DAVID HAWKINS - PRODUCER

David Hawkins is the Artistic Director of Showtune Productions a company developed to advance the form of music theatre through cabaret, concert and theatrical presentations.  Hawkins has performed professionally himself with Opera Australia for over eight years, with his cabaret act Nom de Plume nationally and he played the coveted role of Lee Gordon in “Shout! The musical of the Wild One” for the national tour (Kevin Jacobsen Productions).  Hawkins has worked with leading creatives such as Baz Luhrmann, Jim Sharman, and Ross Coleman.
 
Showtune Productions has opened several venues for Sydney including The Kirk in Surry Hills (1995-2001) Kabarett Junction in Bondi Junction (2001-2003) Kabarett Voltaire first at Bar Me then Seymour Centre (2003-2005).  At the venues he promoted such artists as Christine Anu, iOTA, Rufus Wainwright (CANADA), Paul Capsis, Toni Lamond, John Bucchino (USA), Faith Winthrope (USA), Margi de Ferranti, Leonie Page, David Campbell, Kane Alexander, Anne Wood, Alison Jiear, Micheline Van Hautem (Belgium/USA), Jeannie Lewis, Margaret Roadknight, Deliah Hannah, Combo Fiasco, Monsieur Camembert,  and many more.
 
Last year after presenting Tony Award songstress Lillias White to a sell out season and rave reviews @NEWTOWN he has begun to bring more Broadway stars to our shores. This year he presented Faith Prince  @NEWTOWN and at his new venue in Melbourne which has been created with Nancy Cato and Sofitel Melbourne the Sofitel Supper Club, and in August Chita Rivera will make her Australian debut with Showtune Productions playing The Studio at Sydney Opera House and Sofitel Supper Club.
 
Hawkins has directed two shows first was the New York revue  ‘Kooky Tunes’ with Eddie Perfect, Sharon Millerchip, Kaye Tuckerman and Andrew Benson with Steps by Ross Coleman which toured Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra.  His second directing job was a huge success ‘Intimate and Deadly’ a show written and conceived with Christine Anu it played to sell out houses in The Studio at Sydney Opera House, Adelaide Festival Centre, Darwin Festival, Queensland Music Festival, The Clarendon Katoomba, Byron Bay Arts Centre, The Famous Spiegeltent at Victorian Arts Centre and a regional tour is planned for early 2007.
 
Showtune has presented many rehearsed readings of new musicals including ‘The Happy Prince’, ‘Time Traveler’, ‘Lionel and the Dragon’ and in 2000 Hawkins presented a concert version of the Broadway show ‘Damn Yankee’s’ with Tony Harvey, Leonie Page and Margi de Ferranti.  Hawkins purchased the rights for Hedwig three years ago and it has been on simmer for over three years, now finally the best cast & creative team has been established and a tour has been set so now it is time to take that wig down off the shelf in Oz.  

CRAIG ILOTT - DIRECTOR

Craig graduated from NIDA in 1991.

Directing credits include: Sunday in The Park With George (NIDA), Three’s Company (Glen St), The Present (La Mama) Fiddler On The Roof  (Darwin Theatre Company), The Suitors, (Easily Distracted, Old Fitz).

For his own company, Albedo Theatre, Craig has directed, The Decameron (Old Fitz) which was nominated for Sun Herald Best Independent Production 2002, Dealer’s Choice (Old Fitz ) which went on to win Sun Herald Best Independent Production 2004, and Edmond in a co-production with B Sharp Belvoir, nominated for Best Independent Production at the 2005 Sydney Theatre Awards.   

Craig was resident director on Makropoulos Secret for Opera Australia, and was in 2005, assistant to director Neil Armfield on the feature film Candy starring Geoffrey Rush and Heath Ledger.

Most recently he directed the national tour of the concert Let It Be.  Later this year he will direct I Get The Music In You for The Ensemble Theatre.

Acting credits include productions for Company B Belvoir, Sydney Theatre Company, Bell Shakespeare, Griffin Theatre Company, Glen St Theatre, NIDA Company, Spirit Entertainment as well as lead roles in musicals for Dainty Consolidated, David Atkins Enterprises, Hills Centre, and the Melbourne International Festival. 

