ANNUAL REPORT 2012 3 ANNUAL REPORT 2012 6 Mission Statement 7 Board of Management 8 Chairman’s report 10 Programming Team’s report Mainstage Season 12 Summer of the Seventeenth Doll by Ray Lawler 14 Tribes by Nina Raine 16 The Seed by Kate Mulvany 18 Red by John Logan 20 Australia Day by Jonathan Biggins 22 The Heretic by Richard Bean 24 National Interest by Aidan Fennessy 26 Queen Lear by William Shakespeare 28 His Girl Friday adapted by John Guare 30 Top Girls by Caryl Churchill 32 Elling adapted by Simon Bent MTC IS A DEPARTMENT OF 34 Music by Barry Oakley THE UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE Lawler Studio Season 36 On the Production of Monsters by Robert Reid 38 The Golden Dragon by Roland Schimmelpfennig MTC Headquarters 40 Happy Ending by Melissa Reeves 252 Sturt St Touring Southbank VIC 3006 42 MTC on tour 03 8688 0900 43 Awards and nominations Southbank Theatre Literary 140 Southbank Blvd 44 Literary Manager’s report Southbank VIC 3006 44 Play readings Box Office 03 8688 0800 MTC Education mtc.com.au 46 Education Manager’s report 48 Workshops and participatory events Venues 50 Boy Girl Wall by Matthew Ryan and Lucas Stibbard 52 Helicopter by Angela Betzien Throughout 2012 MTC performed its Melbourne season of plays at the The Company MTC Theatre (Southbank Theatre), The Sumner and Lawler Studio, 54 Executive Director’s report and the Fairfax Studio and Playhouse at 56 Staff Arts Centre Melbourne. 58 Actors and artists 60 Government Support and Sponsors 62 Patrons Managing Editor Debora McInnes Graphic Designer Lydia Baic Financial report Cover Image Jeff Busby 64 Key performance indicators Production Photographers Jeff Busby, Heidrun Löhr, Gary Marsh 66 Income and expenditure 67 Audit certificate 68 Financial statements Cover Colin Friels and André de Vanny in Red MTC MISSION STATEMENT MTC BOARD OF MANAGEMENT 2012 To produce classic and contemporary Australian and international theatre with style, passion and world class artistic excellence in order to entertain, challenge and enrich audiences in Melbourne, Victoria and Australia. OBJECTIVES 1 Provide world class theatre for – Offering touring productions Derek Young AM (Chair) Colin Masters Melbourne residents and visitors by at affordable prices for venues Managing Director of Accenture Australia Ltd up Executive Director, Mental Health Research throughout Australia to 2003; Chair of Australian Major Performing Institute; Senior Deputy Director Florey Institute – Presenting a subscription season of Arts Group; Chair Accenture Australia of Neuroscience and Mental Health; Laureate plays in Melbourne – Offering a range of generally affordable Foundation; CPA/FCCA. Professor, The University of Melbourne; prices including discount for low Board member since 1 July 1994. B.Med Sc. (Hons), M.B., B.S, M.D. – Choosing plays from the world income earners Chairman since 1 June 2005. Board member since 1 January 2006. repertoire using the joint criteria of artistic quality and likely financial – Using innovative and appropriate Lyndsey Cattermole AM Terry Moran AC success marketing techniques to build Company Director of Treasury Wine Estates Ltd, Secretary of the Department of Prime Minister subscriber and single ticket sales Tatts Group Ltd, Melbourne Rebels Rugby Pty and Cabinet to 2011; Chair of the Barangaroo – Presenting a quality of performance in Melbourne. Ltd, JadeLynx Pty Ltd, Victorian Major Events Delivery Authority; Special Adviser on Public and production that acts as a Company Pty Ltd. B.Sc. Sector Reform at the Boston Consulting Group; benchmark for Australian theatre 4 Operate a cost-effective and creative Board member since 3 June 2002. Chair Cranlana Programme; Board Member theatre company by – Supporting the University of Melbourne Grattan Institute; Senior Adviser at Maddocks Glyn Davis AC law firm; Governor of the Committee for Economic in contributing to and expanding the – Budgeting for modest annual operating Development of Australia; BA (Hons); AC. cultural life of Melbourne. surplus to build a reasonable working Vice Chancellor, The University of Melbourne; Board member since January 2012. fund Professor of Political Science; past Chair, 2 Contribute to the development of Universities Australia; B.A (Hons), PhD, D.Lit. Australian theatre by – Selecting repertoire to minimise box AC, FASSA. Martyn Myer AO office risk while meeting the artistic Board member since 1 January 2005. Chairman, Myer Family Company Holdings – Commissioning, workshopping and mission Ltd; Member of the Council of the University presenting new Australian writing Jonathan Feder of Melbourne; Chairman of Cogstate Limited; B.Mech Eng, M.Eng. Science, M. Sc in – Operating a Company in which Partner at K & L Gates; Theatre Producer (JAF – Providing employment and continuous improvement occurs in Management, FIEA. Productions and Two Left Feet Productions); Board member since 1 January 2011. development opportunities for both the working environment and B.Laws (Hons), B.Sc. Australian and particularly Melbourne work practices