Staff

Co-Director | Bec Dean
becd [at] performancespace.com.au
Bec Dean joined Performance Space as Associate Director in 2007 and became Co-Director with Jeff Khan in 2012. She is a curator and writer who trained as a visual artist. Bec was previously curator at the Australian Centre for Photography (2005-2007) and Exhibition Manager at Perth Institute of Contemporary Art (2002-2005). Bec’s curatorial interests revolve around interdisciplinary and participatory practices, performance, site-specificity, photomedia and art/science collaborations. Notable recent projects include Performance Space’s SEXES festival, co-curated with Deborah Kelly and Jeff Khan, Local Positioning Systems at MCA, Australia with Jeff Khan (2012), Awfully Wonderful: Science Fiction in Contemporary Art at Performance Space with Lizzie Muller (2011). Recent contributions in publications include the books Deborah Kelly & (Artspace, 2013) and Unsitely Aesthetics edited by Maria Miranda. She has written catalogue essays and texts for Art Gallery of NSW, Art Gallery of WA, Artspace (Sydney), the Institue of Modern Art (Brisbane), Artlines for the Queensland Art Gallery, PICA (Perth), Artlink, Art & Australia, Broadsheet, RealTime and many more. Bec is currently co-editing an issue of Artlink on gender with Johanna Mendelssohn.

Co-Director | Jeff Khan
jeffk [at] performancespace.com.au
Jeff Khan is a curator and writer working across performance, dance and the visual arts, with a particular interest in interdisciplinary projects and site-specific and socially-engaged practices. From 2006–2010 Jeff was Artistic Director of Next Wave, overseeing the development and delivery of the 2008 Next Wave Festival: CLOSER TOGETHER and the 2010 Next Wave Festival: NO RISK TOO GREAT, as well as Next Wave’s acclaimed Kickstart development program and numerous special projects. Previously, Jeff has held roles at Gertrude Contemporary Art Spaces, Melbourne, Perth Institute of Contemporary Art and John Curtin Gallery (Perth), and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum (New York). As a writer, Jeff has contributed texts to numerous publications, exhibition catalogues, magazines and artists’ projects.

General Manager | Steph Walker
stephw [at] performancespace.com.au
Steph comes to Performance Space by way of New Zealand, where she built a reputation as a leader in Performing Arts programming, management and marketing. As General Manager & Assistant Director of the Christchurch Arts Festival between 2010 – 2012 she produced a highly successful multi-arts event within a very challenging environment, and ran Community events in the worst hit areas of Christchurch for the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority. Prior to these roles she was the Programme Manager & co-General Manager at BATS Theatre in Wellington, NZ (2008-2010), where she curated an annual programme of over 50 works a year and championed new and emerging companies and their works. Steph has also been involved with Capital E National Theatre for Children (NZ), New Zealand International Arts Festival, Cardboard Citizens (UK), Manaia Maori Performing Arts (UK) and the Royal Albert Hall. Steph has also been a performer, designer, writer and producer on an ad-hoc basis for the past 12 years, as well as advising on things artistic and otherwise for arts companies around New Zealand. Steph has been on the boards of Arts Advocacy organisations in New Zealand. She holds her Masters in Arts Management with Distinction from the University of Greenwich (UK), and BA in Theatre & Media Studies with a graduate diploma in Marketing.

Production Manager | Tristan Ellis-Windsor
production [at] performancespace.com.au
Tristan Ellis-Windsor is a production and technical manager of performing and visual arts and events. Previously Tristan was Technical Manager for Company B Belvoir, overseeing more than 40 productions at Belvoir St and in other venues around Sydney. He also toured productions for Company B including extensive national and international seasons as the Production Manager of Page 8. In 2005, Tristan worked for the City of Sydney as the Harbour of Light Coordinator for Sydney New Year’s Eve, and in 2006 and 2007 was the Technical Coordinator across the entire event. Recently, Tristan worked for Ensemble Theatre as Touring and Associate Production Manager. Tristan has worked in various capacities for the Sydney Theatre Company, MSF Events, Griffin Theatre Company, the Queensland Conservatorium, TP Events, and the Queensland Performing Arts Trust, among others.

