to audiences and what works artistically can be daunting and so we celebrate the times when everything comes together. Now, with a national tour already complete, as well as the award for Best New Australian work at last year’s Helpmann® Awards, this second national tour and return season at QPAC has filled many of us who worked on this production with pride.

The lives of the women (and men) in this story who work the counter at Goode's is as charming as it is relevant for audiences today. The messages of tolerance, hope for the future, inclusion and finding a sense of self in a rapidly changing world are messages we need now more than ever. It is a testament to the power of art that no matter the setting or the method of delivery, art can connect us and help us to find empathy and meaning.

I hope you enjoy this performance of Ladies in Black, and look forward to welcoming you again to QPAC. John Kotzas Chief Executive QPAC

9

From our Sponsor At Griffith University, we celebrate, believe in and strive for the remarkable. The remarkable people – from students, staff, and alumni – who enhance our institution and improve the world. The remarkable learning experiences that transform people and communities, and the remarkable research contributions that change the future.

2017 represents the 16th year of Griffith University’s remarkable partnership with Queensland Theatre.

Queensland Theatre continues to play a major role in informing and shaping the cultural vitality of the entire state of Queensland.

As Pro Vice Chancellor of Griffith’s Arts Education and Law Group, educating and engaging with students, researchers and community in areas ranging from the Performing and Visual Arts to Criminology, Law, Social Sciences and Education, theatre provides key insights to help us strive to create a better world for tomorrow.

Through this partnership, Griffith students and staff enjoy valuable opportunities to work with Queensland Theatre’s talented artists and directors, and engage with various professional development opportunities.

Griffith University is honoured to support Queensland Theatre as they continue to develop and deliver transformative productions that entertain and inspire people across the community.

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

COMING-OF-AGE

FEEL GOOD

FASHIONISTA

COMEDY

11

ROCK STAR

SMASH HIT

MADE IN QLD

Playwright’s Note 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.

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. 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

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.

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

in 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. 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

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!

Carolyn Burns

department of Sydney’s most prestigious department store, while waiting for her school leaving results. The women she meets, with their genuine love of style 12

L-R: Greg Stone, Natalie Gamsu, Bobby Fox.

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. — Carolyn Burns

L-R: Madeleine Jones, Ellen Simpson, Natalie Gamsu.

Composer's Note 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, and generously funded by Queensland

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. 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 Queensland Theatre's Executive Director Sue Donnelly and Artistic Director Sam Strong, QPAC's Artistic Director John Kotzas, and former Queensland Theatre and current Sydney Festival Artistic Director Wesley Enoch.

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

Theatre and QPAC, we are here with our return season. 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

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

Tim Finn

14

L-R: Greg Stone, Natalie Gamsu, Sarah Morrison, Bobby Fox.

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. — Tim Finn

COMING-OF-AGE

FEEL GOOD

FASHIONISTA

COMEDY

ROCK STAR

SMASH HIT

MADE IN QLD

Tim Finn

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. — Simon Phillips

Simon Phillips

L-R: Kathryn McIntyre, Kate Cole, Madeleine Jones, Trisha Noble.

Director's Note 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 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. 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! But notice also the deft hand with which St John’s social acuity inveigles its way into the story.

She sees nothing mutually exclusive between feminism and femininity and she demolishes xenophobia through celebration rather than counterterrorism. The story sits firmly in its place in time, but it has so much to offer our 21st century world. 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. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. A huge thank you to everyone who has helped bring it to the stage.

Simon Phillips

17

S EL FA LI S NG T

Coming Soon

10 FEB — 5 MAR

9 MAR — 9 APR

22 APR — 14 MAY "VERY MOVING"

êêêêê

êêêêê

— The Age

— The Guardian

— Stage Whispers

“Boldly original, hilarious,

“Who knew that higher physics

“Extremely and acidly funny,

heartbreaking and

could be so sexy, so accessible,

hugely rewarding.”

and so emotionally devastating?”

— The Mail On Sunday

— New York Times

QUEENSLAND THEATRE IN ASSOCIATION WITH QPAC PRESENTS A RED STITCH

QUEENSLAND THEATRE PRESENTS

ACTORS THEATRE PRODUCTION

THE FLICK

by Annie Baker

touchingly compassionate.”

— Stage Noise

QUEENSLAND THEATRE AND BLACK SWAN STATE THEATRE COMPANY PRESENT

IN ROYAL CONSTELLATIONS ONCE DAVID’S CITY

by Nick Payne

by Michael Gow

Film buff Avery takes a

Lucas Stibbard (Boy Girl

minimum-wage job at

Wall) and Jessica Tovey

Will has planned to share a restful Christmas with his

crumbling movie palace, The

(Wonderland, Home and

mother. But then she falls ill.

During a bedside vigil, Will is

Flick. His thirty-something

Away) play a love-struck

colleague Sam seems resigned

beekeeper and a quantum

forced to piece together the

to his unrequited love for

physicist. The odds of

shards of his life, questioning

Rose, the achingly cool

them getting together are

his role as an artist, a son, and

projectionist. As one late night

astronomical. But when

a citizen of the world. Another

blurs into another, this trio of

their worlds do collide, all

moving and life-affirming work

painfully ordinary people bond

the possibilities of their life

by Michael Gow (Away).

over movie trivia, low-level

together – good, bad and ugly

embezzling and shared ennui.

– flicker across the stage in a series of snapshots.

Production Sponsor

CREMORNE THEATRE, QPAC

BILLE BROWN STUDIO

PLAYHOUSE, QPAC

Thank you for your support Queensland Theatre gratefully acknowledges our donors who share our passion and support our work.

