Our Story

Slingsby produces and tours original theatre for family audiences and young people aged eight years and over. Founded in 2007, Slingsby is based on Kaurna Meyunna Yerta in Adelaide, South Australia.

Slingsby creates emotionally powerful theatrical experiences that renew wonder in our world and explore the role we each play in building a happy and harmonious society. We are passionate about meaningful storytelling that captivates, challenges, and inspires optimism.  By telling stories of wonder, hardship and hope, Slingsby builds connections and joy within our community. 

Each Slingsby show is an invitation into a magical world. The company’s signature world-worn aesthetic is embedded in each show, transporting audiences to a time and place that is at once familiar and new.

We collaborate with Australia’s finest artists across diverse disciplines and cultivate international theatrical alliances.

Our productions have been presented in Australia, New Zealand, USA, Canada, UK, Ireland, Scotland, Spain, Singapore, Norway, China and India, earning the company a global reputation for excellence in theatre-making for young audiences.  

The company’s first work The Tragical Life of Cheeseboy was an international success and has been performed over 800 times worldwide. Recent works including The Young King and Emil and the Detectives along with our international collaboration The Boy Who Talked to Dogs have further established Slingsby’s standing as an eminent theatre maker.

A brace of local, national, and international awards is a testament to Slingsby’s leadership in the industry and the company’s profound impact on its multi-generational audience. Slingsby’s many accolades include three Ruby Awards, a prestigious Victor Award (People’s Choice) – International Performing Arts for Youth Showcase and a Helpmann Award (Best Presentation for Children).

View a trove of Slingsby productions here. 

Our People

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Andy Packer

CEO & Artistic Director

Andy is an award-winning director of theatre, music theatre and opera. He has also worked as creative producer of multidisciplinary arts programs, creative director of large-scale events and festival director. In 2007 he co-founded Slingsby.

Andy has also directed productions and events for Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, State Opera South Australia, State Theatre Company South Australia, Adelaide Festival of Arts, Adelaide Fringe, Adelaide Festival Centre, Adelaide Chamber Singers, Australian String Quartet, Windmill Theatre, Restless Dance, Tutti Ensemble, Rundle Mall Management Authority, the International Astronautical Federation and the World of Wearable Art.

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Rebecca Pearce

Executive Director

A respected creative and cultural leader, Rebecca brings more than 20 years of experience in senior roles across major arts organisations in Australia and internationally, including CEO of the Adelaide UNESCO City of Music, Associate Director of Programming at Adelaide Festival Centre, Program Director of Brisbane Festival, Program Manager at the Singapore International Festival, and Programming Executive at Adelaide Festival.

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Georgia Stanley

Community Enrichment Manager

Georgia is a South Australian arts manager and producer. A graduate of the AC Arts acting course, Georgia has also held roles in Marketing at Adelaide Festival and Art Gallery of South Australia. Georgia’s work with Slingsby has spanned Associate Artist, Tour Manager, Associate Producer and General Manager. Georgia has recently stepped into two new roles; mother and Slingsby’s Community Enrichment Manager. In both roles she has a strong focus on the future of our young people; building their connection to theatre and taking action against the climate crisis to ensure a safe future for them.

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Karen Vance

Finance & Admin Officer

Karen is an experienced finance and administration professional who has worked across small businesses, non-profit organisations, and arts institutions including Artlink magazine, the Contemporary Art Centre of South Australia, and SALA. Alongside her administrative and financial expertise, Karen is also a practising visual artist and designer. She holds a Graduate Diploma in Arts Management and a Bachelor of Visual Arts.

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David McLean

Production Manager

David started working in theatre from 1979 to 1988 with the Adelaide Festival Centre Trust (AFCT) Production Department as a Mechanist and Flyman. In 1981 he went on his first tour with State Opera South Australia touring Regional South Australia with Don Pasquale and then again in 1982 with Cossi Van Tutti.

From 1889 through to 1994 he worked as Head Flyman / Rigger for the Australian Opera Company working mainly at The Sydney Opera House and Victorian Arts Centre and touring as required.

For the second half of 1994 through 1995 David was Head Mechanist with the Canberra Theatre Centre in the Australian Capital Territory.