KELLEY ABBEY - CHOREOGRAPHER

For over two decades Kelley Abbey has performed, danced and choreographed for theatre, film and television.

Kelley has just completed her role as the only Australian guest 4th Judge and was a special guest choreographer on Ten Networks mega hit Australian TV series of So You Think You Can Dance.

In 2007 Kelley choreographed, consulted and played a role in a new Australian feature film called In Her Skin starring Sam Neil, Guy Pearce and Miranda Otto to be released in September 2008.

From 2004 to 2006 Kelley worked as the choreographer, lead performer and was the motion capture director on the GOLDEN GLOBE, BAFTA and OSCAR winning, feature film Happy Feet, for George Miller, Warner Bros. and Village Roadshow. Happy Feet was the number one box office in Britain and America upon it’s release. Later that year Kelley was honoured at the AMERICAN CHOREOGRAPHY MEDIA HONORS for her work in Happy Feet.

In 2006 she co-choreographed Hugh Jackman’s The Boy From Oz Australian Arena tour for producers Ben Gannon and Robert Fox. Kelley and co-choreographer/director Kenny Ortega won the Helpmann Award for best choreography in a musical for this production.

In 2005 Kelley choreographed a new arena production of Grease for Gordon Frost/SEL.

Kelley has also choreographed several other stage musicals including Footloose for Gordon Frost/SEL, for which she earned a Helpmann Award nomination, the Sydney Opera House concert production of Follies, and Fame – The Musical in Australia, Asia and South Africa.

While playing Rizzo in Grease – The Arena Spectacular in 1998 she was also Assistant Choreographer and Assistant Director.

A leading lady in musicals like Sweet Charity and Fame – The Musical, Kelley has won many awards. For Sweet Charity she received the Green Room, Variety Heart and MO Awards for Best Female Musical Theatre Performer. In Fame – The Musical, she both starred and choreographed, winning a MO Award for Best Female Performer/Choreographer in a Musical and the Green Room Award for Best Original Choreography.

Other theatre credits as a performer include Dancin’ Man and Dynamite! with David Atkins, West Side Story for the Victoria State Opera and the role of Rizzo in the return Melbourne and Sydney seasons of Grease – The Arena Spectacular.

From 1991 to 1993 Kelley first came to public notice as Jo-Jo in the popular soap E-Street which aired on Network Ten Australia and Britain’s Sky network. She has since performed on many other television shows as an actor, dancer and singer. She also sang at the 1997 Grand Final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground and at the opening of the Olympic Stadium in Sydney.

Kelley is also one of Australia’s leading music videochoreographers working with artists such as Human Nature, Toni Pearon, Leah Haywood, Scandalus, Sophie Monk and award-winning international dance group Girlfriend with whom she made her directorial debut on their Heartbeat video, which was nominated for Best Video at the Australian Music Awards.

Kelley staged and choreographed Human Nature performances on their international tours with Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson and Celine Dion. She has worked on Human Nature’s own tours as well as choreographing their acclaimed Logie Award performance. She has choreographed Logies performances for Pop Idol’s Shannon Noel, Guy Sebastian as well as staged Ricky Martin’s Logies performance.

Kelley was also choreographer and staging director of The Main Event  Arena concert starring John Farnham, Olivia Newton-John and Anthony Warlow.

In 2000/2001 Kelley worked as choreographer and staging director on Popstars II for Channel Seven/Screentime, which resulted in a number one hit for pop act Scandalus.

NICK JONES - RESIDENT CHOREOGRAPHER AND TOUR RESIDENT DIRECTOR

Nick began dancing at the age of three under the tuition of Michelle Rae School of Dance and later at the Victorian College of the Arts graduating in 1998.
 
His professional career in singing, dancing and acting began at the age of 10.  As a child he performed roles in The Wizard of Oz (Munchkin), The King and I (Louis), Scrooge - The Musical (Peter Cratchitt), Fiddler on the Roof (Ensemble), The Masked Ball (Ensemble) and La Boheme (Ensemble).   His television credits include roles in Late for School (series regular), The Man From Snowy River, Fast Forward, Neighbours and Blue Heelers.  

