Damien Ryan
Director
Damien is Founder and Artistic Director of Sport for Jove Theatre, now in its 17th year. He has directed over 60 productions in that period for hundreds of thousands of Australians and reached students across NSW and Queensland annually with the company’s comprehensive Education Program. His most recent credits include adapting/directing The Player Kings: Shakespeare’s History Cycle (Seymour Centre) and writing/directing the acclaimed original work Venus and Adonis for stage and feature film.
As actor, director and writer he has worked extensively across Australia’s major companies. He spent 15 years with Bell Shakespeare as actor, director and writer of education materials and seminars. As director and actor he has also worked with STC, MTC, Belvoir, Queensland Theatre, Sydney Festival, Ensemble Theatre, Black Swan, CTC, Brisbane Festival, Hothouse Theatre, Haydn Ensemble and Bach in the Dark, while maintaining a passionate commitment to the Independent sector in Sydney over a 30 year period. He is a proud member of MEAA.
Damien has been awarded for Henry V (Sydney Theatre Awards for Best Mainstage Production, Best Director, and Greenroom Award for Best Mainstage Production, nominated for Best Director), Antigone (Sydney Theatre Award for Best Production and Best Director), Cyrano de Bergerac (Sydney Theatre Awards for Best Production and Best Director), All’s Well That Ends Well (Sydney Theatre Award for Best Production), The Libertine (Sydney Theatre Award for Best Independent Production, Timeout Award for Best Production and Best Director), and Othello (Sydney Theatre Award for Best Supporting Actor for Iago), along with many other nominations; Glug Awards for Best Production/Director for The Father (STC), No End of Blame (SFJ) and Look Back in Anger (with Lizzie Schebesta, Old Fitz). He has written extensive education programs and has two award-winning plays published with Currency Press, and his newest play Prometheus has been published by the NSW Board of Education for the 2026 syllabus.
Damien is currently writing several works – a new adaptation of The Three Musketeers from Dumas’ novel, an Australian work based on Kate Lyon’s novel The Water Underneath, and several original plays including Napoleon’s Garden and in early development, plays about Van Gogh, Caravaggio, a work set in a remote NSW town called Concussion, and a story drawn from the tale of Australia’s first bank robbery, called Suddenly.
James Browne
Set and Costume Designer
James is a graduate from Theatre Design at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) and Australian Film Television and Radio School (AFTRS) in Art Direction. He has received nominations in the Australian Production Design Awards, Green Room Awards and Sydney Theatre Awards and won Best Costume Design – Musical for HAIR in the 2020 BroadwayWorld Sydney Awards. Other MainStage musicals include GHOST (Theatre Creation Japan), THE SELFISH GIANT (Victorian Opera), CABARET, LAST 5 YEARS, XANADU, MIRACLE CITY, CRUEL INTENTIONS, MIDNIGHT, most recently set and costume designs for a new production of GREASE (GFO). Plays include TURNS, TIM (CDP), LADIES DAY, BEACHED, DIVING FOR PEARLS (Griffin), GUARDS AT THE TAJ, KARIM(NTOP) and LETTERS TO LINDY (Merrigong), THE GREAT DIVIDE (Ensemble).
Childrens stage productions include- SPOT, THE VERY HUNGRY CATERPILLAR, THE RED TREE, JOSEPHINE WANTS TO DANCE, YONG and PETE THE SHEEP (Monkey Baa).
Circus and Cabaret shows include VELVET, CIRQUE STRATOSPHERE, LIMBO, SABRAGE (London) and BLANC DE BLANC.
James has just designed HALF LIFE OF MARIE CURIE and PRIMARY TRUST (Ensemble) and soon to be designing NATURISM (Griffin).
Matthew Marshall
Lighting Designer
Born and raised in Perth Western Australia, Matthew Marshall is a graduate of the West Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) Production & Design course in 2000.
Recent designs include Dido & Aeneas (Opera Queensland), The Barber of Seville (Seattle Opera and Des Moines Metro Opera), Gatsby at the Green Light (Sydney Opera House/Caper & Crow), Il Tabarro (Victorian Opera), Der Ring des Nibelungen or The Ring Cycle (Opera Australia), Le Comte Ory, Cosi Fan Tutte, The Unruly Tourists and Macbeth (New Zealand Opera), Chorus! (Opera Australia), Vigil: Awaken (Sydney Festival), Velvet Rewired (Organised Pandemonium), Oil (Black Swan State Theatre Company), Ballet at the Quarry and Goldberg Variations (West Australian Ballet), Eirebourne (Mellen Events/Mpire), The Crowd & I (Australian Chamber Orchestra), A Winters Journey (Musica Viva), Dark Mofo Night Mass (DarkLab), Mary Stuart (Perth Festival/Performing Lines), The Marriage of Figaro (New Zealand Opera), James Galea’s Best Trick Ever (Sydney Opera House), City of Lights (Perth Festival), Tim Minchin’s The Absence of You music video, Cinderella (Seattle Opera), Turn of the Screw (New Zealand Opera), a new full length ballet Tchaikovsky (Tulsa Ballet), the outdoor Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour La Bohéme (Opera Australia), American Idiot Australian national tour (Shake & Stir/QPAC), Athalia (Pinchgut Opera), Askungen (Royal Swedish Opera), Carmen (Oper Leipzig), Club Swizzle (Roundhouse London) and La Cenerentola (Oper Leipzig, San Diego Opera).
