Summary: Wesley Enoch is a man of the theatre. He is in his final term as Artistic Director of the Sydney Festival. It is a role that has been informed by an extensive resume in roles as Playwright, Director and passionate Advocate for the Arts. He is also a leader and creative force in navigating the theatre to frame our vital indigenous stories. The plays he writes and directs explore issues of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and the complexities of Australian race relations. Enoch is a proud Noonuccal Nuugi man. He grew up in Brisbane and trained in Drama at the Queensland University of Technology. He has been at the helm of a number of renowned Indigenous theatre productions, including The 7 Stages of Grieving with Deborah Mailman, Black Diggers, presented at Sydney Festival in 2014 and his most recent production, Black Cockatoo, which premiered at the 2020 Sydney Festival. He is Chair of Create NSW's Aboriginal Arts and Culture Board; Chair of the Australia Council's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Strategy Panel; a Board member of Annamila and NAISDA; and a member of the AGNSW Aboriginal Advisory Committee. In the lead up to curating his final Sydney Festival, he has been presented with considerable Covid challenges, on top of the considerations that already present to the responsibility of Festival Director. Wesley shares some of those challenges and his great passion for telling stories on the stage. The Stages podcast is available from Apple podcasts, Spotify, Whooshkaa and where all good podcasts are found.