Trust and Foundations Australian Communities Foundation Copyright Agency Limited Creative Partnerships Australia English Family Foundation The Ian Potter Foundation John T Reid Charitable Trusts Tim Fairfax Family Foundation $10,000 Plus Pamela Marx Cathryn Mittelheuser AM Bruce & Sue Shepherd University of Queensland $5,000-$9,999 John & Lynnly Chalk Roslyn Atkinson & Richard Fotheringham John & Gay Hull

Ian & Ruth Gough Michael Gowan Malcolm & Andrea Hall-Brown Tempe Keune David & Katrina King Ross & Sophia Lamont Susan Learmonth & Bernard Curran Fred & Margaret Leditschke Bruce & Irene Moy The Nicklin Family Donal & Una O'Sullivan Blayne & Helen Pitts Cass George Catherine Quinn John Reid AO & Lynn Rainbow-Reid AM Marianna Serghi Margaret Williams

$500 - $999 11 Anonymous Melissa Agnew Geoffrey Beames Robert Bond Lisa & William Bruce Bob Cleland Conrad & Pella Comino Alan & Annette Davie Sharyn Ghidella Merrilyn & Kevin Goos Louisa Bewley & Geoff Harris Rob & Zelle Hodge Heidi Irvine Amanda Jolly Michael & Karlie Keating Barry & Laraine Kelly B Lloyd $1,000 - $1,999 Susan Mabin 2 Anonymous R & B Murray J M Alroe Assoc. Prof Damien Thomson & Denise O'Boyle Greg & Wendy O'Meara Dr Glenise C. Berry Di & Robert Parcell Dianne J Dickson Angela Ramsay Matheiu & Anastasia Ellerby Dale Ric-Hansen William & Claire Glasson $2,000-$4,999 Anonymous Anne & Peter Allen Sue Donnelly Wesley Enoch Alan Galwey Geoffrey Hirst & Sally Wilde EM Jameson & AL Anderson Colin & Noela Kratzing Dr Joan M. Lawrence AM Andrew & Kate Lister Karl & Louise Morris The Prior Family Tim & Kym Reid Cecily Stevenson Sandy Vigar Pearson

John Richardson & Kirsty Taylor Gary Sawyer Wendy Tonkes Kathy Uzsoki Greg & Sally Vickery Lily Vrtik Margaret & Norman Wicks Pam Willsher Ian Yeo & Sylvia Alexander $250 - $499 10 Anonymous Leanne Austin Cheryl Beaton Melissa Bennett Virginia Bishop Ethna Brown Rodd & Wendy Chignell Margaret & Michael Clancy Ralph Collins Tony Costantini Laurie Margaret Cowled Cambray Consulting Kate Foy Peter & Gay Gibson Anita Green Ruth Hamlyn-Harris Daryl & Trish Hanly David Hardidge Fontina Hardy Stephen & Yvonne Henry Hudson Family Leo & Juni Irwin Caroline Kelly John & Lynn Kelly Sean Leader Sandra McCullagh Wendy Tainsh Mark Menhinnitt Kartini Oei Lyn & Joanne Scott Gillian Tye Vicki Williams Margaret Wilson Frederick N Winter

Legal Chapter Anonymous Michael & Anne Back Jennifer Batts Michelle & Victor Borzillo Sarah Bradley Peter Bridgman & Susan Booth Michael & Anne-Maree Byrne Sheryl Cornack Leone Costigan David de Jersey Ralph & Frances Devlin Scott & Lee Falvey H G Fryberg Richard Fryberg John & Lois Griffin Daryl & Trish Hanly K & M Hodge Kevin & Joanne Holyoak Fleur Kingham John & Janice Logan Stephen & Hana Mackie Richard & Denise Morton Debra & Patrick Mullins Anastasia Nicholas Leanne O'Shea & Peter Gilroy Tina Previtera and John Lock Bernadette Rogers Barbara Houlihan & Jeff Rolls Walter Sofronoff QC Natalie Strijland Peter G. Williams Margaret Wilson

If you want to be part of what makes Queensland Theatre great, please consider donating.

Together we will build a vibrant theatre culture, introduce young people to the performing arts, reach regional audiences and support the next generation of outstanding artists. All donations, large or small, make a difference to our work. Thank you for your support.

To find out more about supporting Queensland Theatre queenslandtheatre.com.au/Support-Us

COMING-OF-AGE RESIDENCY

FEEL GOOD TALENT

FASHIONISTA COMEDY REGIONAL ROCK STAR PHILANTHROPY

SMASH HIT INDI

MADE IN QLD YOUTHIES

Sydney, 1959 – a city at the crossroads between the stuffy repression of the 1950s and the glorious liberation of the 1960s …

L-R: Ellen Simpson, Trisha Noble, Kate Cole, Madeleine Jones, Kathryn McIntyre, Natalie Gamsu.

Carolyn Burns Playwright Carolyn Burns began her writing career in New Zealand, first in print journalism, then as a reporter for TVNZ. She had already begun writing for a children’s theatre company in Auckland, before creating and writing an 18-part children's comedy-thriller, The Retrievers, for television.

Her first stage play for adults, Objection Overruled, was published by Victoria Press and performed in all major New Zealand theatres. After moving to Australia, she worked as a journalist with SBS in Melbourne, before attending the screenwriting course at AFTRS. She continued to write for the stage, including a multi-media anti-drink/driving musical, Smash Hit, for WAAPA musical theatre students, which played to many WA secondary schools. Its most recent revival was in 2014, staged by Ballarat's Federation University's Performing Arts students. Burns then moved to Adelaide, where she worked for ABC children's TV as well as lecturing in communications at the University of South Australia.

She wrote a number of stage plays, four of which were performed at the Adelaide Festival Centre. These included adaptations of Katharine Susannah Prichard's novel Haxby's Circus and the musical High Society, which subsequently toured throughout Australia and the UK. Since returning to Victoria, Burns has combined writing for the stage with script editing and dramaturgy.