Board member since 1 June 2010. actors, directors, designers, theatre Brett Sheehy AO technicians, craftspeople and – Within the financial limitations of the Gillian Franklin Artistic Director of MTC administrators Company, creating an employment Board member since 1 January 2012. Founder and Managing Director of The Heat environment in which people are Group; Board member of Cosmetic, Toiletry – Supporting the theatre industry rewarded for hard work, initiative, Ann Tonks through help for smaller theatre and Fragrance Association of Australia (CFTA), creativity and commitment ACCORD, The Heat Group and Australian Executive Director of MTC. B.Ec (Hons), MBA. companies and through participation Formula 1 Grand Prix. Board member since 16 August 1994. in industry forums. – Within the financial limitations of Board member since 15 September 2006. the Company, improving the working 3 Build an audience for live theatre in Conditions and Environmental Health Ian Marshman Australia by and Safety standards of staff and Senior Vice-Principal, University of Melbourne – Providing an entertaining educational contractors. Chair of the Universitas 21 Managers Group; program for Victorian students with 5 Build a working capital base to Director of Headspace National Youth Mental the majority of costs recovered from ensure the long term survival of the Health Foundation; Chair, VTAC Committee of fees and box office Management; BA (Honours), LLB. Company by building a working capital Board member since 1 January 2009. fund at the recommended Australia Council level of 15–20% of turnover. 7 CHAIRMAN’S REPORT For Melbourne Theatre Company, Artistic Vibrancy Once again, the grant we received from the 2012 was unusual in that we did not We were extremely fortunate to have the State Government of $503,187 was almost outstanding troika of Robyn Nevin, Pamela completely negated by the payroll tax have a full time Artistic Director for we (uniquely amongst Victorian not-for- most of the year, as Brett Sheehy Rabe and Aidan Fennessy program our 2012 season. The season commenced with profit arts organisations) paid to the State fulfilled his commitments to the a revival of the classic Australian drama Government. Melbourne Festival. In addition, Summer of the Seventeenth Doll and Ann Tonks, our Executive Director ended with the world premiere of Barry Corporate Governance for eighteen years, decided it was Oakley’s Music. Our productions excited, The Board of MTC met eleven times during time to try something new and polarised and challenged our audiences 2012 and, I believe, provided effective and critics. Notwithstanding the absence oversight and governance to the Company. left the Company. As I said at the of a full time Artistic Director, the sheer I wish to thank all Board members for the several farewell events for Ann in professionalism and dedication of all our time, effort and passion they put into the December, she has been the heart people ensured our productions were of Company during the year. and soul of the Company, carefully the highest quality. nurturing our finances, our staff Conclusion and our audiences to build us into Audiences Finally, on behalf of the board I would like the robust successful company we We sold 257,000 tickets during 2012 to thank all of our people for delivering yet and pleasingly just under 30,000 were another outstanding year of theatre for see today. to audience members under thirty. our audiences. Our Education Program reached more than 7,000 students and teachers with our production of Boy Girl Wall proving particularly popular. Financial Results Derek Young AM Financial sustainability is a continuing challenge for performing arts organisations. As usual, we budgeted for a breakeven result in 2012. In the event, we achieved a small operating surplus of $8,895. This result was augmented by two extraordinary items, the extension season of The Importance of Being Earnest and the payment of a major insurance claim, resulting in a total surplus for the year of $922,456. 9 PROGRAMMING TEAM REPORT The slogan for MTC’s Season 2012 was introducing this iconic Australian play to a Executive Director Ann Tonks delivered Don’t Miss the Moment, which was new generation and reviving memories for into our hands the task of programming certainly apt for the three of us in the the rest of us. The newer Australian work, a season, and it was our great delight to Programming Team. Approached to create Kate Mulvany’s The Seed, Jonathan Biggins’s watch that gift being passed down the line: just one MTC mainstage season, filling in Australia Day, Aidan Fennessy’s National to directors, to designers, to the craftsmen the programming duties between the out- Interest (a co-production with Black Swan and professionals in every department in going Artistic Director Simon Phillips and State Theatre Company) and Barry Oakley’s the Company, to the actors and, finally to the in-coming Brett Sheehy, none of us Music, showed the breadth and depth of our audiences. was going to let the moment slip by.