Nick spent a year in China song writing and performing as part of a pop group which culminated in the release of a top selling CD.
 
Prior to his time overseas he performed in The Merry Widow and The Boy From Oz and since returning to Australia he has performed in The Music Man and toured with Shout! The Legend of the Wild One, he was an original cast member of the highly acclaimed We Will Rock You and the recent Melbourne season of Fiddler on the Roof.
 
Nick toured with Chita Rivera Down Under as tour co-ordinator and was one of Ms Rivera’s dancers in her Melbourne Masterclass. He was also assistant choreographer on the original season of Hedwig and the Angry Inch and is so pleased to be recreating the choreography for the return Sydney season.  Nick starts rehearsals in February for Miss Saigon which opens March in Melbourne.

Canadian born Tina Harris is a mutli instrumentalist with a diversity of talents as performer, composer and musical director. Her background has roots in community theatre and music; tutoring workshops, and writing and arranging for many styles of band, including big band, cabaret, latin, funk and a cappella. She has a range of experience in theatre/music theatre being musical director or associate musical director for a number of main stage productions including RENT,The New Rocky Horror Show, Return to the Forbidden Planet, and has also performed in Miracle City, (bass) and Oh What a Night (guitar/keyboard or percussion).

Tina has also been seen around the cabaret scene over the years playing with Paul Capsis, Genevieve Lemon and Christine Anu as well as performing in the Opening Ceremony of the Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games.

In the past year Tina has worked playing bass with the 10 piece big band for Todd McKenny - Live; went to London in November to perform in and musical direct a short season of Hedwig and the Angry Inch, and was Musical Director for Simon Palomares and George Kapiniaris - Live at the Palms at Melbourne's Crown Casino, and continues to play around Sydney in afro- latin funk outfit, Matanza

Tina has just finished composing music and lyrics for a cabaret commisioned by Parallelo Theatre Company, Adelaide which was performed at both Adelaide and Melbourne Cabaret Festivals.

NICHOLAS DARE - DESIGN

Nicholas is a graduate of the NIDA Design Course. In the past few years he has created a number of designs for a variety of productions, ranging from theatre to film and events. He has just designed the Australian Premiere of 17 by Michael Gow (ATYP), after returning from Saudi Arabia where he was the senior designer for the Jeddah Economic Forum . Other work this year has included Slamming (Sydney Festival) and the Short & Sweet Festival.

In 2004 Nicholas designed The Woman with Dog's Eyes (Griffin Theatre Co) Dealer's Choice (Albedo Theatre) and Eclipse & Musicians (Royal National Theatre/ATYP) . Other productions include Hansel & Gretel (Pacific Opera) Vicious Streaks (ROAR Theatre Co), the opening performances at Luna Park, Stone Sleeper, Birth of the Cool (Sydney Festival) Fiddler On The Roof (Darwin Theatre Company) Brokenville, Hamlet, Sparkleshark (ATYP) West Side Story (Moriah College) The Decameron (Albedo/Poor Nick) The Fruits of Enlightenment, Three Sisters (NIDA). Short films include Irons and Trapped.

STEPHEN HAWKER - LIGHTING DESIGNER

As a Lighting Designer Stephen has worked with companies such as Company B Open House, The Small Poppies and Svetlana in Slingbacks, Platform 27 Marinheiro and The Waiting Room, Siren Theatre Connie and Kevin and the Secret Life of Groceries, Ensemble Lobby Hero, Hair of the Dog Misanthrope and Sweet Phoebe, Griffin Wicked Sisters and Rabbit, Kicking and Screaming/B Sharp Pussy Boy, A.T.Y.P Brokenville and Scorch Theatre/B Sharp Love That Dog to name but a few.

His most recent work being Myth, Propaganda and Disaster in Nazi Germany and Contemporary America for Tangent Productions Inc. The Secret Death of Salvador Dali for Griffin.