In 2015 her stage adaptation of Alfred Hitchcock’s North

by Northwest was a major hit for the Melbourne Theatre Company. Along with Simon Phillips and Tim Finn she developed the award winning new Australian musical Ladies in Black for Queensland Theatre. Ladies in Black enjoyed successful seasons at both the Queensland and the Melbourne Theatre Companies and won the 2016 Helpmann Award for Best New Australian Work. It is touring nationally in 2017. She is currently collaborating on a number of new works, including the Bobby Darin musical, Dream Lover, which recently had its world premiere season playing at the Lyric Theatre in Sydney.

Simon Phillips

Music and Lyrics

Director

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 fueling an all-inclusive, creative fire that constantly drives him onwards and upwards. Having established himself in the early 1970’s 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. In recent years Finn has been helping develop new work for theatre. Aside from the musical Ladies in Black, which received a Helpmann Award for Best New Australian Work, Finn, with NZ playwright Ken Duncun and film-maker Sue Healey has co-written and performed in the one-man show White Cloud, a poetic examination of family and identity; The Fiery Maze, a raw and provocative song cycle written with the late Dorothy Porter, which had its premiere at Malthouse Theatre in 2016, and was picked up for inclusion in the 2017 Sydney Festival. He is currently developing Star Navigator, an ambitious work commissioned by West Australian Opera, New Zealand Opera and Victorian 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.

Queensland Theatre: Ladies in Black (2015/17), 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/ Victoria Opera/New Zealand Opera: Othello; Sydney Theatre Company: A Flea in Her Ear, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Urinetown the Musical; Melbourne Theatre Company: The Beast, North by Northwest, Pennsylvania Avenue, The Importance of Being Earnest, Hamlet, Songs for Nobodies, All About My Mother, The Drowsy Chaperone; 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); The Gordon Frost Organisation: Dream Lover – The Bobby Darin Musical; A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. 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.

BIOGRAPHIES

Tim Finn

Guy Simpson Orchestrations and Musical Supervisor Queensland Theatre: Ladies in Black (2015/17). Other Credits: As Musical Supervisor: The Really Useful Group; Cats, The Phantom of the Opera, Love Never Dies; Cameron Mackintosh; Miss Saigon: The Gordon Frost Organisation; A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum; The Gordon Frost Organisation: Dream Lover – The Bobby Darin Musical; Opera Australia: My Fair Lady. 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: The 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.

David Young Musical Director Queensland Theatre: Ladies in Black (2016). Other Credits: As Musical Director: MTC/Queensland Theatre: Ladies In Black. Black Swan State Theatre Company: Clinton The Musical, Next To Normal.

The Gordon Frost Organisation: Wicked (2010-2014) (in eleven seasons throughout Australia, New Zealand, and Asia). As Associate Musical Director: Dennis Smith - Dusty, Newtheatricals and Dainty Consolidated Entertainment: Jersey Boys. Louise Withers and Associates: Mamma Mia, Spamalot. Dainty Consolidated Entertainment - Hairspray, Singing In The Rain. Keyboards: Cameron MacIntosh - Les Miserables, The Gordon Frost Organisation: The Sound Of Music, Wicked. The Production Company: over six productions.

As Composer/Lyricist: The Beauty Spot, The Happy Prince, Immaculate Deception.

Gabriela Tylesova Designer Queensland Theatre: Ladies in Black (2015/17). 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; The Gordon Frost Organisation: 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; Company B 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.

David Walters Lighting Designer Queensland Theatre: The Wider Earth, Quartet, Ladies in Black (2015/17), 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 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.

Choreographer Queensland Theatre: Ladies in Black (2015/17). Other Credits: As Choreographer: The Gordon Frost Organisation: Dream Lover – The Bobby Darin Musical; Opera Australia: Sydney Opera House– The Opera; Opera Australia John Frost: Anything Goes, Helpmann Award winner for Best Choreography; Luckiest Productions/ Tinderbox: Little Shop of Horrors; Luckiest Productions/Neil Gooding/ Tinderbox: Sweet Charity, Helpmann Award winner for Best Choreography; Daniel Sparrow Productions: Rupert; The Production Company: La Cage Aux Folles, Pirates of Penzance, Gypsy, The Producers (codirector/choreographer), Anything Goes (co-director/ choreographer), The Boy From Oz, The Boy Friend, Mame, Carousel; Melbourne Theatre Company: Born Yesterday, Egg, Private Lives, Hamlet, Next To Normal, The Drowsy Chaperone; Arts Centre Melbourne & Adelaide Cabaret Festival: Shane Warne The Musical; The Gordon Frost Organisation: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, An Officer and A Gentleman; Gary Ginivan Productions: Wombat Stew The Musical; Sideshow Alley, Menopause the Musical; Melbourne City Opera: The Merry Widow; Glynn Nicholas Group: Eurobeat – Almost Eurovision (West End and Edinburgh Festival); Crown and New Theatricals: Leader of the Pack - The Ellie Greenwich Musical, Green Room Award winner for Best Choreography. Cabarets: Todd McKenney – Songs and Stories of Peter Allen; BoldJack Productions: Doris Day - So Much More Than The Girl Next Door; Adelaide Cabaret Festival: Newly Discovered; Adelaide Festival Centre: Tegrity; McPherson Touring. As Co-Choreographer: Broadway: Priscilla Queen of the Desert; The Production Company: Bye Bye Birdie, The Music Man. Television: So You Think You Can Dance, We Can Be Heroes, Dead Gorgeous, The Librarians, Mr and Mrs Murder.