Brady Watkins
Composer and Sound Designer
Brady is a Brisbane-based Composer/Sound Designer and FOH Operator who has worked with companies such as Queensland Theatre, La Boite, Dead Puppet Society, Woodward Productions, Neil Gooding Productions, Belvoir Street Theatre, Counterpilot, Queensland Museum and World Science Festival. Composition/Sound Design credits include Shirley Valentine with Woodward Productions; The Appleton Ladies Potato Race, Othello, Flower in Antarctica with Queensland Theatre; Macbeth, Away, The Neighbourhood with La Boite; SWARM with Dead Puppet Society; Tiny Beautiful Things with Belvoir St; Arena Atomica: Skate-ology, Night of the Nerds with Queensland Museum and World Science Festival. Sound Design credits include Round the Twist: The Musical with Queensland Theatre and QPAC; Meet Your Maker with Blak Social and Brisbane Festival; First Casualty with Queensland Theatre; Fancy Long Legs, The Last Five Years, Bigger & Blacker with La Boite. FOH Operator credits include A Very Naughty Christmas – Melbourne, Sweet Charity with Woodward Productions; Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf with Queensland Theatre and STCSA. Other credits include Calamity Jane (Queensland Theatre, The Hayes Theatre, One Eyed Man Productions and Neglected Musicals); Bananaland (QPAC, Brisbane Festival), Hamilton: An American Musical (Michael Cassel Group), The Wider Earth (Dead Puppet Society). Brady holds a Bachelor of Music Technology from Queensland Conservatorium of Music.
Jennifer White
Dialect Coach
Jennifer White is a leading Dialect, Voice & Performance Coach based in Sydney. She coaches local and international film, TV, theatre and musicals for companies including Warner Bros Pictures, Lionsgate Films, Sydney Theatre Company and Opera Australia.
For film and TV, her credits include as Dialect Coach on Cate Blanchett’s award-winning Netflix series Stateless, as coach to Rachel Griffiths on the Stan series Bali 2002, and on the films Mortal Kombat (1 and 2), Peter Rabbit, I Am Woman and Seriously Red.
For Sydney Theatre Company, she’s coached 11 plays including the premiere seasons and national tours of RBG: Of Many, One starring Heather Mitchell and Julia starring Justine Clarke. She also coached STC artistic director Kip Williams’ play On the Beach and Steven Soderbergh’s Tot Mom.
Further theatre includes Belvoir Street Theatre’s The Drover’s Wife starring Leah Purcell and Mortido starring Colin Friels, Melbourne Theatre Company’s Solomon and Marion, Griffin Theatre’s Rice directed by Lee Lewis, and over 18 plays for Ensemble Theatre.
For musical theatre, Jennifer’s coached 3 productions of West Side Story for Opera Australia, the national tours of Chicago and Six the Musical, and In the Heights at Sydney Opera House.
For Neil Gooding Productions, she’s coached multiple stage shows over 20 years, including the national tour of Shirley Valentine starring Natalie Bassingthwaighte and Stalking the Bogeyman, and musicals The Bridges of Madison County, Dogfight and Sweet Charity.
Jennifer graduated from NIDA as a voice coach and was a senior Lecturer there for 12 years on the BFA Acting and MFA Voice degrees. She graduated as an actor from Nepean and has toured as a singer.
Scott Witt
Fight Choreographer
Scott is an award-winning entertainment practitioner and educator. With a career spanning forty years he continuously works in stage, television and film. Scott’s career embraces acting, adapting, writing, fight directing, directing, designing movement, physical dramaturgy, slapstick and clowning. His work has been seen with Sydney Theatre Company, Melbourne Theatre Company, Bell Shakespeare, Belvoir, Griffin, Opera Australia, Ensemble, Merrigong Theatre Company, La Boite Theatre, Queensland Theatre Company, Zen Zen Zo, Darlinghurst Theatre Company, SASTC, NORPA, Queensland Performing Arts Trust, Opera Queensland, Queensland Ballet and many independent features and short films.
