RICHARD CARROLL
Richard Carroll is a director, writer and producer based in Sydney. Since 2022, he has been Co-Artistic Director of Hayes Theatre Co with Victoria Falconer.
Directing work at Hayes Theatre Co includes Murder For Two, Calamity Jane (followed by Belvoir season and national tour), Godspell, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Monty Python’s Spamalot (followed by Australian tour), Gypsy, Side Show, and Murder For Two: Christmas Edition, as well as numerous concerts, cabaret shows and events. He won a Sydney Theatre Award for Calamity Jane, and was nominated this year for Murder For Two.
His production of Once has played three times at the Eternity Playhouse in Sydney, and had seasons at Merrigong Theatre Co, Black Swan State Theatre Co, HOTA Gold Coast, and The Comedy Theatre in Melbourne.
Other directing work includes a new production of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Oklahoma! for Black Swan State Theatre Co, and The Boy, George, a one-person show starring comedian Joel Creasey. He has co-directed new Australian play The Boomkak Panto with Virginia Gay for Belvoir, and An Act of God with Mitchell Butel for Darlinghurst Theatre Co.
Richard is co-creator and director of the shows Every Musical Ever (The Art House Wyong & Adelaide Cabaret Festival), and The Show Goes On starring Bernadette Robinson (Sydney Opera House & Arts Centre Melbourne). ForNeglected Musicals, he has directed presentations of Mame and Meet Me in St Louis, as well as the first incarnation of his Calamity Jane.
Other directing work includes Rewired for Sydney Festival & Hayes Theatre Co, A Night at the Speakeasy for Sydney Symphony Orchestra, and opening gala concerts for Adelaide Cabaret Festival, The Art House Wyong, and The Pavilion Performing Arts Centre. Richard’s cabaret work includes: Everybody Loves Lucy (co-writer); Dahlesque (co-writer); ¡Hispanic Attack! (writer/director, national tour); and Don’t Bother To Knock (co-writer/director, Hayes/Adelaide Cabaret Festival).
Producing and executive producing work includes Sweet Charity and Miracle City for Luckiest Productions, Jekyll & Hyde, Lizzie, Darlinghurst Nights and High Society for Hayes Theatre Co; Calamity Jane, Side Show, and Monty Python’s Spamalot for One-Eyed Man Productions, and Gypsy for Luckiest Productions & One Eyed Man Productions.
VICTORIA FALCONER
Victoria Falconer (she/her) is a performer, music director, multi-instrumentalist, writer and mentor of Filipino-English heritage. Since 2022, she has been Co-Artistic Director of Hayes Theatre Co alongside Richard Carroll. Recent work as a cross-disciplinary creator/performer includes Smashed: The Nightcap (Sydney Festival 2024), site-specific durational piece The Sight (Dark Mofo 2023); and Frank Ford Commission winner The Vali Myers Project (Adelaide Cabaret Festival); and Smashed: The Brunch Party (Sydney Festival, Adelaide Fringe).
As a cabaret performer, Victoria has appeared on stages including Hackney Empire, Soho Theatre, Southbank Centre London, Carriageworks, The Famous Spiegeltent, Queerstories, BATS Theatre Wellington, Darwin Festival and Glastonbury Festival. She has hosted stages at Victoria Pride, Sydney WorldPride, Melbourne Fringe and Bi Pride UK, and recently toured the Slingsby & State Theatre South Australia production of The Boy Who Talked to Dogs around Australia and Ireland.
In 2022, Victoria was named one of the 40 Under 40 Influential Asian-Australians in Arts and Culture, and is a founding member of The People Of Cabaret, an performance and advocacy initiative formed to support independent artists identifying as Indigenous and/or Bla(c)k and/or People of Colour.
Most recent work as a musical director at Hayes includes Homage, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Godspell and Lizzie. Other music direction credits include M’ap Boulé (Performing Lines), Oklahoma! (Black Swan State Theatre), Once (Darlinghurst Theatre Company), Leap (Riverside Parramatta/Australian tour), Courtney Act (London/Sydney) and Insane Animals (Home Manchester). Victoria has won Overall Best Cabaret at Adelaide Fringe twice (2018/2011), a Green Room Award for Best Cabaret Ensemble for The People Of Cabaret (2020), Spirit of the Edinburgh Fringe with Glittery Clittery (2018), and has been nominated for a Sydney Theatre Award and two Green Room Awards (2019/2023) for musical direction.