Michael Waters Sound Designer Queensland Theatre: Debut. Other Credits: As Sound Designer: Opera Australia: The Rabbits, My Fair Lady, The King And I. The Gordon Frost Organisation: Dream Lover the Bobby Darin Musical, Anything Goes, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum, An Officer And A Gentleman (World Premiere), Doctor Zhivago (World Premiere). TML: Fiddler On The Roof. Dainty Consolidated Entertainment: Singin’ In The Rain, Hugh Jackman’s Broadway To Oz, The Woman In Black, The Boy From Oz with Hugh Jackman. Backrow Productions: Priscilla - Queen of The Desert (World Premiere). Dennis Smith: Dusty – The Original Pop Diva (World Premiere). Jacobsons: Dirty Dancing – The Classic Story on Stage (World Premiere), Saturday Night Fever. DAE: Singin’ In The Rain. As Soundscape Designer: Ginges/ Foxman: ATOMIC – The

Musical (Australia, New York). Awards: Helpmann Award - Best Sound Design The King and I; Dusty - the Original Pop Diva; The Woman in Black. Helpmann Award - Best Sound Design nomination - Fiddler on the Roof; Anything Goes; Boy From Oz (with Hugh Jackman); Singin' In The Rain. Green Room Award - Best Sound Design Dirty Dancing - The Classic Story On Stage. Green Room Award nomination - Best Sound Design The King and I; A Funny Thing Happened on The Way to the Forum, Saturday Night Fever.

Jessica Burns Assistant Director Queensland Theatre: As Stage Manager: Ladies in Black (2015/16) Other Credits: Ambassador Theatre Group: The Beast; As Stage Manager: 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; The 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.

Eloise Grace Company Manager Queensland Theatre: As Company Manager: Debut. As Stage Manager: The Odd Couple. As Tour Manager and Stage Manager: Kelly (National Tour). Other credits: As General Manager/ Producer: MultipleSpinifex for the Ruler of Sharjah, UAE: Clusters of Light – An Oratorio; Cat Stevens/Yusuf Islam: Moonshadow – A New Musical; The Danger Ensemble: MACBETH. As Company Manager: Blue Man Group, Jersey Boys, Rock of Ages, The Addams Family Musical, Georgy Girl – the Seekers Musical, FAME the Musical. As Logistics Manager: 2006 Asian Games Opening and Closing Ceremonies, Brisbane Festival, Queensland Music Festival. As Tour Manager: Bonnie Tyler Live, Tony Hadley in Concert, The Bangles, Song Trails, The Listies Make You LOL. As Stage Manager: LaBoite Theatre Company: A Streetcar Named Desire, A Doll’s House. Australian Labor Party: Campaign Launch, City of Melbourne/ L’Oreal: Melbourne Fashion Festival, Melbourne Spring Fashion Festival. As Guest Lecturer: QUT, NIDA, Griffith University.

BIOGRAPHIES

Andrew Hallsworth

Will Lewis

Margaret Burrows

Stage Manager

Assistant Stage Manager

Queensland Theatre: Debut. Other Credits: As Stage Manager: Cirque du Soleil: Dralion, Amaluna. The Gordon Frost Organisation: Wicked (Australian Premiere, National Tour), Into the Woods. As Deputy Stage Manager: Really Useful Group: Cats (Taiwan, Korea, China, Thailand and Macau).

Seabiscuit Productions: Titanic – A New Musical. Dusty Productions: Dusty – The Original Pop Diva. The Gordon Frost Organisation: The Producers (Australian Premiere.

National Tour), The Wizard of Oz. The Production Company: Hair. Jacobsen Entertainment: Sydney Mardi Gras, 2007 FINA World Swimming Championships, Sydney 2000 Olympic Games Opening and Closing Ceremonies, Sydney 2000 Paralympic Opening Ceremony.

Queensland Theatre: The Odd Couple. Other credits: As Stage Manager: Queensland Performing Arts Centre: Various. Queensland Ballet: Dance Dialogues. As Assistant Stage Manager: Queensland Ballet: Strictly Gershwin, La Sylphide, Peter Pan, Coppelia (National Tour). Opera Queensland: Madame Butterfly. As Dresser: Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University: Hansel and Gretel. Education and Training: QUT; Technical Production and Management. Southbank Institute of Technology: Scenery and Set Construction.

Daniel Sinclair Deputy Stage Manager Queensland Theatre: As Stage Manager: St Mary’s In Exile, Brisbane, Stradbroke Dreamtime, Fractions (co-production with HotHouse Theatre Company), Macbeth, Fat Pig, A Property of the Clan; As Deputy Stage Manager: Ladies in Black (2016); As Stage Manager: The Tragedy of King Richard III; As Assistant Stage Manager: Managing Carmen, I Feel Awful, Betrayal, Anatomy Titus – Fall of Rome (co-production with Bell Shakespeare Company). Other Credits: Shake & Stir Theatre Co: As Production Stage Manager/Tour Manager: 1984 (national tour), Animal Farm (regional/national tour). As Production Stage Manager: Wuthering Heights, 1984, Roald Dahl’s Revolting Rhymes & Dirty Beasts, Tequila Mockingbird, Animal Farm, Out Damn Snot; La Boite Theatre Company: As Stage Manager: A Hoax, Hamlet, Walking

By Apple Tree Creek (regional/national tour), Summer of the Seventeenth Doll, plus many more since 2003. Show Caller-Creative Generation: State Schools Onstage 2010, 2012-2016. As Production Stage Manager/Tour Manager: Breast Wishes – An Uplifting Musical supporting the National Breast Cancer Foundation. Positions: Production Touring Coordinator, Queensland Theatre; Tour Manager, La Boite Theatre; Stage Management: QPAC, Brisbane Festival & Great Big Events for the Doha Asian Games. Training: Bachelor of Fine Arts (Technical Production), Queensland University of Technology.

Awards: Drover Award Tour of the Year Animal Farm, Shake & Stir Theatre Co.

