Jessica Arthur Appointed as STC Resident Director

Sydney Theatre Company announced today that it has appointed its former Richard Wherrett Fellow and Directing Associate Jessica Arthur in the role of Resident Director in 2019. Jessica joins the Resident Artist team of Associate Director Paige Rattray and Resident Designer Elizabeth Gadsby.

Jessica Arthur said: "I am immensely excited to be appointed Resident Director. Sydney Theatre Company has nurtured and supported my practice and in this new role I look forward to continuing our creative work in sharing stories. STC is bold and pioneering and I am grateful to be a part of this team."

STC Artistic Director Kip Williams said: "I am thrilled that Jessica Arthur will be Resident Director here at STC in 2019. Jess is a director of immense talent and potential. Over the past few years she has risen to be one of the most exciting young theatrical minds in the country. I can't wait to see how her career will continue to develop, and look forward to working with her in the years ahead."

Sydney Theatre Company has a proud heritage as a creative hub an incubator for Australian theatre and theatre-makers. Leading Australian theatre figures Benedict Andrews, Marion Potts, Wesley Enoch and Alice Babidge are all former residents at STC.

Through the Resident Artists program, STC is committed to providing professional development opportunities, access to key personnel and resources, and encouragement and support to pursue interests and projects away from STC. Resident Artists also play key roles in the day-to-day artistic life of the Company.

In 2019, Jessica will direct the Australian premiere of the international hit Mosquitoes by Lucy Kirkwood and Van Badham's hilariously explicit new comedy Banging Denmark. Previously for STC, she has directed the world premiere of Anna Barnes' new play Lethal Indifference, Rough Draft #32: The Profit by Angus Cameron and Rough Draft #36: Banging Denmark by Van Badham. She has worked as assistant director with Kip Williams on both Kate Mulvany's adaptation of Ruth Park's Harp in the South Part One & Part Two and Lucy Kirkwood's Chimerica, with Imara Savage on Moira Buffini's

Dinner and with Andrew Upton (former STC Artistic Director) on Samuel Beckett's Endgame.

In 2017 Jessica was STC's Richard Wherrett Fellow, a position created in memory of the former Artistic Director. She returned as a Resident Artist in 2018 as the Company's Directing Associate.

Jessica's other directing credits include The Wolves by Sarah DeLappe (The Old Fitz), Two Hearts by Laura Lethlean (Kings Cross Theatre), Martin Lysicrates Prize 2018 (Griffin), REALISM by Anthony Neilson (NIDA), Intoxication by Christopher Bryant (La Mama Courthouse), Unend by Harry Black for Never Never Theatre Company at Adelaide and Sydney Fringe Festivals, How Are You? by Laura Lethlean for Design Canberra Festival, The Sugar Syndrome by Lucy Prebble for The Kings Collective and Rausch with the guidance of Falk Richter, which led to her to undertake an internship in Germany at the Schauspiel Frankfurt for Safe Places, by Falk Richter and Anouk van Dijk. Jessica also completed a directorial secondment on The Weir by Conor McPherson at Melbourne Theatre Company. She worked as assistant director with Kip Williams on Melbourne Theatre Company's production of Miss Julie, and Sarah Goodes (former STC Resident Director) on NIDA's Scorched.

Jessica holds a Bachelor of Performing Arts (Monash University 2013), including a semester of Theatre and Performance at Leeds University, UK and a Master of Fine Arts (Directing) at the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA 2014/2015). Jessica is co-founder of the theatre company The Anchor.