Upon returning home to Adelaide South Australia in 1996 David was firstly Head Mechanist of the Festival Theatre and then from 2000 through to 2004 was Technical Coordinator for the AFCT Production Department.

From 2005 through to 2018 he was Production Manager for State Opera South Australia, Production Coordinator for Adelaide Fringe 2009, 20010, 2011, 2013 and a Production Coordinator for Adelaide Festival (AF) 2006 and 2008.

From 2019 through to 2023 David was the Production Manager for Adelaide Festival’s Operas.

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Rod Schultz

Marketing Manager

Rod has many years of experience in arts and entertainment, in both administration and as a performer. Much of his work has been with small touring companies. He has worked in a variety of management roles for The Fairies, Co-Opera: Opera on the Move and the Royal Commonwealth Society Ensemble.

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Smiling older person with curly hair, wearing a patterned vest over a light shirt, photographed in black and white with a plain background—Quincy Grant exudes warmth and character in this timeless portrait.

Quincy Grant

Composer

Quincy has spent his life being a freelance composer and musician, and written hundreds of works for soloists, chamber ensembles and orchestras that have been performed in many decades of concerts. 

He has written the music for over forty theatre works, for companies all over Australia, including two operas. 

He has played and written for many bands over the decades, in many different styles – the most recent being the despicable gypsy-influenced band Golonka and the folk outfit Miranda Bede. 

He has toured to many countries in Europe, Asia and the Americas.   

He is co-director of The Firm, a company that presents concerts each year featuring Australian classical musicians in programs of new Australian music along-side carefully chosen repertoire.

Quincy lives in Adelaide with his dear Anna, and has three children: Arland, Clara and Miranda.

 

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Wendy Todd

Designer

For Slingsby, Wendy’s work has included The Young KingMan Covets Bird, and The Tragical Life of Cheeseboy (Set & Costume Design), The Boy Who Talked to Dogs and Emil & The Detectives (Set Design) and, most recently, A Concise Compendium of Wonder – The Tree of Light,  The Giant’s Garden, Childhood of the World, (Environment Design).

Wendy’s Set & Costume Design credits include Dead Man’s Cell Phone (Tim Overton/Wickedly Good Productions), The Thing That Matters and Touch & Go (Sally Chance Dance), Seashore (Sally Chance Dance/Dream Big), Vaudeville (Brink Productions/Rory Walker), Land + Sea (Brink Productions), Supernature and North/South (Australian Dance Theatre), The Lighthouse (Patch Theatre), Picaresque (Robyn Archer, Adelaide Festival), Long Tan (Brink Productions/State Theatre Company South Australia), Babyteeth, Blasted and Pornography (State Theatre Company South Australia). Wendy also designed the Adelaide Cabaret Festival’s opening, closing and family galas from 2016 to 2018 (Adelaide Festival Centre).

Wendy’s Set, Costume & Lighting Design credits include Symphonie de la Bicyclette (Brink Productions/Hew Parham) and The World Is Looking For You (Control Party).

For Adelaide Festival Centre, Wendy’s event designs include Adelaide Cabaret Festival (Co-designer 2015-2019) and Adelaide Guitar Festival (2016). Late-night club designs for Adelaide Festival include Blinc Bar (Designer, 2015), Lola’s Pergola (Design Assistant/Coordinator 2014), Barrio (Design Coordinator 2012-2013), and Persian Garden (Assistant Designer 2006, 2008). Wendy also designed the biannual Bowerbird Design Markets from 2013 to 2017.

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Chris Petridis

Lighting Designer

Chris is a lighting and video designer from Adelaide, South Australia. Following his completion of the Technical Production course at the Adelaide Centre of the Arts, Chris has continued to develop his experience across theatre, dance, and other live events in Australia and internationally.

Chris worked on the inaugural Illuminate Adelaide Festival to deliver their flagship project Light Cycles in the Adelaide Botanic Gardens, crafted by the world-leading Montreal-based studio Moment Factory. Chris has since been working on a number of large outdoor lighting installations with Illuminate Adelaide, Moment Factory and others.