Kate Cole Miss Cartwright/Joy Queensland Theatre: Ladies in Black (2015/17). 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, Psychapathia 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: Seven Types of Ambiguity, The Doctor Blake Series, The Divorce, Frontier, Final Sale, Borderline Murder, Endurance Island, Neighbours, Dog Woman – A Grrl’s Best Friend, Blue Heelers, Stingers, Crashburn.

Awards: Green Room Award Nomination – Best Actress Grounded, Sydney Theatre Award – Best Actress – Grounded.

Carita Farrer Spencer Mrs Miles Queensland Theatre: Ladies in Black (2015/17), 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: A Paper House, The Popular Mechanicals, Speaking in Tongues, The John Wayne Principal; 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

Bobby Fox Rudi Queensland Theatre: Ladies in Black (2015/17). 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 & Associates: We Will Rock You, Mamma Mia, Spamalot the Musical, Studio Recording: The Fantastic Mr Fox (Warner Music).

Film: The Cup. Television: It’s A Date, House Husbands, Tricky Business. Awards: Sydney Theatre Critics Award, Helpmann/Green Room Award nominations - Jersey Boys; Green Room Nomination: Hot Shoe Shuffle.

Natalie Gamsu Magda Queensland Theatre: Debut.

Other Credits: Global Creatures: Baz Luhrman’s Strictly Ballroom; Disney/ Cameron MacIntosh: Marry Poppins; Natal Performing Arts: Candide; The Gordon Frost Organisation: Dr Zhivago; Q Theatre: Sunday in the Park with George; Big M Productions: Putting It Together; Sydney Theatre Company: Barrie Kosky’s Women of Troy; ICA (London): Acts and Revelations; The Birmingham Repertory Theatre (UK): Anger is Not a Place I Like to Be; Queer Up North (UK): Masque of Water. Documentary: Showbiz Is My Life. Film: Ali’s Wedding (Matchbox Films).

Television: Neighbours, The Big Time (South African TV).

CD Recordings: Weave, Misfit. Awards: Backstage Bistro Award, MAC Award for Outstanding Female Vocalist, MAC Nomination Best New Recording – Weave.

Tamlyn Henderson Frank Queensland Theatre: Debut. Other Credits: Neglected Musicals: Calamity Jane; The Gordon Frost Organisation: The Sound of Music; Cameron Mackintosh: Les Miserables. Darlinghurst Theatre: Falsettos; IMG/Fran & Barry Weissler: Cabaret; Louise Withers: We Will Rock You; DTC: How to Act Around Cops; Burley: The Importance of Being Earnest; ASC: The Wind in the Willows; CDP/Tall Stories: The Gruffalo AUS+UK Tours; Sydney Opera House: Circumspecto; Griffin Theatre Company: Saint Theo. Comedy: Allsopp & Henderson: A Porthole into the Minds of the Vanquished, The Jinglists, Pork Stiletto; Online Comedy Series: As Actors – Manila. Television: Careless Love, Cedar Boys, Redfern Now, All Saints. Awards: Greenroom Award for Best Ensemble Cabaret/Sydney Theatre Award – Best Production for Children – The Gruffalo. Training: Bachelor of Arts (Music Theatre) - WAAPA.

Madeleine Jones Patty Queensland Theatre: Debut. Other Credits: Brilliant Adventures/ bakeHOUSE: Straight; Sport for Jove: Love's Labour's Lost, Much Ado About Nothing, Cyrano de Bergerac; CDP: The Incredible Book Eating Boy, Mr Stink; Griffin Independent & Collide: Girl in Tan Boots; Sydney Theatre Company/ATYP: M.Rock; Room 8/Australian Shakespeare Co: Godspell; LCW Productions: Avenue Q; The Gordon Frost Organisation/MTC: Once. Film: Devil’s Dust, Waking Moon, The Filmmaker, On Hold, Fragments of Friday. Awards: Green Room Award- Best Actress in a Leading Role (Musical Theatre)/Helpmann Award nomination - Once. Training: Actors Centre Australia.

Kathryn McIntyre Myra/Dawn Queensland Theatre: Ladies in Black (2015/17), Much Ado About Nothing, 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; Arts Centre Gold Coast: Boy From Oz. Training: Bachelor of Music (Musical Theatre), Queensland Conservatorium of Music.

BIOGRAPHIES

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 McKenny Live. Film: Cubby House. Television: Seven Types of Ambiguity, Fat 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.

Sarah Morrison Lisa Queensland Theatre: Ladies in Black (2015/17). Other Credits: Vass Productions/Alex Theatre: You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown; Hubcap Productions: Dust; Pen 2 Stage Productions Company: Meet the Nicktoons; Opera Queensland: Hansel and Gretel, La Bohème; Company Eleven: Third World Blues; Arts Centre Gold Coast: Pyjamas in Paradise Launch. Television: The Doctor Blake Mysteries, Making Dust. Training: Bachelor of Arts (Music Theatre), University of Ballarat. Awards: Nominee Matilda Award – Bille Brown Award for the Best Emerging Artist.

Trisha Noble Miss Jacobs/Mrs Crown Queensland Theatre: Debut.

Other Credits: The Gordon Frost Organisation: Doctor Zhivago, Footloose, Dusty Promotions: Dusty - the Original Pop Diva, Jacobsen Entertainment: Shout the Musical, Newtheatricals: Leader of the Pack, Kookaburra: Pippin, Little Women, Stables Theatre: Three Winters Green, Theatre Royal: Jack and Jill, Independent Theatre: The Grotto, Phillip Street Theatre: Alice in Wonderland, St George League’s Club: Sweet Charity, Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, UK: Night is for Delight, Alhambra Theatre, Glasgow: Five Past Eight Show, Newcastle Playhouse, UK: The Four Sided Triangle, National Tour, UK: Roar Like a Dove, Olympia Theatre, Paris: Olympia Variety with Cliff Richard and The Shadows, Newcastle Playhouse, UK: The Four Sided Triangle, USA World’s Fair: Australia’s Night of Stars, Las Vegas Sands Hotel: The London Playgirl Revue.