Technical Manager | Aaron Clarke
tech [at] performancespace.com.au
Aaron Clarke is a technician, musician, lighting designer/operator and A/V tech. He is largely self-taught through years of DIY show productions in the arts and music underground before becoming the Technical Supervisor, first of PACT Centre for Emerging Artists and more recently, Carriageworks. He has worked with Brown Council, Heavy Metal Work Orchestra, Ever After Theatre, and at numerous theatres and venues across NSW. As a musician, he has played in Pure Evil Trio and other bands at What is Music?, Now NOW Festival, Melbourne International Jazz Festival, Big Day Out, Punkfest (NZ) and International Noise Conference 2011 in Miami, Florida, plus many venues from the likes of Space 3 and Lanfranchi’s Memorial Discotheque to backyards and living rooms.

Producer | Tanja Farman
producer [at] performancespace.com.au
Tanja Farman is a presenter, producer and arts consultant. She is the Founder Director of queerupnorth in Manchester UK, and was the Co-Creative Producer for the Commonwealth Games Cultural Programme 2002. She has worked on a broad range of projects on both continents including producing a major ‘Cities on The Edge’ event for Liverpool European Capital of Culture, and presenting numerous Australian artists and companies in the UK including William Yang, STC, Tanja Liedtke, Chunky Move, Lucy Guerin Inc, Paul Capsis and David Page. Most recently she has worked with Australian choreographers Meryl Tankard and Shaun Parker. Tanja is on the Board of London based Moti Roti and Sydney companies Force Majeure and Urban Theatre Projects.

Development & Membership Officer | Amelia Wallin
development [at] performancespace.com.au
Amelia Wallin is an arts administrator, curator, writer and performance maker, with a particular interest in interdisciplinary arts. Amelia is currently a Co-Director of Firstdraft, and Co-Curator and project manager of the Tiny Stadiums Festival. She curates exhibitions and events with the collective Sydney Guild, and makes collaborative performance works with Friends With Deficits. Amelia holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honours, Class 1, Performance studies) and a Bachelor of Art Theory from the College of Fine Arts, University of NSW.

Marketing & Communications Officer | Leo Messias
marketing [at] performancespace.com.au

Administrator| Emi Forster
admin [at] performancespace.com.au
Emi Forster is an arts administrator, curator, choreographer and writer with a strong interest in interdisciplinary practice. She is currently undertaking a Master of Art Administration at COFA, and has a Bachelor of Dance from the Victorian College of the Arts. Emi has choreographed several dance and video works with her company The Movement, including Dust, which toured to Melbourne, Adelaide and Sydney and won the 2010 Melbourne Fringe Festival Award for Best Dance. She is Curator of the inaugural Beams Arts Festival, Chippendale, and writes for a number of Dance and Visual Arts magazines.

Indigenous Projects Officer | Alison Murphy-Oates
alimo [at] performancespace.com.au
Alison Murphy-Oates is a 24 year old Darkinjung woman from the Central Coast of NSW, and descendant of the Wiradjuri nation from Warren in the Central West of NSW. Since graduating from the BA (Design for Theatre and Television) at Charles Sturt University in 2009, Ali worked as a production assistant on the Message Sticks Film Indigenous Festival and the Luminous Festival through the Indigenous Traineeship Program at the Sydney Opera House, as well as Project Manager of IndigeLab 2009 for Performance Space. Ali joins Performance Space again after a year and a half with Arts NSW as Administrative Officer in Capacity and Development, an Aboriginal identified position supported by the NSW Government’s Elsa Dixon Employment Program. She is also currently studying a Masters (Arts Management) through the University of Technology, Sydney.

Projects Officer | Tulleah Pearce
projects [at] performancespace.com.au
Tulleah Pearce is an arts administrator, writer and emerging curator with an interest in cross-disciplinary and critically engaged artistic practices. She is currently a Director of Critical Animals creative research symposium, a component of Newcastle’s annual This is Not Art festival. In 2010 she completed her Art History thesis at COFA and graduated with a double degree in Art History and Social Science from UNSW. Tulleah has previously worked in both commercial and public art galleries, and joins Performance Space from a Projects Officer position at Blacktown Arts Centre.

Finance Officer | Rhanda Mansour
accounts [at] performancespace.com.au
Rhanda joined Performance Space in 2008 as Finance Officer, beginning her involvement with the arts community. Prior to this she had worked in the private sector in accounting and taxation for over ten years and continues to do so. Rhanda graduated with a business degree from the University of Technology, with a major in Accounting and sub-major in Small Business. She is also a Certified Practising Accountant.

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