Chris has worked with State Theatre Company South Australia on Single Asian Female, A View from the Bridge, Brothers Wreck, In The Club, Terrestrial, Mr Burns, Red Cross Letters, Eh Joe for the Beckett Triptych, Gorgon, Masquerade, The Kreutzer Sonata, Maggie Stone and Little Bird. Chris has completed designs for Gravity and Other Myths’ Ten Thousand Hours and Playbook. Carla Lippis’ Mondo Psycho live at WOMADelaide 2022. Theatre Republic’s The Garden, How Not To Make It In America, The Bleeding Tree and Lines. Australian Dance Theatre’s The Third, Objekt, Of All Things, The Beginning of Nature Part 1 and Ignition 2016. Restless Dance Theatre’s Zizanie and Touched. Slingsby’s The Tree of Light, The Boy Who Talked to Dogs, Songs for Those Who’ve Come Across the Seas, Emil and the Detectives and The Mouse, The Bird and The Sausage. Windmill Theatre Company’s Moss Piglet, Rella, Creation Creation, Hiccup!, Beep, Grug and the Rainbow, Big Bad Wolf and Story Thieves. Vitalstatistix’ The Photo Box, Cher and Quiet Faith. Flying Penguin’s Oleanna, Bitch Boxer and Seawall.

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Ailsa Paterson

Designer

Ailsa completed the Bachelor of Dramatic Art in Design (NIDA) in 2003. Recent design credits include Kimberly Akimbo (costume design, State Theatre Company South Australia/MTC), HouseworkJack Maggs and The Puzzle (State Theatre Company South Australia), A Quiet Language (ADT, costume design), Watershed (Opera Australia) and The Marriage of Figaro (State Opera South Australia).

Design credits for State Theatre Company South Australia include: The Dictionary of Lost Words (costume design), Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill, Girls and BoysSingle Asian FemaleChalkfaceThe Goat, or Who is Sylvia (costume design), Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?Ripcord (set design), GaslightJasper JonesEnd of the RainbowSense and SensibilitySwitzerlandThe 39 StepsBeckett TriptychThe Importance of Being EarnestIn the Next Room, or The Vibrator PlayThe Ham FuneralThe Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged), The Price and The Cripple of Inishmaan.

Other design credits include Marrow and Tracker (ADT, costume design), Dido and Aeneas (State Opera South Australia), A Christmas Carol (Ensemble), Boxing Day BBQ (Ensemble), The Boy Who Talked to Dogs (Slingsby, costume design), Emil and The Detectives (Slingsby, costume design), Cloudstreet! (State Opera South Australia, costume design). Ailsa was the recipient of the 2011 Mike Walsh Fellowship.

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Darian Tregenza

Technical Director/Operator

Darian is a multiskilled lighting and vision designer and technician from South Australia.

Since graduating from Adelaide College of the Arts’ technical production course, Darian has honed his skills working in local venues, with theatre and dance companies, for festivals, on installations, and events. He has worked and toured with many Slingsby productions including The Young King, Emil and the Detectives, and The Boy Who Talked to Dogs, as well as acting as Lighting and Technical Designer for Slingsby’s Flying Squad shows This Tree is a Story and The River that Ran Uphill.

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Our Mission

To lovingly craft original, beautiful, complex, life-affirming, heartfelt and richly rewarding, theatre for adults and young people and to be internationally recognised for:

  • ‘coming of age’ and ‘getting of wisdom’ stories; 
  • exceptional telling of uplifting stories built on inspirational scripts and narratives; 
  • stories that celebrate the beauty of humanity’s journey: life, death, hope and our desires to live rich and meaningful lives; 
  • creating immersive, theatrical worlds; 
  • a unique aesthetic that is complex and at once new and familiar; 
  • cultivating an intimate connection between audience and performers.

Learn about Slingsby’s development processPaths Less Travelled, in our Creative Manifesto.

We are now committed to creating bold new work that challenges the status quo, delivers unforgettable experiences for audiences, and addresses one of the biggest global threats facing generations: the climate emergency.

As a company that aims for social impact on an intergenerational audience, it is incumbent upon Slingsby to reduce its climate impact. A Concise Compendium of Wonder tackles the global climate crisis with urgency and hope, in both theme and practical action.

 

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT OUR WORK

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