Television: USA TV. Aaron Spelling Productions: Strike Force (Series), TJ Hooker, The Love Boat, Matt Houston.

Universal TV: Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, Night Gallery, Columbo, Mrs Columbo, McMillan, Big Shamus Little Shamus, The Rockford Files, Stone, Baretta, Testimony of Two Men (Miniseries), The Rhineman Exchange (Miniseries), Columbia TV Telemovies: The Courage and The Passion and Doctors Hospital, Hart to Hart, Fantasy Island, Eischied, Executive Suite (Series), David L Wolper Productions: Casablanca, MGM TV: The Courtship of Eddie’s Father, MTM Productions: The Mary Tyler Moore Show, 20th Century Fox: James at Sixteen, Husbands and Wives, CBS TV: Matt Helm, Casey Warner: Oh Madeline!, Lorimar Productions: Flamingo Road, ABC: How the West Was Won (Miniseries), UNITED KINGDOM TV: We Have Ways of Making You Laugh (Series), The Dave King Show (Series), The Dick Emery Show (Series), The Frank Ifield Show, The Morecombe and Wise Show, The Benny Hill Show, The Andy Stewart Show, The Arthur Haynes Show, The Des O’Connor Show, The Jules Styne Special, The Engelbert Humperdinck Special, The Liberace Special, Words and Music, International Cabaret, Sunday Night at the London Palladium, Talk of the Town, The Charlie Drake Special, Stars on Sunday, Dream Song, Danger Man,

Up Pompeii, Iolanthe, Out of the Unknown, Callan, Z Cars, Fraud Squad, Who Dun It, Play of the Wheel, Girls About Town, AUSTRALIA TV: This Is Your Life (Feature), Jumping with Joye, Top of the Town, The Mobil Limb Show, Bandstand (Series), The Youth Show, Water Rats, Blonde (Miniseries), All Saints, Deadline, Body Business.

Film: Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones, Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, The Private Eyes, Live It Up, Death is a Woman, Carry on Camping.

Awards: Logie Award, Helpman Award Nomination – Best Female Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical – Pippin, Green Room Nomination – Best Female Artist in a Featured Role – Shout, Two consecutive Mo Award Nominations – Best Female Musical Performer – Shout.

Qualifications: Diploma in Theatre Performance (IMEB) and CVCA (High Distinction) from AMEB, Speech and Drama Examiner (IMEB).

Ellen Simpson Fay Queensland Theatre: Debut.

Other Credits: Essential Theatre: A Midsummer Night’s Dream (National Tour), Really Useful Group: Vernon God Little, Love Never Dies, Capitol Theatre Studio: Into the Woods; The Gordon Frost Organisation: Wicked; PanPacific Productions: Chicago; Auckland Theatre Company: The Crucible. As Resident Director and Resident Choreographer: Luckiest Productions/ Tinderbox Productions: Little Shop of Horrors; The Gordon Frost Organisation: Dream Lover – The Bobby Darin Musical. Television: Molly, Mr and Mrs Murder, Doctor Blake Murder Mysteries. Awards: Chapmann Tripp Theatre Awards – Most Promising Female Newcomer Nomination - The Underwatermelon Man.

Greg Stone Mr Miles/Stefan Queensland Theatre: Ladies in Black (2015/17). Other Credits: The 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, The Madwoman of Chaillot, The Pillowman, Cloud Nine, The Seagull, A Little Night Music, Angels in America; Sydney Theatre Company: The Beauty of Queen Leenane, Stones In His Pockets, Merrily We Roll Along; Belvoir: Hamlet, Babyteeth, Stuff Happens; 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,

Daniel Maher Guitar Queensland Theatre: Debut. Other Credits: For Musicals: Jersey Boys, Avenue Q, Last 5 Years, Miracle City, Next To Normal, Cats, Dream Lover. For Artists: Delta Goodrem, Joel & Benji Madden (Good Charlotte), Cody Simpson, Sutton Foster, Shoshana Bean, Samantha Jade, Cyrus, Taylor Henderson, Bonnie Anderson, Reece Mastin, Rick Price, Todd McKenney, Rhonda Burchmore, Casey Donovan, Joe Moore, Anja Nissen, Marcelo DLV, Rob Mills, Luke Kennedy, Naomi Price. Television: The Voice, X-Factor, AGT, Living Room, V-hits, Nickelodeon SlimeFest, Sunrise, Morning Show, Today Extra. Touring: Pentatonix World Tour (Aus/NZ, 2016, Chris Sebastian Support), Reza Yazdani (Aus, 2014), MMG (Japan, 2014), Rick Price (Aus, 2013), Todd McKenney (Aus, 2012), Michigan Crew (Japan, 2010). Studio recordings: Van-Anh: TONALITA, BROADWAY; Cath Alcorn: A Real Character; Cast Recordings: Miracle City, Sing On Through Tomorrow.

Documentary: Lost Your Marbles. Commercial: Taste Australia, Sunbeam, Samsung Galaxy S5.

