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Monday 15 July

Tuesday 16 July


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Copyright 2024 Music Theatre Futures
Music Theatre in Australian Performing Arts Companies
This panel discussion, hosted by actor, director and producer Sonya Suares, will explore the role that music theatre plays in mainstage Australian performing arts companies.
Sonya is joined by Jennifer Sarah Dean (Artistic Director, Melbourne Shakespeare Company), Stuart Maunder (Artistic Director, Victorian Opera), Jennifer Medway (Head of New Work, Melbourne Theatre Company), and Jonathan Ware (New Work Development Producer, Sydney Theatre Company). 

SONYA SUARES

Sonya is a multidisciplinary actor, director, producer and arts activist. A graduate of WAAPA’s BA in Music Theatre, her credits run the gamut from Pinter to Puccini with a healthy dose of film, TV and music theatre in the mix. Sonya served as General Manager at Red Stitch Actors Theatre (2008-12), Artistic Director at Monash University's Academy of Performing Arts (2013-15) and Founding Director of Melbourne's Poppy Seed Festival (2014-16). Notably, she established Australia's first and only Sondheim repertory company Watch This, which she led for nearly a decade as Artistic Director to critical acclaim and a running total of 27 Green Room nominations/ 4 wins alongside multi-million dollar commercial productions. 

Sonya has also received nominations for her work on MTC's Melbourne Talam; Polyglot Theatre & Papermoon Puppet Theatre's Cerita Anak; and her webseries pilot,The Quest, which received several international nominations and was awarded at both Melbourne WebFest and London's Wild Indie festivals. She shares a nomination for Best Direction of a Musical with Dean Drieberg for Sunday in the Park with George (2019) and for the digital documentary series, The Art of Making Art (2020). In 2022, she co-directed Into the Woods with Melanie Hillman (6 GRA nominations/ 2 wins); MTC's Cybec Electric series with Isabella Vadiveloo; and worked on the Australian premieres of Fleur Murphy's Hearth (La Mama); Morgan Lloyd Malcolm's Emilia (Arts Centre Melbourne) and Anthony Weigh's Sunday: A Fantasy of Life at Heide (MTC). Last year, she directed Sweeney Todd for WAAPA's graduating year and the Australian premiere of The Lucky Country (Hayes Theatre Co) to a clean sweep of rave reviews. As part of her practice, Sonya is a passionate DEI advocate, championing artists from marginalised communities in large and small ways.  



JENNIFER SARAH DEAN
Jennifer is the Artistic Director for Melbourne Shakespeare Company. Having trained at the Globe Theatre in London, Jennifer has directed 12 productions for Melbourne Shakespeare Company including ROMEO & JULIET, TWELFTH NIGHT, MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING and most recently THE WHALE.  Jennifer was the Assistant Director on THE ALMIGHTY SOMETIMES for Melbourne Theatre Company,  Resident Director on MOULIN ROUGE! THE MUSICAL! (Global Creatures), co-director of GHOST STORIES (Australian National Tour) and Director of  THE HAUNTING (The Atheneum), FESTEN (Ripponlea Ballroom), TAPE (Courthouse), HOLY COW (FortyFiveDownstairs), LOW (Theatreworks) and TRAVISTIES (FortyFiveDownstairs). Jennifer is also an award winning writer her plays include ADVENTURES IN NEVERLAND (Melbourne Shakespeare Company), IN THE LOOP (Stockwell Playhouse, UK), What if? (UK National Tour), Pop-up Panto (UK National Tour), and the short film A BAD DAY (Camden Roundhouse). 

STUART MAUNDER
Stuart Maunder has been directing musical theatre and opera in Australia for over 40 years. He joined The Australian Opera as Stage Manager in 1978, becoming a Resident Director in 1981.  

In 1992 he joined the Royal Opera House (UK) as a Staff Director while continuing to direct in Australia, UK, France and the USA. 

In 1999 he was appointed Artistic Administrator of Opera Australia, becoming Executive Producer in 2004. His Opera Australia productions included The Tales of Hoffmann, Manon, Gypsy Princess, Don Pasquale, My Fair Lady and A Little Night Music. His OA productions of Trial by Jury, Pirates of Penzance and HMS Pinafore have been televised nationally on ABC TV. 

From 2014 to 2018 Stuart Maunder was General Director of New Zealand Opera where he directed Candide, Tosca, Sweeney Todd and The Mikado. 

In 2018, Stuart joined State Opera South Australia as Artistic Director, directing Carmen in the Square, Cunning Little Vixen, The Mikado, Carousel, Sweeney Todd, Bohème on the Beach, Turn of the Screw, Macbeth and Voss. In May 2023 he helmed Australia’s first ever G&S Festival for the company, directing Pirates of Penzance, H.M.S. Pinafore, Trial by Juryand The Sorcerer. 

In 2021 Stuart directed The Gondoliers for Scottish Opera and D’Oyly Carte Opera. This production was subsequently broadcast on BBC TV. 

In October 2023, Stuart became Artistic Director of Victorian Opera. 

His past productions for Victorian Opera have included Sunday in the Park with George, Into the Woods, Sweeney Todd, A Little Night Music and The Cunning Little Vixen. 


JENNIFER MEDWAY

Jennifer Medway is the Head of New Work at Melbourne Theatre Company.  

A dramaturg with over a decade of professional experience in the development of new Australian work, she was Melbourne Theatre Company’s Literary Associate from 2017-2021 and Acting Literary Manager of Melbourne Theatre Company 2021-2022. Prior to this she was Resident Dramaturg at the Australian Theatre for Young People, Studio Artist at Griffin Theatre Company, Associate Artist-Dramatugy at Belvoir, Literary Assistant also at Belvoir, and a regular script assessor and dramaturg for Playwriting Australia. 

Jennifer is also a regular guest lecturer at the Victorian College of the Arts within their Masters of Directing, Playwriting and Dramaturgy programmes and was on the judging panel for the NSW Premier’s Literary Award’s Book of the Year prize and the Nick Enright Playwriting Prize from 2018-2020. 


JONATHAN WARE
Jonathan is currently New Work Development Producer at Sydney Theatre Company, where he drives the development of a wide-ranging slate of works for the stage. Recent projects include Into the Shimmering World by Angus Cerini and Julia by Joanna Murray-Smith. Dramaturg credits include FANGIRLS by Yve Blake (2019 premiere, 2021 and 2022 tours, 2024 Lyric Hammersmith/Sonia Friedman Productions); Dubbo Championship Wrestling by Daniel and James Cullen (2022 Hayes Theatre Co). He trained as a Stage Manager (VCA) and then worked in London for Sonia Friedman Productions, Sadler’s Wells and DigitalTheatre.com. Following further study at Melbourne Law School (Juris Doctor) and VCA (Masters of Dramaturgy), he joined STC in 2017 initially as Executive Assistant to Kip Williams and then Artistic Administrator. Positions: Hayes Theatre Co Creative Advisory Panel, Sydney Theatre Awards Independent Panel. Awards: for FANGIRLS includes AWGIE, Sydney Theatre, Green Room, and Matilda Awards, also ARIA nomination; 2021 NSW Music Theatre Fellow (Create NSW/Hayes Theatre Co).