Dr David Fenton

Biography

Ph.D. Performance Innovation (Practice-led) QUT, M.F.A (Dramaturgy) QUT, B.A. (Directing) QUT, Grad. Dip (Directing) NIDA, Dip. Teach, (Drama and History), Kelvin Grove College of Advanced Education.

Significant positions David has held have been artistic, academic, executive and managerial. During his thirty-seven year career David has directed over sixty-five professional theatre productions. Currently David is a Lecture in Theatre – School of Creative Arts – UniSQ. He previous position was as Associate Head of Learning and Teaching (Graduate Studies) at the Australian Institute of Music where he was also leading the teach-out for the Bachelor of Performance in Dramatic Arts. Other roles at the Australian Institute of Music David has assumed are Program Leader for Graduate Studies and Program Leader for the Scholarship Portfolio. Before this David was Acting CEO of Metro Arts 2014-15 and before that Head of Performance Practices (NIDA) National Institute of Dramatic Art 2012-14.

David’s scholarly and teaching work is extensive. He completed a practice-led Ph.D. in Performance Innovation at Queensland University of Technology Creative Industries entitled Unstable Acts; a practitioner’s case study of the Poetics of Postdramatic Theatre and Intermediality in 2007, for which he won the Philip Parsons Prize for ‘Performance as Research’ from The Australian Association for Theatre, Drama and Performance Studies. Also, David worked as General Manager of Quality and Product Development and as a senior facilitator for Message Train Communication 2010-12 in Adult Learning and Development sector.

After working part-time at QUT - Performance Studies during his Ph.D. candidature from 2004, he then held the full-time position of Lecture - Performance Studies, Queensland University of Technology between 2007-09 and additionally as Adjunct Senior Lecture – James Cook University, during the same period.

Internationally, David was Artistic Director/CEO 2009-10 of Northern Ireland’s longest running educational theatre company – Replay Theatre. From 2002-04 David was Manager of Events and Entertainment at Sydney Olympic Park Authority. While from 2000-02 he was Festival Director for Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Festival, then the largest professionally curated multi-disciplinary gay and lesbian arts festival in the world. Lastly, David was Artistic Director for Riverina Theatre Company from 1996-99.

David’s independent theatre works include CRAVING 1993, his adaption of OSCAR WILDE’S DE PROFUNDIS 2015/2018 a Metro Arts, Brisbane Powerhouse and Old/boy Production, and THE EMPTY CITY 2013 a Human Company, Metro Arts and Brisbane Powerhouse production, which toured to the Awesome Festival, in Western Australia, and was winner of ‘Best Contribution to Multimedia Practice’ – The Groundlings Awards 2013.

For Bell Shakespeare, HAMLET 1993, MACBETH 1994, and TWELFTH NIGHT 1995. For Sydney Opera House Trust’s twenty-first birthday, MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM 1994 (Shakespeare meets Mendelssohn) with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. For Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, he was co-awarded ‘Best Performing Arts Event’, for Shakespeare’s VENUS AND ADONIS 1996, also David directed the Australian premier of Decent’s BABY X 2000. Both works were produced by Christine Dunstan Productions.

For La Boite Theatre, Nowra’s COSI 1995, Gow’s THE KID 1988, Sartre’s NO EXIT 1989, Dean’s LONG GONE LONESOME COWGIRLS 2005 and JAMES AND JOHNNO 2006. For New Moon Theatre Company Dario Fo’s WE CAN’T PAY? WE WON’T PAY 1990. For the Queensland Arts Council BULLY BOY 2004/05/06, and for the Brisbane Cabaret Festival, Metro Arts, Sandikat Productions, Brisbane Powerhouse and Queensland Music Festival THE LADY OF THE HOUSE OF LOVE 2005/08/11/16. Further, for Queensland Music Festival and Brisbane City Council DRAG-QUEENSLAND 2011 and for JUTE Theatre in Cairns, Beresford’s TIPTOE 2008 and Gow, Gaal and Ash’s PARADISE IS SINGING 2016.

Student productions for Australian Institute of Music, Beckett’s WAITING FOR GODOT 2020, Shakespeare’s HAMLET 2019, Wright’s PICNIC AT HANGING ROCK 2018, Shake’n Stir’s adaption of ANIMAL FARM 2017. For Queensland University of Technology, T.S Eliot’s WASTELAND 2008, Kemp’s BLACK SEQUIN DRESS 2007, WEST SIDE STORY 1997, Nowra’s CAPRICORNIA 1996 a co-production for QUT and QPAT, Romeril’s THE KELLY DANCE 1991, and Hewitt’s THE CHAPEL PERILOUS 1990. For NIDA, Berkoff’s METAMORPHOSIS 1992 (graduating production) and Brecht’s THE GOOD PERSON OF SZECHWAN 2011. For Sydney Theatre Company as Affiliate Director, David assisted Gale Edwards on Shakespeare’s CORIOLANUS 1993.

As Artistic Director of Riverina Theatre Company 1996-99 David’s directing credits include Pitt’s EMMA 1996, Robinson, Shakespeare and Taylor’s THE POPULAR MECHANICALS 1997, Herbert’s HIT AND RUN 1997, Robyn Archer’s SONGS FROM SIDESHOW ALLEY 1998, Doppio Theatro’s RICORDI 1999, Morris’ TWO WEEKS WITH THE QUEEN 1998, Michael Gow’s EUROPE 1997 and Shakespeare’s AS YOU LIKE IT 1997 and THE TAMING OF THE SHREW 1998. Community initiatives include the Aboriginal Artist-in-Residence Program 1998-99, NESB Young Women’s Verbatim Project 2000 and THE LIVING PHOTOGRAPH a verbatim theatre project with mature age people by Scott Rankin 1999.

Employment

Expertise

Post-dramatic Theatre

Directing

Intermedial Theatre

Dramaturgy

Applied Theatre

Theatre History

Shakespearian Theatre Practice

Theatre Curation/Programming

Teaching

THT1002 Making Theatre History 2

THT1003 Theatre in Communities

THT2001 The Creative Actor

THT3001 Independent Theatre Practice

THT3003 Dramaturgy and Dramatic Responsibility

Fields of Research

• 360401. Applied theatre
• 360403. Drama, theatre and performance studies
• 360499. Performing arts not elsewhere classified