Following the phenomenal success of The Picture of Dorian Gray in London’s West End, Kip Williams has decided to hand over the reins to a new Artistic Director at the end of 2024 as he makes space in his schedule for a potential Broadway season in 2025.
Williams said today, “Serving as Artistic Director at Sydney Theatre Company has been the honour of a lifetime. Over the past eight years, I have had the opportunity to work with the most extraordinary theatre makers in the country and have been fortunate enough to program and help bring to life 89 productions for STC. When I started as Artistic Director, one of my goals was to increase the space and opportunity for Australian stories on our stages. I couldn’t be prouder that two-thirds of the shows I have programmed during my tenure have been original works and adaptations by Australian writers.
“In the time I have spent in the Company, I have consistently been in awe of the immense talent that exists in every corner of The Wharf. I am forever indebted to the incredible staff and teams at STC with whom I love working and from whom I have learned so much. I am excited for the Company’s next chapter as it embarks on the search for a new Artistic Director and look forward to the next nine months working alongside Executive Director Anne Dunn and the entire team as we finalise plans for the 2025 Season and launch our remaining brilliant shows of the year.
“I am also delighted that the future touring plans for a number of productions I’ve adapted and directed will keep me close to the Company in the coming years. I look forward to returning as an artist to the Company I love so much in the years ahead and thank everyone in the STC family for your support and passion for the theatre we make together.”
Sydney Theatre Company’s artistic output under Kip’s leadership has resulted in one of the most critically acclaimed and creatively vibrant periods of the Company’s history.
Williams is an exceptional artist in his own right, and it has been a great pleasure to see his work develop and flourish during his time at STC, particularly the ground he has broken in using new technology in theatre. Kip has put great focus on Australian writing, championing new voices, and has realised the goal of gender parity for women writers and directors in every season. He has mentored and nurtured the careers of some of our most exciting writers, directors, designers, performers and technicians and the Australian theatre industry is a richer and more diverse place for the role that Kip has played in it.
We thank Williams for his extraordinary leadership and his continuing love for the STC. We are grateful to have him with us until the end of the year while we commence the search for our next Artistic Director and are delighted Kip will remain close to the Company in the years ahead.
Williams joined Sydney Theatre Company in 2011 as an Assistant Director on Andrew Upton’s The White Guard and Benedict Andrews’ Gross Und Klein. In 2012, he was appointed Associate Director by then Artistic Directors Cate Blanchett and Andrew Upton. He became Resident Director in 2013 and in 2016, at age thirty, became STC’s youngest ever Artistic Director and Co-CEO.
Throughout his 13 years with the Company, Kip has directed a total of 24 productions for STC, including Kate Mulvany’s 7-hour epic, The Harp in the South Part One and Part Two, The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui, Chimerica and Suddenly Last Summer for which he won a Helpmann Award for Best Director.
Williams will begin rehearsals in the coming weeks for his highly anticipated new adaptation of Dracula, the third and final instalment in his Gothic cine-theatre trilogy following the lauded productions of The Picture of Dorian Gray and Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. Kip will continue to be an integral presence at STC in 2025, with tours planned for Dracula and a brand-new work to be unveiled as part of his final program for STC.
I hope you join us in wishing Kip success in his next endeavours.
Best wishes,
Ann Johnson
STC Chair