He is a recipient of the prestigious Paddy Crean Award for his influence and promotion of the historical study of Stage Combat at the International level. Scott was the Artistic Director for the International Order of the Sword and the Pen from 2009 to 2020. He was the President of the Society of Australian Fight Directors Incorporated from 1996 to 2007, an Honorary Member of the British Academy of Dramatic Combat, Honorary Fight Director of Fight Directors, Canada, and an Honorary Fight Director of the Independent Fight Directors Guild of America. Scott is a proud platinum member of Media Entertainment & Arts Alliance since 1988
Neil Gooding
Producer
Neil is currently one of the producers of Back To The Future in the West End and on the US Tour. Last year, Neil was one of the producers of Harmony, Sunset Boulevard and Gypsy on Broadway, and has produced the Australian productions of The Woman In Black starring John Waters and Daniel MacPherson, Shirley Valentine starring Natalie Bassingthwaight and Peter And The Starcatcher, as well as being the General Manager for the Australian tour of Rent. Other producing credits include the World premiere of What’s New Pussycat in Birmingham, Islander (New York), Drummer Queens (Australia), LEAP (Australia), The 39 Steps (Off-Broadway), The Empire Strips Back (US Tours & Paris), the Helpmann Award winning Sweet Charity, the Australian premiere of Dogfight, High Fidelity, Handle With Care (NYC) starring Carol Lawrence and Alan Cumming’s one-man version of Macbeth (Broadway).
Neil was the director of Passion, at the Arts Centre in Melbourne for Life Like Touring. He also directed the Australian premiere of Dogfight by Benj Pasek & Justin Paul (Hayes Theatre), the national tour of Thank You For Being A Friend, and the World Premiere of Truth, Beauty And A Picture Of You. Neil has produced and directed Sing On Through Tomorrow by Matthew Robinson, LOVEBiTES by Peter Rutherford and James Millar, Love Letters, Irving Berlin: Songs In The Key Of Black (Lucy Maunder), The Divine Miss Bette starring Catherine Alcorn, as well as being one of the producers of the hit Australian play Holding The Man in the West End starring Jane Turner and Simon Burke. In 2009, he produced the original tour of Breast Wishes and directed and produced the Australian premiere of Gutenberg! The Musical! for which he was nominated for a Helpmann Award and a Green Room Award for his direction. In 2008, Neil produced (with WhiteBox) the World Premiere of The Hatpin starring Caroline O’Connor, Peter Cousens, Barry Crocker AM and Melle Stewart, which then went on to perform at the NYMF in New York. Neil also served as the Assistant Director on both of these productions.
Neil is the author of Back to the 80’s (which is now produced hundreds of times around the world every year), and Popstars – and was the founding Chairman of Hayes Theatre Co in Sydney.
Georgia Putt joins Neil as associate producer at Neil Gooding Productions
Alex Woodward
Producer
Alex Woodward – Founder & Lead Producer, Woodward Productions
Alex Woodward is an accomplished producer and theatre-maker with nearly two decades of experience in Australia’s performing arts industry. Now at 37, Alex leads Woodward Productions with a focus on creating and touring gateway theatre experiences that attract new audiences to live performance through engaging, accessible, and innovative work. Alex has worked extensively across Australia as a lead producer and general manager, with a growing international presence through the export of original Australian productions. Woodward Productions are financial investors in Back to the Future the musical Worldwide, The Book of Mormon UK Tour, and have 2 new works currently that are in their commissioning stage.
Notable achievements as Lead/Executive Producer include:
- The 39 Steps (New Production) – Australian Tour, 2025
- The Woman in Black (Original West End Production) – Australian Tour
- Shirley Valentine (New Production) – Australian Tour
- The Complete Works of William Shakespeare [Abridged] – Australian Tour
- Plied and Prejudice (New Austen Adaptation) – Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth & London
- A Very Naughty Christmas (Award-winning adults-only Christmas show) – London, Brisbane, Sydney & Melbourne
As General Manager/Executive Producer:
- Trent Dalton’s LOVE STORIES – Australian Tour
- Jersey Boys (New Production) – Brisbane
- The Pirates of Penzance (New Production) – Brisbane
Other credits include:
- Peter and the Starcatcher – (Australian Tour – co producer)
- Sherlock Holmes: The Mystery of the Valkyrie (Commissioned new work)
- Caroline O’Connor: From Broadway with Love
- Sweet Charity
- Bare: A Pop Opera
- YANK! A WWII Love Story
Alex’s company, Woodward Productions, is driven by a dedicated team of three:
- Sophie Watkins – Associate Producer & Technical Coordinator
- Chi Newton – Marketing & Cultural Consultant
For more information, visit www.woodwardproductions.com