Marian Heckenberg Bass Queensland Theatre: Debut. Other Credits: For Musicals: Les Miserable (Brisbane and Asia), Into the Woods, King and I, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, South Pacific, Dr Zhivago, Westside Story (Australian tour), Chicago the Musical, Phantom of the Opera, Pirates of Penzance, Merry Widow, Porgy and Bess. For Cabaret: Doris (Melinda Schneider), X-Collective Cabaret Ensemble, Red Cap, The Possessed (Chamber Made Opera). Live onstage: Expressions Dance Company: When Time Stops, Queensland Symphony, Melbourne Symphony, Western Australian Symphony, Adelaide Symphony Wagner’s Ring Cycle, Tasmanian Symphony, Orchestra Victoria, Queensland Ballet, Australian Ballet, Camerata of St John’s, The Whitlams, Daniel Johns, Rob Guest, Andrea Boccelli,

Lior (Paris tour), Gurrumul, Sarah Blasko, Missy Higgins, Human Nature, Qld Pops Orchestra, The Main Event (John Farnham, Olivia Newton John, Anthony Warlow), Sting, Rhonda Burchmore, David Hobson, Dudley Moore.

Training: University of Southern California (Masters of Music -Performance), University of Qld (Bachelor of Music- Performance).

Andrew Maddick Violin Queensland Theatre: Ladies in Black (2015) 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.

Nathan Smith Cello Queensland Theatre: Debut. Other Credits: For Companies: Ensemble Instrumental de Nice, Ensemble C’barré, Camerata - Queensland's Chamber Orchestra, Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Australian International Opera Comany. For Composers: Couperin, Bach, Schumann, Felix Ibarrando, Phillipe Hersant, John Coltrane, Peter Sculthorpe, Cameron Patrick. As Music Educator: John Paul College, St John’s Anglican College. Training: Marseille Conservatoire, Paris Conservatoire (Rue de Madrid).

Dave George Drums/percussion Queensland Theatre: Debut. Other Credits: As Orchestral Member: Flower Children, Heathers the Musical, Avenue Q. As drumkit/ percussion deputising musician: Matilda the Musical. As session player/ touring musician: California Dreaming, Australian International Opera Company Tour China, plus many national and international tours.

As Composer: Melbourne Symphony Orchestra’s Snare Drum Award: Choose Your Own Adventure. Australian Percussion Eisteddfod: Awesomity for solo drum kit, Interrobang! for solo drum kit. Positions: St Kevin’s College: Coordinator of Percussion and Guitar. Training: Victorian College of the Arts, Melbourne University.

BIOGRAPHIES

Swerve, Oranges and Sunshine, Van Diemen’s Land, Boytown, The Bank, Is This the Real World. Television: Neighbours, Secret City, 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, The Man From Snowy River, A Country Practice, Boys From The Bush, Skirts, SP, E Street, Country Practice. 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.

Act 1 I Got It at Goode's

Lisette

Soon I Will Be Me

A Proper Family Man

Ladies in Black

Always Be Happy

Try Again

Whole Other World

Sales Talk

A Nice Australian Girl

Daddy Come On

Strange

Bastard Song

Lisa at Home

The Fountain

Bastard (Reprise)

Model Gowns

Tomorrow Becomes Today

L-R: Natalie Gamsu, Trisha Noble, Madeleine Jones, Kate Cole, Carita Farrer Spencer, Ellen Simpson, Katherine McIntyre.

On a Summer Afternoon

You Did It

Lesley or Lisa

Make Something Out of This

The Party

Fay’s Soliloquy

Pandemonium

I Can’t Be the Man

I Just Kissed a Continental

Something to Hide

Sales Continued

Reconciliation

Lisette (Reprise)

Finale

BIOGRAPHIES

Act 2

Stimulating theatre with stories from near and far.

Stimulating conversation with wines from our backyard.

Choose award-winning wines, produce and gifts from Clovely Estate – artisan tastes nurtured in the South Burnett.

www.clovely.com.au

NEXT NEXT LEVEL LEVEL FOOD VENUE WHEN IT COMES TO EVENTS, EVERYONE ALWAYS REMEMBERS THE FOOD. That’s why, for 21 years, we’ve been obsessed with ensuring that memory is a good one by continually pushing the boundaries of innovation and improvement, as well as dedicating ourselves to the finest local produce.

The feedback has been pretty next level too: • Awarded ‘World’s Best’ at the client-voted 2016 APEX Awards • Best rating of any international centre for food and beverage • Rated Australia’s best for catering and banqueting according to Meetings and Events Australia So, if you want to lift your event to the next level, there’s really only one place to go.

Let’s Talk. Call +61 7 3308 3063, email sales@bcec.com.au or visit bcec.com.au Owned by South Bank Corporation. Proudly managed by AEG Ogden.

We find the films you love, to make you feel at home.

A truly entertaining journey. There’s more to it than just the latest movies. It’s about finding culture and experiences from near and far, for you to enjoy. Because we understand that enriching moments make your flight just that much more meaningful.

COMING-OF-AGE FEEL GOOD FASHIONISTA ROCK STAR SMASH HITat home.

MADE IN QLD It’s just COMEDY one of the lengths we go to, to make you feel

QUEENSLAND THEATRE 10 Feb – 5 Mar

Queensland Theatre in association with Queensland Performing Arts Centre presents a Red Stitch Actors Theatre production

Thanks to our Sponsors Government Partners

Production Sponsors

Major Program Partner

International Airline Partner

Building Enhancement Partner

Regional Sponsor

Media Supporters

Season Sponsors

Season Supporters

Promotional Partners: Coev Haircutters

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Production Photography Rob Maccoll and Lisa Tomasetti, Publicity Photography Jared Vethaak. And special thanks to Deyne Keegan, Michelle Betts, Tom Ash, Lilith Tremmery, Saffron Firkins, Kiara Bulley, Barbara Kerr, Gaye Lee, Frances Pyper, Jessica Ross & Vicki Martin, RoadPro Event Services, Chameleon Touring Systems, JPJ Audio, Smartalec Productions, Retro Metro, Queensland Performing Arts Centre and MTC for all of their invaluable assistance.

Queensland Theatre is a member of the Australian Major Performing Arts Group.

