Stage Management Seminar

Come and spend a day learning about the ins and outs of stage management with some of Melbourne’s most experienced Stage Managers. This session will include a panel discussion where stage managers from a range of disciplines share their experiences, hot tips and tricks of the trade, followed by breakout sessions that will dive deeper into various topics, and a Q&A session. This session is suitable for people starting out as stage managers, tech crew who want to broaden their skills or anyone in the theatre who wants to know more about the amazing workers who keep shows running.

Jess Keepence is a freelance Stage Manager and a graduate of Victorian College of the Arts. She has worked on many productions/projects including Blackie Blackie Brown: The Traditional Owner of Death, My Dearworthy Darling, Good Muslim Boy (Malthouse Theatre), Heart is a Wasteland, Jack Charles v The Crown (Ilbijerri Theatre Company), Glass, Song for a Weary Throat, Catalogue (Rawcus), Emerald City, Heisenberg, Arbus & West, Hay Fever, Macbeth, The Odd Couple, Jasper Jones, Miss Julie, and Buyer and Cellar (Melbourne Theatre Company), The Dream Laboratory (Essential Theatre), At the Illusionist’s Table (Scott Silven/Melbourne International Arts Festival), and Room of Regret (THE RABBLE). She has also worked on events such as Melbourne International Arts Festival, Woodford Folk Festival, and Castlemaine State Festival.

Described by renowned musical director John Foreman as “one of the best stage managers in Australia”, Meg Deyell has worked with major theatres worldwide. With a career spanning two decades, she is known for her ability to remain calm under pressure and love of multi-tasking. Career highlights include the multi-award winning Richard III (MTC), The Dream (Bell Shakespeare), Blood Wedding (STC), The Histrionic (Malthouse/STC), Stravinsky’s A Soldier’s Tale (ACO/Bell Shakespeare), Eddie Perfect’s Shane Warne the Musical, touring Japan and Europe with George Orwell’s Animal Farm, Fox8’s Ultimate School Musical, Victorian Opera’s critically acclaimed William Tell and A Little Night Music, Moses Kaufman’s 33 Variations with EGOT actress Ellen Burstyn, and supervising the music at Russell Crowe’s wedding. Meg spent eight years with Melbourne musical theatre producers The Production Company as their resident stage manager, and is currently the Service Manager of Warrnambool’s Lighthouse Theatre. She is also Artistic Director of In The Park Productions, committed to increasing access to the arts by producing professional outdoor theatre in outer metropolitan Melbourne and semi- regional Victoria. Meg is one of the four founding Creative Directors of the HOPE: New Works Development Initiative, supporting the creative development of new Australian musical theatre work. The HOPE Initiative won two 2021 Green Room Awards, for Contribution to Development/New Work and Community building/Advocacy.

Date: Saturday, 12 April 2025, 12 - 5pm
Location: Chunky Move, 111 Sturt St, Southbank.