Š The State of Queensland (Queensland Theatre) 2016

We would like to thank the 2015 Cast and Creatives Andrew Broadbent, Kate Cole, Carita Farrer Spencer, Bobby Fox, Kathryn McIntyre, Lucy Maunder, Sarah Morrison, Christen O’Leary, Naomi Price, Deidre Rubenstein, Greg Stone, Andrew Johnson, Toby Loveland, Kathryn McKee, Andrew Maddick, John Parker, Simon Phillips, Tim Finn, Carolyn Burns, Gabriela Tylesova, David Walters, Isaac Hayward, Guy Simpson, Andrew Hallsworth, Tony Brumpton, Hanna Sandgren, Matthew Erskine, Melissa Agnew, Jessica Burns, Dan Sinclair, Pip Loth.

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.

PATRON Production His Excellency the Honourable PRODUCTION MANAGER Paul de Jersey AC Toni Glynn Governor of Queensland TECHNICAL COORDINATOR Members of the Board Daniel Maddison Elizabeth Jameson (Chair) PRODUCTION COORDINATOR Richard Fotheringham (Deputy Chair) Canada White Rachel Crowley TOURING COORDINATOR Wayne Denning Michael Rogerson Peter Hudson HEAD OF WORKSHOP Susan Learmonth Peter Sands Andrea Moor COMPANY CARPENTER/HEAD David Williamson MECHANIST ARTISTIC DIRECTOR John Pierce Sam Strong COSTUME SUPERVISOR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Nathalie Ryner Sue Donnelly WARDROBE COORDINATOR EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT Barbara Kerr Tammy Sleeth Programming ASSOCIATE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR PROGRAMMING MANAGER/ Paige Rattray SENIOR PRODUCER Development, Finance & Operations Sophia Hall DEPUTY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR ARTISTIC COORDINATOR Amanda Jolly Samantha French CORPORATE PARTNERSHIPS MANAGER PRODUCER (NEW WORK AND Nikki Porter DEVELOPMENT) DEVELOPMENT COORDINATOR Shari Irwin Alana Tierney PRODUCER (EDUCATION AND COMMUNICATIONS AND GRANT YOUTH PROGRAMS) COORDINATOR Heidi Irvine Anja Homburg PROGRAMMING PROJECT OFFICER FINANCE MANAGER Laurel Collins Michael Cullinan ASSOCIATE ARTIST (EDUCATION AND ASSISTANT ACCOUNTANT YOUTH PROGRAMS) Georgia Knight Travis Dowling VENUE AND OPERATIONS SUPERVISOR Ticketing Julian Messer TICKETING SUPERVISOR FINANCE OFFICER Eloise Sowden Sarra Lamb SENIOR TICKETING OFFICER Marketing Donna Fields-Brown MARKETING AND AUDIENCE TICKETING OFFICER DEVELOPMENT MANAGER Madison Bell Tracey Webster SEASON TICKETING OFFICERS HEAD OF CAMPAIGNS Jessi Le Brocq Jane Hunterland Jazmin Ealden MARKETING ASSISTANT Annabelle Hazell Louisa Sankey Nathaniel Hollingworth DIGITAL MARKETING OFFICER Steve Pirie David D’Arcy GRAPHIC DESIGNER Aleesha Cuffe PUBLICIST Kath Rose and Associates Information correct at time of printing

Chair Chris Freeman AM Deputy Chair Simon Gallaher QUEENSLAND PERFORMING ARTS CENTRE PO Box 3567, South Bank, Queensland 4101 T: (07) 3840 7444 W: qpac.com.au ACKNOWLEDGMENT

Indigenous Reference Group Nathan Jarro (Chair), Adam James, Angela Leitch, Paula Nazarski, Todd Phillips National Artistic Team Jimi Bani, Wayne Blair, Margi Brown Ash, Marcel Dorney, Christie Evangelisto, Kat Henry, Nakkiah Lui, Renee Mulder, Annette Madden, Lucas Stibbard FOUNDING DIRECTOR Alan Edwards, AM, MBE (1925 – 2003) LADIES IN BLACK PRODUCTION STAFF CARPENTERS Jamie Bowman, Aleksis Waaralinna SCENIC ARTIST Leo Herreygers CUTTERS/COSTUME MAKERS Leigh Buchanan, Michelle Wiki, Bianca Bulley, Angela Gearing, Jane Jericho HEAD ELECTRICIAN Matt Golder HEAD MECHANIST/AUTOMATIONS Kane Ernst HEAD OF SOUND Anusha Matthews PRODUCTION SOUND Andrew Poppleton RADIO MIC OPERATOR Brady Watkins FLOOR MECHANISTS Adam Hanley, Chris Goeldner DRESSER/SUPERVISOR Jane Jericho WIGGER/DRESSER Michael Green COSTUME MAINTENANCE Michelle Wiki QPAC PRODUCTION STAFF VENUE HEAD MECH/FLYMAN Alon Jones FLOOR MECHANIST John Campio VENUE HEAD ELECT RICIAN Skye Liliss

Trust Members Kylie Blucher Sophie Mitchell Leanne de Souza

Professor Peter Coaldrake AO Professor Chris Sarra

Executive Staff Chief Executive: John Kotzas Executive Director – Stakeholder Engagement Strategy: Jackie Branch Executive Director – Curatorial: Ross Cunningham Executive Director – Visitation: Roxanne Hopkins Executive Director – Development: Megan Kair Executive Director – Business Performance: Kieron Roost

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 the Premier and Cabinet: David Stewart

Proud sponsors of Queensland Arts

The performing arts expands your mind.

Let Datacom set the scene and look at new ways IT can provide stellar performance for your business.

Email: sales-qld@datacom.com.au 501 Ann St Fortitude Valley QLD 4001 www.datacom.com.au

QUEENSLAND THEATRE K AGE Y PAC 141* A L P $ 3 ONLY FROM

THE 2017 SEASON